MT. GILEAD—After hours of competition, the 2021 Morrow County Fair’s Showman of Showmen was crowned.
Cassady Healea, a Northmor grad, second-year agronomy student at Wilmington College, is a member of the Johnsville Jolly Farmers 4-H club, where she shows pigs.
“Showman of showmen has always been a goal of mine, and last year with covid, I didn’t get to participate because the contest wasn’t held, so this year I knew I only had one chance at winning showman of showmen and that I had to go out and give it my all,” Healea said.
For Healea, her favorite part of the Showman of Showmen experience was winning the sheep showmanship portion of the competition. “The first time I had ever touched a sheep was the night before showman of showmen. I had actually gone to my ag teacher and asked him for help because I’ve never shown a sheep before or ever even really handled one other than on a lead rope, and obviously, you don’t show them that way in showmanship, so I asked them the night before for help for showman of showmen, and they gave me a crash, five-minute course on sheep showmanship and I went out and, well it’s all a blur from the time I walked into the ring to when I realized there were only four people left, and seeing him name fourth, third, and second, before he pointed to me for first, was just exhilarating because I didn’t expect to win the sheep showmanship portion.”
Chickens, however, were her least favorite, “I had never handled a chicken before, so getting it out of the cage was something I had never done. It feels weird if you have never touched a chicken before. I imagine that’s what a brain would feel like. That wasn’t the one I did the least good in, but it was definitely the one I was dreading before the contest started.”
Healea’s advice to younger individuals in 4-H who are looking to do well in showmanship and maybe be able to participate in Showman of Showmen was to make sure to talk to a person in each species and know basic questions because that could make a world of difference in scoring. She also suggested knowing the basics of showmanship, like always keeping your animal between you and the judge.
When commenting on her overall experience, Healea said, “I am very happy that my county fair puts on a contest like this – it’s been quite the fair week and ending it with Showman of Showmen, which as I see it as the award at this county fair, was me coming full circle because the award for Showman of Showmen is sponsored by the person who got my family into showing pigs.”
The runner-up in the contest was Highland senior Emma Hinkle. Hinkle, a member of the Grass Roots and Boots 4-H club, was a dairy feeder representative.
“My favorite part of Showman of Showmen was finding out how to show other animals. I won dairy feeder showmanship last year, so I had the whole week, and I spent the whole week figuring it out. I went to the poultry show, and I asked the judge how to do it because I wanted to do good,” Hinkle said.
Unlike Healea, Hinkle’s least favorite species to show were the hogs. “Maybe I just got a bad hog, but my hog was reckless. She was running back and forth, and I was just awkwardly by myself, and I wished I wasn’t, so I think that was my worst one.”
When asked what advice she would give to younger individuals who want to do well and potentially participate in Showman of Showmen one day, she said, “Whatever animal you love and love to work with, I say work hard and when you go out, present yourself and your animal. Make sure if you are asked questions, you speak clearly and confidently. If your animal is acting up, stay calm and relaxed – don’t show the judge that you’re afraid to be out there.”
Hinkle’s favorite part of the experience was meeting new people and being able to say that she has now shown all the species at the fair.
In Morrow County’s version of Showman of Showmen, anyone who is in 4-H and won senior showmanship, not just for the current year, is able to enter themselves into the competition. Exhibitors then compete against each other, showing all the species the fair has. If you win senior showmanship with your species, you are not required to participate in the competition. This year’s competition saw seventeen exhibitors.
The representatives are as follows:
Jordan Schaur – horses
Leslie Brubaker – sheep
Megan Beck – pygmy goats
Elizabeth Leonard – dairy/dairy feeder
Cassady Healea – swine
Emma Hinkle – dairy feeders
Olivia Serio – dairy goats
Sage Whetnall – poultry
Lydia Leonard – dairy/dairy feeder
Kelsie Whisman – market goats
Alana Parsons – rabbits
Jed Adams – dairy/dairy feeders
Hunter Dye – dairy goats, poultry, dairy
Olivia Looker – sheep
Katelyn Votaw – dairy goats
Hayden Styer – rabbits
Dana Bertle – horses