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NEW MEMBER JAN 2026
HALL OF FAME
In a box tucked away in my mom’s home office, there is a small green placing card. On its back are scribbles and complaints about Angus feedlot steers and judging a class with only three ewes. That card is from my very first livestock judging contest in fifth grade, when I dropped 51 off the floor, nervously gave my first set of reasons and yet somehow managed to win the elementary division. Despite my shaky start, that contest was the spark that lit my livestock judging journey. I am very fortunate that I had a mentor along the way who encouraged my brother and I to hone our livestock judging skills. Cassie Wallpe, an area FFA teacher who served as our
sheep showing mentor, nurtured that flicker of interest I’d developed in livestock judging. She encouraged my brother, Luke, and I to travel with her team to a contest in March 2017, and that single trip changed everything. Judging became a major passion for me. Fast forward to the summer of 2019 and my interest in judging escalated. Prior to that year, my brother and I showed Hereford cattle and attended the Junior National Hereford Expo to avoid competing against heifers our family had sold. That year the American Junior Simmental National Classic was close to home in Louisville, Kentucky, so we decided to participate. Although I’d been around
AJSA shows, I experienced firsthand the workload that comes with all the speeches, reasons, sales talks, quizzes, showmanship, and caring for cattle. While it was exhausting, it was also exhilarating and really fueled my competitive drive. I was lucky enough to have a lot of success that week, both in and out of the ring. I was Reserve Champion Junior Showman and showed the Grand Champion Steer. I also won the Junior Sales Talk Division. I was pumped about these wins, but that I remember most from the entire week was a visit that Dr. Blake Bloomberg made to our stalls. After sharing a few stories about the glory days with my dad, he turned to
my brother and me and asked us about our goals for the future. I answered the same as my brother and told him I had the goal of competing in livestock judging in college. He may have been joking when he asked if I’d come judge for him in college, but I wasn’t when I told him I would. I had always looked up to how he’d coached his livestock judging teams and had become a respected cattle judge. Although I was just 13 years old, I knew livestock judging was my sport and I wanted Blake to be my coach. My mom is always sharing inspirational quotes and messages with my brother and I, at work and on Facebook. I’ll admit most of it doesn’t sink in, but every
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