Stock show fundraising starts
By Sam Waller
With the Shackelford Youth and Livestock Show just four weeks away, exhibitors are busy getting their animals ready, while members of the Shackelford Youth and Livestock Association are working to make the event a success.
The 2023 show is scheduled for Thursday-Saturday, Jan. 19-21.
The association board met Tuesday, Dec. 6 to hash out final details and job assignments for the show. Association president Bronco Askew said there won’t be many changes to the show’s operation.
“We’ll pretty well stay right in the middle like we always have,” Askew said. “As we go along during this slump we’re in, we’re just trying to have a good stock show and make it worthwhile for the kids to participate.”
One big change to the show is the addition of a commercial steer class. Askew said the class will be judged around 3:00 p.m. on the Friday of the show.
“It will be after we show pigs, sheep, and goats,” he said. “The plan is to go out to the old railroad pens on Cook Field Road. The cattle will not be haltered. They’ll be in pens.”
Askew said commercial steers will be eligible for the auction at the end of the show.
“These will be just like a regular entry,” he said. “Each exhibitor will have two steers. They’ll be just like any other project if they go through the premium sale.”
Albany FFA adviser Chris Beard said exhibitors need to take particular care of animals during the cold snap expected to hit Shackelford County this weekend.
“The kids will need to make sure their animals have plenty of fresh water two or three times a day,” he said. “Animals use a lot of energy to stay warm in these conditions, and they’ll consume a lot of water. The animals should have fresh hay, a heat lamp, and plenty of feed and water.”
Once the weather warms back up, Beard said, the process will have to be reversed.
“You’ll need to get your animals out and exercise them after they’ve been cooped up for a few days,” he said.
Fundraising
The association is soliciting donations and holding raffles to raise money for the show.
Askew said letters seeking donations are being prepared for mailing.
“In January, we’ll start making personal contacts,” he said. “A lot of our folks still like that.”
With 185 participants and 259 animal entries, the stock show is the largest extracurricular activity for Shackelford County youth. All donations go to cover the show’s expenses, such as ribbons, belt buckles, supplies, and premium money. Excess funds will be distributed to all participants through the bidders pool.
Donations may be mailed to Shackelford Youth and Livestock Association, Attn: Molly Cauble, PO Box 2439, Albany TX 76430. Checks should be made payable to Shackelford Youth and Livestock Association.
Raffles for a shotgun and a processed hog will augment the donations. The processed hog is being donated by Dusty and Jodee Grun of Coleman County Processing.
Raffle tickets may be purchased from any Shackelford County FFA or 4-H member. Tickets for the shotgun are $5 for one or $20 for five. Tickets for the processed hog are $1 for one or $5 for six.
Tickets may also be purchased at the stock show. Sales end at noon Saturday, Jan. 21, with drawings held at 1:00 p.m.
One change this year has a gift certificate for the value of the shotgun being presented instead of an actual firearm.
“We’re going to advertise it as a gun, then we’re going to buy a gift certificate for how much the gun costs, and the winner can go buy the gun,” Beard said. “We have to do it that way because of the need for background checks.”
