By Michael V. Hannigan
We’ve made it to Friday at the Henderson County Livestock Show and even though there is still plenty on the schedule, you can see the end of #HCLS 2014 from here.
While walking around the Fairpark Complex this week I have seen hundreds of students. AgriLife Extension Agent Rick Hirsch told me as many as 600 students could participate with up to 1,800 entries.
What I have learned is that every single one of them has a story to tell. From the girl who has won grand champion four straight times to the boy who was happy his dad got out of work early enough to see him earn a fifth place ribbon … it is about so much more than where you finish.
It is about family and friends and lifetime memories.
Take Helen Bobbitt and Noah, for instance (pictured). I have no idea where they will finish because they haven’t competed yet as I write this, but that doesn’t really matter.
Not that Helen, who lives in Eustace, wouldn’t like to win. It is just that Helen and Noah are going to be together regardless.
Noah — who is the only survivor of a storm that wiped out his siblings — has already been around four years and is a part of the family. He even sat on the front porch with Helen this past Halloween and handed out candy.
Noah is also a link to Helen’s grandmother, who got Helen started with chickens. Mom and Dad are part of the circle, too, putting in those “livestock show parent hours” so many in our community know about.
Because Noah is more than just a chicken.
It is a story everyone out here at the fairgrounds can understand, because the Livestock Show is more than just an event.
It is more than ribbons or even buckles.
It is family and friends and lifetime memories.