South Dakota’s 4-H and FFA Families Prepare for 2023 State Fair

By Lura Roti

With 2023 State Fair approaching, South Dakota Farmers Union checked in with three 4-H and FFA families: the Eide family from Gettysburg and the Michalek and Rose families from Chamberlain. As the premier sponsor of the South Dakota State Fair, Farmers Union wanted to learn their stories. We wanted to learn, what do these families do to prepare for this annual event and what it is about 4-H, FFA and the State Fair that they appreciate?

The Eide Family

Bobbi Eide remembers counting down the days until her 8th birthday.

“I couldn’t wait to turn 8 so I could be in 4-H,” said the 15-year-old Gettysburg High School student. “My older brothers were in 4-H long before I was, and I loved helping them get their livestock ready for the fair.”

It’s mid-July and Bobbi is getting her own livestock ready for the State Fair. She is showing pigs like her older brothers, Hunter, now a senior pre-med student at South Dakota State University, and Tanner, a high school senior.

“I got my love of showing pigs from my brother, Hunter. He was the first to show pigs in our family,” Bobbi said. “I like getting the pigs used to me so they are calm in the show ring. A couple years ago, I trained one pig to fetch a stick like a dog and I taught another one to roll over so I could pet his belly. I think pigs are kind of like dogs – just a bit more smelly.”

In the show ring, Bobbi needs to be able to control her pigs as they walk around the judge. To prepare for this, throughout the summer she walks her pigs several days a week and plays music in the barn where she keeps them, so they are not startled by noises at the fair. Bobbi says State Fair is one of her favorite weeks of the summer.

“I have been going to the State Fair since I was born. I love it because I get to see my 4-H and FFA friends and I like hanging out with my family there,” Bobbi said.

Bobbi’s mom, Gerri, can relate. “State Fair was a very special time with my dad and sister. My dad always took us to the fair every year. It was a time to showcase what I had been working on all year – whether it was showing beef cattle or other projects in 4-H. And it was an opportunity to meet and make new friends and connect with friends from past years.”

When Gerri and her husband, Shon, started their family, she wanted to pass on the tradition her dad, Eugene, started with her and her sister, Dawn. Her family camps at the State Fair with other 4-H and FFA families just like she did as a kid. And she said getting involved in 4-H and FFA provides her children with much more than showmanship skills and ribbons.

“It opens a whole world of opportunities and exposes them to learning some very important life skills, like teamwork, thinking on their feet and connecting with others,” Gerri said. “Networking with people across the state as a 4-H or FFA member will help them in whatever profession they go into.”

In addition to showing livestock, all three Eide kids also participated in speaking competitions. In fact, her son, Tanner, no longer shows livestock because he found he enjoyed other projects and fair activities more and he wanted to put more time into those.

“Participating in 4-H and FFA events helps them find their strengths, interests and what they truly enjoy doing. If they aren’t exposed, how do they know,” Gerri said.

She added that because they get to do what they are good at, her children develop confidence in themselves and their abilities.

“In society where sports are so important, it is important to have the confidence to say, ‘this is my thing,’ whatever that may be,” Eide said.

Bobbi agreed with her mom, adding through 4-H and FFA she has had the opportunity to connect with friends who have similar interests. “I get to share what I am passionate about with them and they understand me.”

The Michalek Family

Moving from the ranch to town as an 11-year-old was a life change Marty Michalek wasn’t too excited about. The move also meant he would be starting fifth grade at a new school where he didn’t have many friends.

Reflecting on this time in his life, the 47-year-old said joining 4-H made all the difference. “It got me acclimated to a new town and helped me make friends. I got involved in FFA and was fortunate enough to serve as a state FFA officer. That was a tremendous experience that opened a lot of doors and helped me make contacts throughout the years which absolutely helped me get to where I am today as a professional,” explained the Vice President of ag banking for First Dakota National Bank, Chamberlain.

Because of his experience, when he and his wife, Mandy, moved their young family back to his hometown of Chamberlain in 2004, they signed their children up for 4-H.

Their oldest son, Garrett, was a kindergartener at the time. Today, he is an electrician and works as Service Technician for Muth Electric, Brookings.

“4-H gave me an outstanding opportunity to build relationships,” Garrett said. “As a kid, I was relatively shy. Involvement in 4-H gave me communication skills and helped me get comfortable speaking in public and overall communication.”

In 2017, Garrett put these skills to work when he applied for the Mitchell Technical College and the Build Dakota Scholarship. The full ride scholarship not only covers all tuition and tools, but it also connected Garrett with his current employer.

His brother Colton also credits 4-H and FFA experiences for helping him receive a 2023 Build Dakota Scholarship. And as Colton prepares for his last year showing at the South Dakota State Fair, he says that in addition to communication skills, he has met and made many friends through involvement in 4-H and FFA. And often, he’s learned more from losing than winning.

“Losing is probably the best learning experience because I become a better person after losing. It makes me grow. Last year at State Fair I was showing a sheep and I did pretty bad. As I listened to the Judge talk about all the sheep that placed ahead of mine, I thought, ‘I may have lost, but I’m learning to be humble.‘”

During the 2023 fair, Colton will show sheep, goats and horses, but when he and his brothers, Garrett and Ryder, first started in 4-H, they showed rabbits. And even though their dad, Marty, had been involved in 4-H as a kid, the brothers say their first few years were a learning experience for everyone.

“Just watching the confused/baffled look on Dad’s face because the entire game had changed since the time he was a kid and involved – so, we all tripped and stumbled to the finish line together,” Garrett said.

Marty added that he was reminded of the power of involvement in 4-H during the first rabbit show he took his sons to.

“One of my favorite 4-H memories is our first rabbit show,” Marty said. “I was trying to figure out how to enter everyone, and all the sudden, I see the kids running by with a piece of cardboard that they pulled out of a dumpster. They saw that everyone else in the building had signs for their rabbits. By the time I got everyone registered and got back to them, they had come up with a name for their 4-H club and made their own sign. It is amazing how mature 8 and 10-year-olds can be when you let them.”

On the drive home, Marty said the newly named CKKRC Rabbit Club held its first meeting and elected officers. They named their club after the first initial of founding members’ names.

Since that first show, the family has spent countless hours showing meat goats, dairy goats, cattle, hogs, sheep and rabbits. “I remember a couple years ago on our way home from the State Fair, we counted up and Colton was in the show ring 112 times,” Marty said.

Getting animals ready for the fair is a daily task, explained Mandy. “Our kids take care of the animals because Marty and I both work off the farm.”

When their children were young, Mandy and Marty would create feed boards for them to help remind them of each animal’s feed ration. “Today, I don’t need to worry about this because they take care of it,” Mandy said. “I went to go pick up feed because we ran out the other day, and I didn’t even realize which feeds they were feeding because they’re so involved in feeding their own animals.”

“It’s 365,” added Marty. “It’s every day. There is no off-season because these animals rely on them for food and water. So, caring for animals instills a major sense of responsibility.”

And this sense of responsibility and work ethic transfers to other areas of life, explained Ryder. “4-H taught me that if you put in the work, you can accomplish anything. I love working hard. I’m not afraid to work and I will get up and do what needs to be done.”

At 16, Ryder already has college football and basketball coaches interested in him, and his goal is to play Division 1 college ball. To get there, he makes the 280-mile roundtrip drive to Sioux Falls three days a week during the summer for weight training and acceleration workouts. He gets up at 3:30 a.m. three days a week and drives 52 miles to workout with a coach in Wessington Springs.

And between workouts and training, Ryder does chores and along with Colton, he helps their younger sister, Tayzlee, learn how to show sheep and goats.

“My brothers help me get my animals to walk,” said Tayzlee, 9. “I like 4-H because I get to show animals.”

After watching her brothers show from outside of the ring, this year, Tayzlee is old enough to show livestock. She will be showing sheep and goats at the State Fair and her entire family will be there to cheer her on.

“I wouldn’t miss it. State Fair is one of the more enjoyable times of the year,” Garrett said. “Being able to spend time camping with my family and helping them get ready to show their animals, it’s a way for me to continue enjoying the entire experience.”

Paying it forward

Marty and Mandy have served as 4-H leaders since 2011. And they are not just focused on helping their four children succeed. In 2009, they helped with a local program that finds sponsors to cover 50 percent of the cost of a show sheep. Since that time, the program has expanded to include hogs and market goats.

“I source the sheep from area producers, then I put the kids’ names in a hat and draw their names for which kid gets which sheep. It’s luck of the draw what animal the kids will get. This way, it doesn’t matter if you’re a rich family, or a family that would struggle paying for the best genetics, it’s fair,” Marty said.

The family also holds a workshop each year to help teach new 4-H’ers how to fit and show their animals.

“We’ve seen how taking care of an animal and being involved in 4-H honestly change kids’ lives,” Mandy said. “Marty had people help him when he got started. We had people help us when our kids got started. We were helped and now we are in a position to help others.”

The Rose Family

As a kid, Becky “Alexander” Rose loved being actively involved in 4-H and FFA because of the fun trips and the opportunity to leave her family’s Clark dairy farm to show at the State Fair where she got to know South Dakota youth from across the state.

Today, at 39, she reflects on these opportunities through the experienced eyes of a mom to four sons: Dusty, 17, Austin, 14, Ty, 11 and Lane, 6.

“I have a different perspective, and I am glad I was involved in these two organizations because they gave me lifelong skills,” Becky said. “As a kid, I didn’t realize I was learning skills I would use the rest of my life, but looking back I can see that obviously I was – things like public speaking and other career-orientated skills that you don’t gain from team sports.”

She is grateful her sons are gaining similar opportunities and skills today. Becky and her husband, Jesse, raise cattle on his family’s ranch near Chamberlain. Jesse was also involved in 4-H and FFA and when he reflects on the experience, he says it’s all about the people.

“Meeting new friends is what I enjoyed most,” said Jesse, who adds that as a dad, he is happy his sons are involved because it keeps his sons busy.

Busy may be an understatement.

It is 7:30 a.m. and oldest son, Dusty, is at basketball practice. After practice he is going to help at the Brule County 4-H office as they prepare for Achievement Days. Then, he and his younger bothers will probably put in some time practicing for the upcoming 4-H rodeo.

4-H rodeo is Dusty’s passion. He jokes, “My favorite event is steer wrestling because I’m not very good with a rope, but I’m good at falling off a horse onto a steer.”

His 11-year-old brother, Ty, also likes 4-H rodeo best. “I’m not patient, so I don’t like working with cattle to get them ready for the fair. I like working with my horse and spending time with my cousins and friends who rodeo,” Ty explained.

Ty competes in breakaway and goat tying events. Brother, Austin, enjoys participating in 4-H rodeo, but he also loves working with and showing cattle.

And his brother, Ty is right, getting cattle ready for a show like the South Dakota State Fair does take patience. The process begins when calves are only 5 months old.

“When I bring the calves in, they are a little wild and it is a bit hard to work with them, but after I work with them for a few weeks, it gets easy,” Austin said.

Working with his show cattle is a daily commitment. Austin walks them and positions them like he would in the show ring. He also washes them each day.

“They get to be in the barn with fans blowing on them, so they stay nice and cool and washing them makes their hair grow and keeps their hide clean,” Austin explained.

2023 South Dakota State Fair is the show Austin is focused on right now. But he competes in other shows throughout the year, including Western Jr. in Rapid City. During the 2022 Western Jr. Livestock Show, Austin was among six youth to receive breeding stock – three ewes and three heifers – through South Dakota Farmers Union Herd Builder Scholarship program. The other youth are Jacob Jung, Mina; Rope Reis, Reliance; Madison Hofer, Freeman; Keeleigh Reis-Elwood, Oacoma; and Carissa Scheel, Alpena.

The heifer Austin received is doing well and is out grazing with the rest of his family’s herd.

Like their dad and mom, Austin and his brothers say they are grateful for their 4-H and FFA friends.

“It’s a special bond,” Austin explained. “Because we do the same things, so we can compare our showing experience and what we did right and what we did wrong, and we are there to congratulate each other on how we did that day.”

In addition to showing livestock and rodeo, the boys say being involved in 4-H and FFA has given them the opportunity to become better public speakers.

“During each 4-H meeting we can give a talk or demonstration, so I’ve learned to be a better speaker and I learned that it is not a big deal to speak in front of a bunch of other kids,” Austin said.

His brother, Ty, added, “And when I am in school and I’m asked to write an essay, I have something to write about because I can write about my rodeo involvement.”

With just two years of high school left, Dusty said involvement in FFA has him thinking about ag-related careers and the college major he may pursue.

“It has opened my eyes to what I can do in college and after college,” Dusty said.

After listening to their sons share what they enjoy and gain from involvement in 4-H and FFA, Becky said, “I am so proud to be raising another generation of 4-H and FFA members. These organizations had such a huge impact on my life and Jesse’s life.”