Oklahoma Youth Expo showcases future agricultural leaders
By Patrick Talbot
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OKLAHOMA CITY (KOCO) — The Oklahoma Youth Expo is taking place at the OKC Fair Park, where children from all 77 counties in the state are exhibiting their livestock and developing lifelong skills and relationships.
Claira Steaffore, a participant, expressed her enthusiasm for the event.
“I’m really excited. I’ve come almost every year since I was 5 years old. Me and my brother and sister show. I love coming up here,” Steaffore said.
Kass Newel, the executive vice president of the Oklahoma Youth Expo, spoke about the significance of the event.
“We’ve got kids from all 77 counties, over 8,500 kids here exhibiting livestock. I’ve got sheep, goats, hogs, and cattle,” Newel said. “These kids are the future of Oklahoma. We’re building future leaders. We’re building the people that we want to employ in the state. We want to cultivate, you know, that next generation.”
Newel further explained the critical role of agriculture, saying, “It’s so important, you know, agriculture, without it, we wouldn’t have food on our tables at night, and these kids are the ones that know how to raise it. They’re going to be the ones that are, you know, continually going back to the farm and being involved in agriculture and really, at the end of the day, feeding the world.”
Participants like Steaffore have a deep affection for the animals they show.
“I love my goats. I go out there every morning, every night, all the time. I love my goats. I love to feed them. I like to go in their pens and pet them, and I think they love me too, because they always run up to me when I come to them,” she said.
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