Grand steer nets $5,750 at Sheldon FFA Livestock Show
SHELDON – The wind may have made things cold, but buyers at the Sheldon Future Farmers of America Livestock Show warmed things up in what could be the largest show ever, according to officials.
The show was held last Saturday at the Agriculture barn on Old Highway US 90, the Beaumont Highway. Buyers were able to bid on a total of 35 animals and auction items. The auction netted more than $43,000 this year.
This year’s Grand Champion Steer, raised by C.E. King High School senior Jamari Davis, was sold for $5,750 to Stewart and Donna Henderson of DH Show Cattle.
Davis said his Grand Champion Steer’s name is Dynamite, is 14-months-old and weighed 1,206 pounds. He talked about raising Dynamite.
“It’s been real good. You have good times and bad times,” Davis said. “But I really love it. I like spending time with my animals. My favorite place is the barn.”
Davis said he plans to use the prize money to attend Texas A&M University and major in veterinary science.
Aside from having the Grand Champion Steer in this year’s show, Davis also had the Grand Champion Pig, Coco. Turner Chevrolet outbid everyone to win the pig for $2,000.
“There is a real big difference in raising a pig and a steer,” he said. “I like steers better, to be honest. They are easier to control, and they are harder to get away from you. I fell in love with steers. I told my mom when I started showing steers, I was never going back to pigs, and they convinced me to go back to pigs in the last year, and I’m winning in the show.”
Davis has been in the show more than once, even raising and having another grand steer sold to the North Shore Rotary Club last year. He also sold the Reserve Champion Steer the year before.
Davis said as a senior, he is happy to be graduating soon but is sad to be in his last showing.
“I wanted it to come soon, but not this soon. I wish I had a little bit more time to keep showing,” he said.
Another senior, Samantha Doerr, raised and sold this year’s Reserve Champion Steer, named Johnny Walker. She has been in the show for the past 10 years.
“This is our last go here,” Doerr said. “This year is really special. I fell in love with FFA more than I have in the past. When I first started, I fell in love with it. But with this being my last year, something about each and every animal has a special place in my heart. I am not ready to say goodbye and let go. I will be back. Because agriculture has built me into the person I am today, and I am not ready to let go yet.”
Johnny Walker was sold for $5,000 to Zorro’s Welding and Fabrication.
Doerr said she also has future plans with her prize money.
“I plan on attending Sam Houston State University and becoming a game warden, so this money will help pay for college,” Doerr said.
In 2020, Doerr’s Grand Champion Steer was sold to Rotating Equipment for $2,600. This year, aside from the Grand Champion Steer, she had multiple items and animals in the show, including the Grand Horticulture, Grand Photography, the Reserve Lamb, and Reserve Agriculture Mechanics. In addition, she also had the third-place swine and goat.
“This was one of the biggest shows we’ve had in a long time,” said Stephanie Jones, Sheldon FFA advisor.
This year’s Livestock Show was dedicated to the memory of Karen Renee Denton, who died in October of COVID-19. From year-to-year, the Dentons supported the Sheldon FFA and the Sheldon FFA Booster Club. Karen Denton was the secretary and treasurer for the Booster Club, while her husband, Dale, served as president.
The Sheldon FFA and C.E. King Agriculture Department issued a statement saying they were extremely grateful for the hard work and dedication from the Denton Family.
“Throughout the years, we have witnessed the time and effort from Mrs. Denton has put forth while volunteering for Sheldon FFA and Sheldon FFA Booster Club events. Mrs. Denton will be missed, but her legacy of the work she has done will be left behind in every student and parent she has known. We can never thank you or your family enough for all that you have done,” the statement read.
Other Grand Champion winners include Reagan McGehee for the Grand Champion Lamb, bought by Outlaw Ray’s for $800. Diego Mayberry’s Grand Champion Goat went for $1,500 to Charles Schrader Realtor. Jenna Simien’s Grand Champion Rabbit was sold to Channelview Family Medicine – Dr. Donald Nino for $500. Jeronimo Villaneava’s Grand Champion broilers were bought by the North Shore Rotary Club for $700.
Doerr’s Grand Champion Horticulture was bought by Jeremy and Elizabeth Staten for $250. Joshua Gilstrap’s Grand Champion Agriculture Mechanics, a deer stand, was bought for $3,500 by Gary Brightwell. The Grand Champion Decorated Cake, a cactus cake, was made by McGehee and bought by David Gilstrap for $250. A homemade apple pie by Leliah Gomez was auctioned as the Grand Champion Food Show and bought by Zorro’s Welding and Fabrication for $350. Doerr earned another $300 thanks to her Grand Champion Photography, which was purchased by Jackson’s Custom Slaughter.