The Junior Livestock Auction, and that moment when the students step into the auction ring, is the culmination of all that education and hard work.
A (quick) stroll through the Eastern New Mexico State Fair Junior Livestock Auction
The Junior Livestock Auction of the Eastern New Mexico State Fair was held on Saturday, October 8th.
Despite the overcast skies, the Junior Livestock Auction was packed with enthusiastic competitors from FFA and 4-H. Anywhere you looked, there was livestock being walked to the auction ring, champions getting their pictures taken post auction, lots of laughs, old friends seeing each other and, as a backdrop for the day, the constant chatter of the auctioneer as he called out the bids from the buyers.
Students in FFA and 4-H spend a great deal of time getting educated on not only raising livestock; they also learn the entire business.
As they go through their respective program, students learn about feeding their animals along with how much feed costs, how to do a profit and loss statement, and the right exercise for their animal.
By the time FFA and 4-H students leave high school, they have a broad education in agricultural sciences (AG) and are able to take that education further into a number of complementary professions that work in, or parallel to, AG.
The Junior Livestock Auction, and that moment when the students step into the auction ring, is the culmination of all that education and hard work.
Getting ready for the next auction.
Managing the Chaos
There are a lot of moving parts in managing a successful livestock auction. Things need to keep moving, and that takes people.
Helping run this year’s Junior Livestock Auction were state officers from the New Mexico FFA. The State Secretary, Elida Miller, deserves special mention. As the livestock moved from pen to sale ring to photo backdrop, Ms. Miller never stopped moving.
What made her efforts impressive was her black medical boot she had to wear due to an injury. Showing grit as she hustled, Ms. Miller kept moving, making sure the auction came off without a hitch. These young leaders were busy. There was paperwork, people, and livestock to manage, and the FFA Officers made it seem like any other day. Saying these young leaders are impressive is an understatement.
Watching the bidders and calling out the bids as they come in.
Support from the community
Junior livestock auctions have their own stories; every student and their prize animal is a story unto itself, and all those journeys culminate in the livestock auction.
Often, animals are bid on by a student’s family members and family friends as well as the public. There are times when some students may not have as large of a support system as others, but everyone in the community believes that every student deserves recognition for the hard work they did, and this is where supporting companies help fill the gap.
This year saw 116 kids auction their animals, and Pattern Energy was proud to support 35 of those competitors by doing “add ons. ” What this means is that after an auction officially ends, there is a short interval where “add on funds” can be pledged.
As the animals are sold, those that didn’t get as high a sale price as the average among the rest can get dollars added to their sale price.
Jeremy Turner, Director of New Mexico Project Development for Pattern Energy, was at the auction to do add ons.
Investing in New Mexico and in particular, its youth and time-honored traditions, is an important part of Pattern Energy’s presence in the state.
“I love this part of my job,” Turner said. “Every one of these kids has poured their heart into these animals, and supporting them is the right thing to do.”
Bidders who are participating in this long tradition