Roundabout Sisters: The circle of life

If you want to restore your faith in the country, spend a little time with ag kids in Sisters. I had the pleasure, once again, in visiting with the more than 40-strong members of Cloverdale Livestock Club, the local 4-H chapter in Sisters Country.

4-H has been around for 122 years and for 76 of those, 4-H has thrived in Sisters Country as Cloverdale Livestock Club. 4-H is the nation's largest youth development organization surpassing Scouting. The 4‑H idea is simple: help young people and their families gain the skills needed to be proactive forces in their communities and develop ideas for a more innovative economy.

Today, 4‑H serves youth in rural, urban, and suburban communities in all 50 states. 4‑Hers are tackling the nation's top issues, from global food security, climate change, and sustainable energy to childhood obesity and food safety.

4‑H out-of-school programming, in-school enrichment programs, clubs and camps also offer a wide variety of STEM opportunities - from agricultural and animal sciences to rocketry, robotics, environmental protection, and computer science - to improve the nation's ability to compete in key scientific fields and take on the leading challenges of the 21st century.

Photo provided

The Cloverdale Livestock Club.

Saturday, at the Deschutes County Fair, it was all business and business as usual for the Cloverdale kids when I dropped in on them. By that time, they had won many ribbons including champion and reserve champion honors and were readying for auction.

Most every county in America has a county fair, usually in summer and typically near harvest season. And at most of these fairs you'll find livestock lined up in barns at the fairgrounds - from beef cattle to bred heifers to sheep, hogs, goats, turkeys, chickens, rabbits, and sometimes other projects.

Most of these animals are entered in the fair in a "Showmanship Class" and a "Market Class."

The Showmanship Class is the time for the exhibitor (the kiddo) to showcase their stockmanship skills for the judge. They should know how to control their animal on a halter and lead line or with a show stick and they need to know how to "set their animal up" which means getting it into position to show its body in peak condition and frame.

The kids are also judged on their ability to show an animal in its best light - their skill, ability, and appearance are judged, as well as resiliency to keep pushing through even if their animal resists or worse in the ring.

The other class is a "Market Class" where animals are judged on their conformation, muscle mass, bone structure and finishing. They are also judged on their "fitting" which is how the kids clean, brush and primp them to make them look their best!

Most market auctions, especially for beef cattle, are "terminal auctions" where the animals are sent to harvest immediately after the auction. But some species like bred heifers (pregnant momma cows) or dairy cows are purchased to take home live and added to existing herds. Sheep, pigs, goats, turkeys, and chickens are usually also terminal harvest auctions.

You'd think that would be devastating to 4-Hers. After all the work, the hours and hours spent with their animal, all the touching and close contact, all the prodding - parents of their kids, kids of their animals - only to see it all end as meat, would be soul crushing.

Nope. These kids are fully mature in their understanding of the circle of life. Unlike many big city kids who think meat comes from Safeway. The United States Department of Agriculture did a study that found that nearly one in five adults did not know that hamburgers are made from beef. Many more were not familiar with the basic facts about farming. Forty-one percent of American kids think bacon comes from plants.

This year, the Cloverdale club boasts five "Cloverbuds." They are under age nine, the starting age for 4-H, but are so enthralled by their agricultural roots that they can't wait to learn more. Like their siblings or friends, they've also learned social skills, sorely missing now for a few generations.

They shake your hand. Firmly. Look you right in the eye. Squarely. They introduce themselves, properly. They don't interrupt. And they answer questions in a straightforward manner. No embellishment. No puffery. Pretty much the facts.

They have to be proud, but it doesn't show. What you get is a sense of gratitude. Accomplishment. The simple joy of working with your hands. Being on a team. Encouraging one another.

Cloverdale Livestock Club is a vanguard in keeping animal husbandry alive and well. And, with Old West hospitality, you are always welcome to come see for yourself at any number of Club activities.