Hello, my name is Cole Murphy. I am from Houstonia, Missouri and am the son of Brent and DeEtta Murphy. I am currently a sophomore at Lakeland College in Mattoon, Illinois and am a member of the livestock judging team. Growing up, I was constantly surrounded by livestock; my family operates a 250 head cow-calf operation consisting of Simmental and Angus seedstock, along with my growing herd of Herefords. My little brother, Ty, and I enjoy showing pigs at all levels of competition as well as Ty starting to grow a love for the goat industry. It was a combination of my upbringing in livestock and traveling when I was younger to watch my biggest role model, my Dad, judge shows that made me realize livestock judging in college was a path I was interested in. Living only 60 miles east of Kansas City, the American Royal has always been one of my family’s favorite shows to attend and one we always look forward to. For the first time in 12 years I would not enter the ring during a show, but my role changed as I competed in the judging contest. As many of my fellow competitors can attest, not only was the quality of livestock incredibly high, but the challenges within the contest were tough to navigate. When my back turned and I saw these challenges, I told myself to keep my placings as big picture as possible- as overthinking classes is a strong characteristic of mine. Once the dust settled and the points were tallied, I was fortunate enough to be named the High Individual Overall in the junior college division; a goal I had set long ago. That evening and for days to come, I was unsure as to when the reality of this momentous occasion in my life would actually set in. Winning the American Royal judging contest meant more to me than I could fit in a 500 page book, let alone this 500 word article. Knowing all of the talented stockmen who have won this contest, and being able to add my name to that list was truly special. With all of this being said, I would never have been able to get to where I am without the best support system I could ask for. From my parents and my brother to Olivia Loges and Brent, Taylor, and Graham Boland- I am blessed with incredible people in my corner to push me every to get better single day. Beyond this, I am thankful for all 13 of my teammates who have not only pushed to make me better; but I can now consider them my closest friends and will be sad when life after Lakeland takes us all on our separate paths. As I was looking at colleges during my senior year of high school, ultimately there was one factor that made me know Mattoon would be my home for the next couple years, Hayden Wilder. From our first encounters I was unaware of the impact he would have on me as not only an evaluator; but also a person. And finally thank you to the Showtimes for asking me to write this article, and the American Royal for putting on a truly first-class contest that I will not soon forget. If readers of any age take away from this article it’s this one thing; if you dream big and work hard; no matter the obstacles- anything is possible. •
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HIGH INDIVIDUAL O V E R A L L COLE MURPHY
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