With a Heavy Dose of Confidence: Champion Showman ~ Katie Bober

If you know anything about Katie, you know that this junior studying Veterinarian Assistant at LCCTC is meticulous — almost to a fault. She is focused in her training and is eager to soak up every ounce of knowledge she can. Careful and methodical, Katie approaches every task — academic, vocational, and extra-curricular (4-H and FFA) — with a fine attention to detail. Clearly, Katie knows her “stuff.” However, she is the first to admit that she struggles in one area that inflicts 74% Americans — Glossophobia, the fear of presenting in public or public speaking. With this in mind, Katie reluctantly faced her fears and agreed to join the SkillsUSA Opening and Closing team at LCCTC in order to face her fears head-on.

As a rookie member of the team — known for repeated success in state competition, Katie quickly memorized her speeches and learned the physical precision to move during synchronized activities, but it took a little longer to learn to present with poise. Connecting her struggles to her experiences showing horses and rabbits through her active participation in 4-H, she pushed herself to not only look confident but to also feel confident. Over the course of her sophomore year in SkillsUSA, she learned to stand, sit, walk and turn with poise. She learned the value of eye contact with the judges and the importance of delivering her message with a sense of self-assured sincerity.

Now able to apply she learned to the show ring, this time with a live animal with a mind of its own at the end of her lead, her preparation for showmanship finally paid off:

“GUESS WHAT! GUESS WHAT!” Katie Bober gushed to her SkillsUSA coach. “I FINALLY WON SHOWMANSHIP!”

“Woo HOOOOO! That’s AWESOME!” was the enthusiastic reply and both spent the next few moments in loud celebration.

On Thursday, August 20th, Katie proudly claimed the Champion Market Goat Intermediate Showman banner for the 2020 Backyard Blast. To earn this distinction, Katie was initially judged in grooming for overall appearance and in the health of the livestock being shown; additionally, she needed to be ready to answer general knowledge questions in 4-H and to share breed-specific answers. To win Showmanship, Katie had to take her training one step further: She needed to employ natural, graceful actions; good eye contact; confidence; poise; alertness and attitude.

While preparation for this competition is like preparing to compete in many other competition in 4-H, or FFA, or SkillsUSA, it is also like preparing to compete in life; with practice, study, and a healthy dose of confidence, Katie was able to find success in the ring, and we are super-proud of her!

Way to go, Katie!

The Backyard Blast was a special event held on August 19-21st limited to Lawrence County youth between the ages of 8 - 21 who would have shown at the canceled 2020 Lawrence County Fair. Following Covid-19 state mandates, the event was held in an outdoor arena — open air with a roof — and followed Pennsylvania and CDC guidelines. Participants, judges, and a limited number of spectators were asked to practice social distancing, mask wearing whenever appropriate, good hygiene, and self-isolation for illness. This event gave Lawrence County youth the chance to show off the hard-work it took to raise top-quality animals over the past year.

4-H programs like the meat goat projects provide youth with opportunities to:

expand their knowledge of the meat goat industry, production and, more importantly, develop the life skills that are needed to be positive contributors to society.  Through meat goat projects youth will learn about selection and evaluation, nutrition and feeding, health and daily care, reproduction, marketing, and much more.  Youth learn to accept responsibility, to value hard work, think critically, make decisions, and communicate.  In addition, there are several meat goat shows that youth can participate in to put on exhibition their meat goat project.  Meat goat shows provide a great avenue to meet and develop friendships with other youth and leaders from across the state. Young people are also able to connect with supportive adults (who serve as mentors), demonstrate a commitment to learning, develop social competencies and gain exposure to career opportunities.

SkillsUSA is:

a partnership of students, teachers and industry working together to ensure America has a skilled workforce. We help each student excel. A nonprofit national education association, SkillsUSA serves middle-school, high-school and college/post-secondary students preparing for careers in trade, technical and skilled service (including health) occupations.  It empowers its members to become world-class workers, leaders and responsible American citizens. We improve the quality of our nation’s future skilled workforce through the development of SkillsUSA Framework skills that include personal, workplace and technical skills grounded in academics. Our vision is to produce the most highly skilled workforce in the world, providing every member the opportunity for career success.