Annual livestock show is a family affair for many

Founded in 1939, the Kendall County Junior Livestock Show and Sale provides youth as young as 7 years old and up to seniors in high school the opportunity to exhibit livestock to the community and develop valuable skills inside and outside the show ring. And for many families, the heritage of this event runs through generations of dedicated parents and children.

For the Hohmanns, who participated in Monday’s swine competition, the first day of the KCJLA show was an important milestone in the family tradition of livestock. Seven-year-old Cooper Hohmann was finally old enough to show his pig at the event, representing a big step in his agriculture journey.

He stepped into the ring ready and eager as mom Lori Hohmann watched from the rails and reminisced on her own experiences in the livestock show.

“Working with animals to prepare for shows teaches kids a different kind of responsibility and dedication,” Lori said.

She used the chilly January morning as an example when she noted that, “it was 14 degrees out this morning, and us and the kids are still out here.”

Lori said that her entire family is involved in the stock show world. Her brother-in-law, Michael Woerndel, teaches agriculture science at Navarro High School, and he said that “learning about agriculture through stock shows teaches kids responsibility, and they really have a good time.”

Lori’s father and Cooper’s grandfather, Larry Langbein, added that all of the hard work “pays off in the end” as Lori was able to earn scholarships for college to pursue a degree in agriculture.

For her family last week, Lori said that the same tenacity applies to their everyday routine.

“Most nights, or, really, all nights,” she said, “our pigs get fed their dinner before we do. It’s a way of life, and we wouldn’t know anything different.”

As the youngest of the family, even 3-year-old Camdyn Hohmann gets in on the action. During Monday’s swine show, she dutifully shadowed her older brother, practicing for the day when she, too, will be big enough for a county show. Mother Lori said, similarly to the other Hohmanns, Camdyn has a “natural drive for animals, and it shows already.”

Many of the families at the KCJLA show experience this same inherited drive for raising and training animals for the show. The Smoot family of six also participated, but in Thursday’s goat contest.

Mom and dad, Allison and Ira Smoot, passed down a love for the stock show to their children, who have taken the pillars of hard work, responsibility and dedication to build their own agricultural passions.

Allison Smoot said she “started with our little county show, doing steers, lambs and rabbits” as a kid, and when her son, Mason, the oldest of four, was able to show, they settled on goats. Mason, who has now been showing for seven years, said that goats are difficult but “a lot of fun to work with.”

The Smoots said that preparing for stock shows equates to “hundreds of hours in the barn,” and Mason agreed that the most significant part of the experience is learning to work hard every day.

Raising livestock is a strenuous journey for the whole family, but Allison Smoot said she thinks the best part is that “all of those hours are really family time spent together.” With the children showing and mom and dad working behind the scenes, everyone is engaged in the project.

Mason said he will “for sure show to the end of high school” and likely continue working in agriculture as an adult. Allison added that a lot of youth involved in stock shows go on to get agribusiness degrees, and that with “Kendall County founded on agriculture,” Mason and his siblings are able to take ag-related classes at school, too, that build on their family traditions.

The Smoots left the KCJLA show with second-grader Sloan receiving a top 10 finish in his first county goat show and sophomore Mason winning fifth place with his wether and grand champion in the doe show.

The families involved in last week’s annual Kendall County Junior Livestock Show and Sale represent a generational love for agriculture and a family tradition of teaching hard work in the barn. Senior Livestock Show Director Larry Langbein, who also showed livestock during his youth, said “There’s nothing like being in the business, going to shows with animals you raised and trained, and winning.”

It’s a business that keeps local youth returning year after year and families returning generation after generation.