The Bond County Fair happens the first weekend in August each year.  A summer highlight is the Junior Livestock Sale.   Once 4-H livestock projects have been completed, the show animals are auctioned off. This year’s sale was last night, 8/5/24.

Our local – and distinctly rural – community rises up to support livestock-showing youth by showering them with outrageous prices for their animals.  The community goes wild.

This chart shows that in the five years for which I have data (2019, 2021, 2022, 2023, and 2024). Community leaders have paid 4 times more for finishing steers and finishing hogs than the market price.  The solid bars represent the going market prices.  The 4x larger diagonally-striped bars are the annual summary of about 10 cows and 20 hogs.  It is a wonder to behold.

One of the buyers last night said he had to bid because he wasn’t able to let the animal go for such a low price, inferring that the steer value of the jr. livestock animal should be no lower than double the market price.  That animal went for nearly $7,000.

Another attendee, the grandfather of some 4-H livestock youth, made sure bidders knew his grandkids were in the ring.  Businesses compete with businesses to have the highest price.  Farm families compete for bragging rights with other farm families to outbid their neighbors.

In 2023, to raise money for one of the youth in the community with some serious health issues, the young seller of the grand champion barrow donated the auction proceeds to offset medical expenses.  That pig was sold 3 times, with each buyer donating it back to the auction.  Total raised for those medical expenses for a pig with a market value of $165, was $27,000.

This kind or rural community philanthropy is undocumented.  It doesn’t show up in any public dataset.  Everyone in the community knows about it.  But it isn’t revenue in the traditional sense.  It is part cultural capital (values) and part financial capital (dollars).  It is my community and I make sure I attend the Jr. Livestock Sale.  It sets supporting youth at a high bar.

Of course, 36 years ago, when I was raising hogs in this area, I had a leadership role and worked every fair at the pork burger stand.  It is always fun to grab pork burgers and Farm Bureau ice cream on the way in.  Twenty years ago, the local institution who is our beloved farm reporter, had to be gone during the fair.  I made a very poor substitute for his notoriety but was flattered to at least try to fill in for him.

Ok, yes, I am sort of nuts about my community.  They are good people.  And the Junior Livestock Sale defines the cultural values of rural communities.