Chickasaw County 4-H and FFA Achievement Show ends fun run

Judges appreciate hard work 4-H, FFA put into fair

By Bob Fenske, editor@nhtrib.com

All week long at the Big Four Fairgrounds in Nashua, folks have said the reason they are involved in the Chickasaw County 4-H and FFA Achievement Show and the reason the work they put into the fair is worth it, is because of the kids.

“I think one of the things I love about the fair is to see the number of families that work together here,” said Chickasaw County ISU Extension Director Val Horner. “I think we all do this for the kids, but in a way, the fair is about families, too.”

The Achievement Show definitely put the spotlight on the county’s 4-H and FFA members. For six days, they showed everything from photographs to baked goods to home improvement items to animals like dogs, cows, pigs, horses, chickens and more.

For the folks who judge the shows, it was a chance to come “back home” to 4-H.

“It was a way for me to stay involved,” said Lori Iseli, who was a home improvement judge. “I was a 4-Her, my kids were in 4-H and now that they’re gone, this is a way to stay involved with kids and the organization that does so much for their growth.”

The Achievement Show ended its seven-day run Monday morning with a pancake breakfast and the livestock auction.

Judge after judge, when queried why they serve at various counties around the state, had the same answer — 4-H makes the lives of kids better.

“The projects are great, don’t get me wrong, but there’s something else,” said Iseli, who traveled from Waukon to judge. “These kids are confident, have the ability to talk to complete strangers and explain what they did, why they did it and how they did it. Those are some pretty valuable things to take out there to the real world.”

On Sunday evening, fair participants and their family and friends celebrated at an awards show that included the crowning of this year’s fair queen, Isabel Pool, and the first runner-up, Abby Poppe, and the naming of Leon Sheets as Chickasaw County’s 4-H Hall of Fame inductee for 2019.

Pool actually won her crown last summer as the Achievement Show began a transition to have the fair queen crowned during the Big Four Fair that is held over the Labor Day weekend.

That means Pool, a 2019 graduate of New Hampton High School, will have a relatively short reign. She will represent Chickasaw County at next month’s Iowa State Fair and crown the new queen at this year’s Big Four Fair.

Meanwhile, Sheets was honored and humbled by the Hall of Fame honor, but he was also a busy man Sunday night.

While the Chickasaw County Cattlemen’s Association was in charge of the annual Family Barbecue, there was Sheets, the 2017 U.S. Pig Farmer of the Year, helping serve the meal and cleaning tables.

“You just do your part,” he said, “and it’s all about the kids.”

And the kids come in all ages at the Chickasaw County 4-H and FFA Achievement Show.