Southeast Saskatchewan 4-H clubs held a successful Rotary 4-H Regional Show and Sale on July 6-8 at the Estevan Exhibition Grounds.
The show part of the event went as planned, while the final sale portion was pushed back an hour and held indoors due to the thunderstorm that hit the area Thursday night. Despite the challenges created by weather, the sale saw about 100 buyers registered and high bids.
The grand champion steer, raised by Brenden Lischka, weighed 1,318 pounds and was bought by Turnbull Excavating Ltd. The reserve champion steer, raised by Brenna Fornwald and weighing 1,470 pounds, went to E. Bourassa and Sons. The highest bidder, raised by Casie Brokenshire and weighing 1,260, went to Southland Pulse at $7.25/pound.
Many other local businesses and individuals also used the opportunity to get themselves a great buy while also supporting the kids.
Brandice Petterson, who is a spokesperson for the show and sale, said everything went as close to how it usually would as possible. The main challenges were posed by the weather, however, they found a way to overcome those issues.
"I think it went really, really well being that we weren't able to have the show and sale last year. The kids had a great time. And I feel we had a really good turnout for the sale," Petterson said.
Regional 4H clubs started gathering at the Estevan Exhibition Grounds as early as last Monday. The Benson 4H Club had their achievement day on July 6 alongside the Steelman Club, so their steers were brought in and weighed at the scales at the fairgrounds on July 5. Then on July 7, it was Outram-Madigan Club's turn and then Browning and Crossroads Clubs participated in the regional show and sale as well.
A lot of bellowing could be heard in the area, as the animals brought for the show and sale stayed at the tie-outs at the Exhibition Grounds throughout the week.
"For the most part, steers normally stay till Friday morning. Some will leave Thursday after the sale. They're in there in the cattle barn for the day. They get shown in the little ring, and then in the evening, they go to tie out," Petterson explained.
There were a few changes in comparison to previous years, but in general the Rotary 4-H Show and Sale went almost as usual. And the kids performed great.
"I feel it went just like it normally goes on the kids. There was no part of the show that they weren't able to do. As for the show, the only part we didn't hold was the awards that we would normally do before the sale. But we were able to do all the regular show classes and the kids were able to do it like they normally do. So that was great that they didn't have a whole bunch of extra things that they had to worry about or deal with," Petterson said.
When it came to the sale they had to make a few adjustments due to the weather. It was postponed for about an hour to try and let the rain let up. It was also held inside the indoor riding arena so that participants wouldn't be stuck in the rain.
"It was a little hard just to get the animals between the barn and where they were showing them just because it was so rainy and still windy. But it did calm down enough that we were able to make the trek across the show ring to get in and out of where they sell them without really any trouble. So that was good," Petterson said.
The sale prices were up a bit this time, and Patterson assumed that it was due to a break they were forced to take due to the pandemic last year. But the main thing for the clubs was just the ability to host the show and sale.
"We were just super pumped that we got to actually do this. And I feel that it went off without a hitch. The kids were able to just do what they normally do, show their steers and get to bring it to town because there's a lot of work put into these steers. And that's the highlight for them is to get to take them to town and show off their hard work to friends and family. So I feel it went really, really well," Petterson said.
