Iowa Cattlemen’s Foundation Second year participants take top honors in Extravaganza

Pictured are (l-r) Marshall Ruble, Iowa Cattleman’s Association, Aubree Beenken, North Tama FFA, Meg Edler, Gladbrook-Reinbeck FFA and Kellie Carolan, Iowa Cattleman’s Association.

AMES, IOWA A returning duo of high school seniors from North Tama and Gladbrook-Reinbeck High Schools took home the top scholarship prizes at the Beef Scholarship Extravaganza hosted by the Iowa Cattlemen’s Foundation on Dec. 12. FFA students Aubree Beenken, Buckingham, and Meg Edler, Gladbrook, will each receive $1,500 in scholarship money.

Beef Extravaganza took place at the Hansen Ag Learning Center on the Iowa State University campus, and 22 teams competed. The scholarship event, which is for students interested in cattle and beef production, involved 53 high school students from around Iowa. They competed for cash scholarship awards for the top four teams that totaled $7,650. Students were challenged at 10 different stations to demonstrate their skills and knowledge.

The second place team, from Seymour Community Schools FFA, also included a second-year participant. Cendra Sebolt, Seymour, returned with a new team member, Anthony Furlin, Numa, to earn $1,125 each in scholarship money.

Maquoketa Valley FFA was the third place team. Senior Trent Westhoff, Dyersville, and junior Andrew Palmersheim, Manchester, earned $750 each. The fourth place team from Maquoketa FFA was the senior team of Cale Gent, Monmouth; Ben Kilburg, and Wade Gerlach, Delmar; each won $300 scholarships. i

Scholarship dollars won at the Extravaganza can be used at any university or community college. In addition, if the student will be attending Iowa State University College of Agriculture, Kirkwood Community College, Hawkeye Community College, Muscatine Community College, Des Moines Area Community College or Iowa Lakes Community College, those institutions offer additional matching scholarships to students on the top four teams.

Team scores at the 10 different stations were added to determine the winners. Each station tested specific skills and knowledge of the students. Teams scoring the highest number of points at each station were also awarded plaques, which were sponsored by Farm Credit Services of America. Those station winners are:

Handling and Health Seymour FFA.

Nutrition Tall Corn FFA; the team includes senior Joe DeVries of Sheffield and juniors Lauren Dirksen and Brooke Benning, both of Hampton.

Marketing Pleasantville FFA; the team is comprised of seniors Hagen Fouch, Pleasantville, and Kiley Elder, Pella.

Seedstock Maquoketa Valley FFA.

Keep/Cull Replacement Heifers Pleasantville FFA.

Job Interview North Tama and Gladbrook-Reinbeck FFA team.

Industry Issues Seymour FFA.

Reproduction Seymour FFA.

Credit and Finance North Tama and Gladbrook-Reinbeck FFA team.

Beef Management Mediapolis FFA team of seniors Lane Eads, Mt. Union, and Wyatt Orr and Mikala Denney, both Mediapolis.

Sponsors of the event are: Farm Credit Services of America; Purina Animal Nutrition, LLC; Iowa Beef Breeds Council; Iowa State University; Muir Embroidery; and Iowa Cattlemen’s Foundation.

The Iowa Cattlemen’s Foundation sponsors several scholarship and learning opportunities for young people. Find out more by visiting their website www.iowacattlemensfoundation.org.