L to R:  Dr. Lisa Diaz, Director Illinois 4-H; Dawn Irwin; Jacob Raber; Addison Raber; Miss Illinois County Fair Queen, Samantha Hasselbring; and Dave Fischer, IL 4-H Dairy Program Coordinator.
 

2018 Superior Young Dairy Producer Award Winners at Illinois State Fair

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[September 05, 2018]  The 2018 Superior Young Dairy Producer Award (SYDPA) program was held August 18, at the Illinois State Fair.

Twenty 4-H dairy project members from across Illinois took part in the event.

The purpose of the contest is to create an educational activity that promotes youth development, career development, and personal growth through increased knowledge of the dairy industry.

This three-phase competition emphasizes knowledge of the dairy industry. The “top three” overall participants were awarded with a $1,000 scholarship.

The $3,000 in scholarships was sponsored by Compeer Financial and awarded to:

  • Rachel Scidmore, Chadwick, IL (Carroll County)

  • Addison Raber, Gridley, IL (Livingston, County)

  • Lane Heinzmann, Carlyle, IL (Clinton County)

Individual plaques, sponsored by Land of Lincoln Purebred Livestock Breeders Association and Illinois State Fair, were awarded to the “top 3” in each phase and the “top 3” overall winners.

The first phase was a dairy management test relating to dairy nutrition, health, reproduction, milk marketing, and other dairy related information.

The second phase was a three station skill-a-thon on various aspects of the dairy industry. Contestants had to identify dairy feeds, identify, understanding DHI information, and identify dairy equipment.

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The third phase of the Superior Young Dairy Producer Contest was a judging contest. The judging phase consisted of animal selection by placing four classes of dairy cows and two classes of heifers.

The top three contestants receiving a plaque for this phase were:

  • Jacob Raber, Gridley, IL (Livingston County)

  • Addison Raber, Gridley, IL (Livingston County)

  • Dawn Irwin, Beason, IL (Logan County)

This year marked the 23rd consecutive year for the Superior Young Dairy Producer Award program which has provided $111,000 in college scholarships to Illinois dairy youth since its inception. The program is developed and conducted by Dave Fischer, 4-H Extension Dairy Program Coordinator.

About 4-H: Illinois 4-H strives to help youth learn skills for living. University of Illinois Extension provides 4-H programs in every county in Illinois. Illinois 4-H aims to impact the lives of 200,000 youth each year through sustained learning clubs and groups and short-term programming.

[Patty Huffer
Extension Program Coordinator
University of Illinois Extension]

 

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