Hard work pays off in dollars and emotions at Junior Fair livestock auction

WELLINGTON — All the early mornings and late nights, the hard work and emotions paid off Saturday for the youth of the Lorain County Junior Fair, with bidders at the 2025 Livestock Auction spending thousands of dollars to bring cattle and hogs from farm to table. In the first year that the newly opened, $12 million Ross Exposition Center hosted the auction, Grafton resident Lukas Kowalski's grand champion dairy steer set a new record. The 1,435-pounder fetched $9 per pound from Farkas Farms of LaGrange Township. That surpassed the $8.75 per pound paid for the grand champion dairy steer back in 2022, according to fair records. Lukas, 17 and a member of the Lorain County Steer Club, was all smiles after his record-breaking afternoon. A large portion of the $12,915 he's taking home will go into next year's project, he said. "It feels good," Lukas said. "All that work is paying off." Lukas had two top steers at the 2022 Junior Fair, and donated a portion of his winnings back to the Fairs Forever project for future generations. Proud dad Robert Kowalski said that means his son's name will forever be on the wall at the new Ross Exposition Center. Patrick Finnegan's 1,612-pound reserve grand champion dairy steer went for $10,478, with Strong Construction and the Sturgill family bidding $6.50 per pound. A member of Firelands Future Farmers of America who had champion livestock in 2022 and 2023, the 16-year-old from Henrietta Township said he was "really happy" with how Saturday's auction turned out, getting more for his steer than he expected. Under Ohio Department of Agriculture rules for so-called "terminal sales" like Saturday's auction, all the grand and reserve champion cattle, hogs, lamb and goats are headed immediately to slaughter so they stay fit for human consumption. For some Junior Fair participants, that makes for an emotional day, which arrives after months of feeding and raising animals only to have to say goodbye. Daisy Bockmore said that's what Saturday was to her. The 16-year-old Wellington girl's only project this year was her grand champion modern beef steer, a project that netted her $17,654 from the Wellington Eagles, or $13 per pound for the 1,358-pound animal. The Wellington Future Farmers of America member is saving for college, she said. Daisy has raised five grand champions in the last six years, with Saturday's win her second year in a row in the top spot. The 1,455-pound reserve grand champion modern beef steer that Peyton Pickering named "Thor" went for $6.25 per pound to Farkas Farms and Bryner Lawncare & Landscaping, earning her $9,093.75. The money is nice, but "I'm gonna really miss him a lot," said Peyton, 14, of New London, a member of the County Line Kids of Lorain County club. Korie Goble, 11, of Wellington took home grand champion lottery steer for her 1,413-pound Angus — and with it a $10 per pound sale price paid by T.L. Keller Meats, for a total of $14,310. Mom Sadie Goble said she and her husband Dan were very proud of their daughter. "She's very responsible," Sadie Goble said. A member of Helping Hands 4-H Club, Korie said she's putting some of the money toward next year's project — and on a mission to convince her dad to let her buy a bunny, she said. The 1,458-pound reserve champion lottery steer, a Hereford brought to auction by Morgan Adkins, 16, of Henrietta Township, fetched a final bid of $5 per pound from Ross Environmental Services and Whitehouse Artesian Springs. Half of the $7,290 total is going into savings, and the other half to next year's project, Morgan said. The top hogs in 2025 belonged to Emily Kiser, who had both the grand champion and reserve grand champion market hogs in this year's auction. "Definitely in shock" was how the 14-year-old Spencer resident said she felt, after taking home just over $10,000. Farkas Farms paid $21 per pound for the 275-pound grand champion hog, or $5,775. The Wellington Eagles and Bryner Lawncare & Landscaping jointly bid $17 per pound for Emily's 253-pound reserve champion, and will pay $4,301. A member of the Born in a Barn 4-H Club, Emily said the money she made is going straight into next year's projects. She thanked her parents, Steve and Danielle Kiser, as well as breeder Rohr Showpigs for their support. Emily is the first youth since 2010 to have both the grand champion and reserve grand champion market hogs and to win the Supreme Showman award in the Swine Showmanship competition, mom Danielle Kiser said. Chronicle photographer Thomas Fetcenko contributed to this story. Contact Dave O'Brien at (440) 329-7129 or dobrien@chroniclet.com