Thank You
Most of us still remember our first livestock showing experience. I know I do. I was just a little mop-headed girl with my Hereford calf. It was the Hooker County Fair in the Nebraska Sandhills, and I loved Herfy more than anything in the world. We’d spent all spring and summer together, and this was my time to shine. But, wait. I had competition. It was one of the Tucker kids. They were older than me, more experienced and polished than me. They were destined to do better than I would. They did. However, Herfy still helped me win my first little reserve champion trophy, more than 4 decades ago.
I owe that little red and white calf some gratitude. Herfy instilled in me a love for the show ring, taught me how to care for an animal bigger than a cat, dog, or chicken, and showed me that it is okay to be beaten by the good ones. I’ve had the opportunity to become friends and colleagues with the Tucker family over the years—both of them are wonderful professionals, and one even works at BioZyme®! Although Herfy and I parted ways, I still remember her fondly, and I owe a debt of gratitude to her.
Lessons Learned Beyond the Show Ring
What about Denver? Not the city that hosts one of my favorite stock shows. Denver was one of the first registered ewes I raised from a baby, showed, and put back into production. She was out of one of my original Rask Hampshire ewes, and when she was born, her long, wobbly legs were “a mile long,” thus her name. Denver was a spirited little ewe, and she loved me, but not my dad. She turned into a fantastic show ewe, and we even competed in ladies’ lead together, which my daughter laughs at all these years later.
Denver taught me that I could raise and market great animals to other breeders and 4-H exhibitors. I don’t recall that she ever gave birth to a ewe lamb. However, each lambing season, she would give birth to a set of twins, and they were either sold as rams to our customers or became competitive market show lambs. She lived for a long time. If embryo transfer had existed in the 1980s, Denver would have been a great donor prospect.
Later in life, I became a show mom. Hambone and Bacon – my daughter’s very first show pigs – taught me some lessons and helped me teach even more important lessons. She was four that summer we jackpotted and went to several Illinois county fairs, as well as the famous Illinois State Fair Pee Wee Show.
Hambone and Bacon, a cross and Poland barrow, respectively, were two great beginner pigs for Lily. They taught her some basic swine showmanship and animal care. However, the more important lesson I’m grateful for is teaching her where her food comes from. It’s hard to get attached to these show animals, but as we’ve taught her from the start, every animal has a purpose. For market animals, their purpose is to provide protein for humans.
After several years of showing pigs and now processing at least one per year, she’ll ask as we sit down to a weekend breakfast, “Who are we eating today? Is this bacon from Roper or Wrangler?” She knows that every market animal has a purpose, and for that, I am truly grateful.
Letters of Gratitude
At Sure Champ®, we don’t just help young people prep to win in the show ring. We want to help them prep to win at life – creating leaders both in and outside of our great industry. That’s why we thought it would be worthwhile to hear about how some of our own Sure Champ Champions are thankful for their animals. Let’s read the letters of appreciation they have shared with the special animals over their short show careers.
From Texas
Dear Lela,
I love how you always walk with a little attitude. My favorite picture of us in the ring is shaking the judge’s hand during our big win. You’re so pretty, and I can’t wait to show your babies next year. Thanks for being my best show ewe and now soon-to-be momma!
You are the BEST ewe ever! Thank you for always strutting your stuff in the show ring. Winning Grand Champion Commercial Ewe at San Antonio was amazing, and I couldn’t have done it without you.
Love always,
Staten
Dear Nathan,
Thank you so much for letting me show you at Houston. You were the best lamb ever! Winning Grand Champion is the coolest thing I’ve ever done, and I couldn’t have done it without you. You showed so good on the green shavings, and I’m really proud we made such a good team.
I’ll never forget our win, and I’ll always be thankful for you. You’re not just my best lamb; you’re my favorite memory.
Thanks for everything,
Shep
From Illinois
Dear Cheeze-It,
Thank you for being one of my best buddies over the summer. Thanks for teaching me important lessons. Lessons like never giving up, even when you really want to. Like working hard with your animals so that you can do really well.
Because you know that I will not always be with you, even though you will always be with me. We both went through some good times and bad times. We had a lot of fun over the summer, and those memories will always be with us. Even though I said some hurtful things, things I never meant to say, you still loved me. Even though you did some hurtful things, I still loved you. Thank you for being a role model. Love you, Cheeze-it.
Love,
Lily
From Arkansas
Dear Coco,
As my show heifer, you may not have brought home any ribbons, but you’ve become one of the most valuable cows in our herd. You taught me one of the hardest life lessons — that good things take time.
While you never won in the ring, you are now producing national champions, proving your worth in ways that go far beyond a show day. My dad and I always joke, as we ride through the cattle, that you are the best one that never won anything — and we mean it. Coco, your legacy is a quiet reminder that sometimes the greatest successes come after the spotlight has faded.
Thank you,
Kix Lee
Sure Champ is the Common Thread
A heifer in Arkansas that becomes a top-producing cow, the grand champion Market Lamb in Houston, and a market goat that teaches life lessons all share a common bond. The exhibitors and their families all feed Sure Champ.
At Sure Champ, we are glad to have been in the business of helping animals overcome challenges for 40 years. Who knows? If Sure Champ had been around when I showed Herfy, maybe she would have been champion instead of reserve all those years ago!
As we continue our 40th birthday celebration, we know that we would not be here without animals that need our support and the exhibitors that feed them.
The motto ” Care that comes full circle” is what our BioZyme employees live by each day. We hope that as you get some new stock into your barn this fall or say some final farewells to those that reach their end points, you take time to thank them.
Thank those animals who have made a difference in your lives. We all have a Herfy or Denver to be grateful for. The animals might not stay with us forever, but the lessons and the memories last a lifetime.
