Waggener, the 18-year-old daughter of Howard and Lisa Waggener, will graduate high school this May. She is active in the NJAA, the Kentucky Junior Angus Association and the Central Kentucky Junior Angus Association, where she has held several leadership positions. She has shown her Angus in numerous shows at the local, state, and national levels. She has participated in the quiz bowl and the All-American Certified Angus Beef ® Cook-off at the National Junior Angus Show. She has been a member of the National Junior Angus Association since 2000.

The Bronze and Silver Awards are the first two levels of the National Junior Angus Association Recognition Program that began in 1972. Junior Angus breeders must apply for the awards and then meet point requirements in many areas of participation before receiving the honors.

OSU judging team placed second in All-East contest
BLACKSBURG, Va. — The Ohio State University (OSU) Livestock Judging Team recently placed second in the All-East Evaluation, Selection and Judging contest. Stacy Johnson of Minerva, Ohio paced the Buckeyes, finishing fifth in the three-day event where students evaluated 118 head of beef cattle, sheep and hogs.

OSU placed second in the market animal evaluation portion behind the University of Illinois, which was the high team for the combined event. OSU also placed fifth in breeding animal selection and fifth in the judging contest among 11 teams from schools east of the Mississippi River.

Johnson was also eighth in judging and eighth in evaluation. Kay Ruck of Geneva, Ohio, was tenth overall and sixth in evaluation; Cassie Mumaw of New Philadelphia, Ohio, was seventh in evaluation; Billy Finissi of Columbus, Ohio, was ninth and Roy Ulrich of West Alexandria, Ohio, was tenth. Other team members include Ryan Alty of Mechanicsburg, Ohio and Jennifer Hines of Piqua, Ohio.

The team is coached by Greg Meyer and Tom Turner.

Jay County FFA hosted annual banquet and auction
PORTLAND, Ind. — The Jay County FFA annual Parent/Member Banquet and Auction, April 7, was deemed a success by the chapter. Indiana FFA State Sentinel Nathan Lehman was the special guest.

The honor of the night went to Walter Heidegger, as he was inducted into the Ag Hall of Fame and made an honorary member of the Jay County FFA. His contributions to his community span across several areas, including Extension, SWCD and FFA.

In addition to the honorary degree, many awards were presented, including two scholarships to Valerey Muhlenkamp ($2,000) and Trent Muhlenkamp ($1,000).

One of the major highlights of the evening is the student job opportunity auction, where students work eight hours learning about career fields and get paid as a donation to the FFA. More than $33,000 was donated in the name of this program. This helped the chapter add to its scholarship endowment, which is now more than $100,000 and helps more than a half dozen students pursue higher education in a variety of vocations.

“It is the dedicated support of the community that has helped us become one of the best supported FFA programs in the state,” said Robert C. Lyons, chapter advisor. Community support has carried over to a remodeling project for the vocational department that will see more than $2.5 million invested into the vocational programs.

-Submitted by Ashley Shawver, Jay County FFA Reporter

District 1 FFA holds Small Engines CDE
PENTA COUNTY, Ohio — The District 1 FFA Small Engines CDE (Career Development Event) was recently held at Penta County. The Small Engines Contest is a practical method of testing students’ skills to properly disassemble, repair and perform preventative maintenance skills on a small gas engine.

Penta Career Center took first place in the team competition, followed by Elmwood, Bowling Green, Oak Harbor and Ayersville. Rounding out the top 10 teams were Four County, Edgerton, Patrick Henry, Delta and Anthony Wayne.

Oak Harbor’s A. J. Weidner was the top individual at the contest. Willem VanRooijen of Penta Career Center placed second, followed by Matt Casey of Elmwood. Penta Career Center students, Jay Parks and Kevin Schwartz, rounded out the top five.

The Ohio District I FFA also had its spring judging contest in late March at the Fulton County Fairgrounds, Wauseon, Ohio. Six Career Development Events (CDEs) were held.

The General Livestock CDE is designed to teach students about quality production animals. Area placings included Archbold, second; Pettisville, fourth; Otsego, fifth; Edgerton, sixth; Patrick Henry, seventh; and Holgate, eighth.

In the FFA Meats CDE, students ID cuts of meat, develop entry-level employment knowledge and recognize quality meat products. The winning team was Anthony Wayne. In second place was Wauseon; Delta, third; Elmwood, fourth; Archbold, fifth; and Patrick Henry, eighth.

In the Wildlife CDE, students identified game birds, plants, sport fish and mammal specimens. Delta took second; Anthony Wayne, fourth; Tinora, sixth; Pettisville, ninth; and Wauseon, tenth.

In the Nature Interpretation CDE, students identified songbirds, wildflowers, amphibians and reptiles. Delta placed second; Holgate, seventh; and Otsego, tenth.

In the Equine CDE, Otsego placed second; Wauseon, third; Anthony Wayne, fourth; Elmwood, fifth; and Pettisville, seventh. In the Poultry CDE, Delta took second; Wauseon, third; Anthony Wayne, fourth; Elmwood, fifth; Otsego, sixth; and Paulding, eighth.

This farm news was published in the May 10, 2006 issue of Farm World.