At the Huntingdon County Fair this year, there were lots of things to see and experience. And for many Juniata Valley High School students, they did just that, with many of them succeeding in their endeavors. Over the year between the 2024 fair and the 2025 fair, many students worked on projects that included, but were not limited to, animals, posters, displays, feeds, and cars.  

Many students are members of the Blue Juniata FFA and showed animals at the fair this year, achieving excellent results. The first animals to show were on the first day, Sunday. These animals were breeding beef, market goats, and rabbits. The first thing on Sunday morning was the breeding beef. There was only one Valley student who showed breeding beef, Lexi Espy. She won Reserve Grand Champion with her Shorthorn Junior Yearling and 1st place in the all other breeds senior yearling class. Numerous students showed market goats this year, including Lexi Espy, Mckenzi Harpster, Trinity Hardy, Peyton Houck, and Alyssia Coffman. Some top placings included Espy placing 1st in her age division, Harpster placing 2nd in her age division, and  Hardy placing 2nd in her age division in their showmanship classes. As far as weight classes for market goats, some top placers were Espy with a 1st place,  Houck with a  2nd place, and Harpster with a second place. In the Rabbit division, fewer Juniata Valley students competed, but there were many amazing outcomes with those who did, including the Lightweight Champion meat pen going to Lewis Webb, and a Best in Breed going to each of the following competitors: Jaydin Harnish (twice), Sarah Foster, Lewis Webb, and Natalie Thompson with their rabbit exhibitions.  

On Monday of the fair, all sheep, market hogs, and FFA dairy were shown. The opening animal show was market hogs starting at 8 am, with five FFA or 4-H members from the Valley exhibiting. Some highlights were Charlee Smith placing 1st in her age division, Jaydin Harnish placing 5th in her age division, Amber Roles placing 6th in her age division for showmanship, Charlee Smith placing 2nd in her hog’s weight class, William Roles, Jaydin Harnish, and LillyAnn Brower each placing 3rd in their hog’s weight classes. Next, that day was the FFA/4-H dairy show. Multiple JV students showed many cows, with two placing very high in the winnings. Luke Mowrer won Reserve Grand Champion Female and Reserve Senior Champion Female with his Brown Swiss Yearling, and Alyssia Coffman won Reserve Grand Champion Female and Reserve Senior Champion Female with her Holstein Cow. Some other higher placings were Sarah Foster placing 1st with her Holstein Cow and 2nd with her Red & White Yearling, Trinity Hardy placing 1st with her Holstein Cow, who also got Honorable Mention, Katherine Webb placing 2nd with her Holstein Calf, Luke Mowrer placing 1st with his Red & White Yearling, 2nd place with his Jersey Calf, and Alyssia Coffman placing 1st with her Holstein Dam and Daughter. The last animal show of the day was the open, FFA/4-H Breeding sheep and market sheep. In the open show, Sheridan McGargle won Reserve Grand Champion Ewe with her Dorset Ewe Lamb, Grand Champion Ram with her Dorest Ram, and Grand Champion Ewe and Supreme Champion Ewe with her Dorset Yearling Ewe. In the FFA/4-H show, she won Reserve Grand Champion Ewe with her Dorset Ewe Lamb, Grand Champion Ram and Supreme Champion Ram with her Dorset Ram, and Grand Champion Ewe and Supreme Champion Ewe with her Dorset Yearling Ewe. When asked how it felt to win so many ribbons and banners for just one species, she stated, “I have won Supreme Champion Ram before, but this is my first time winning Supreme Champion Ewe. Even though there weren’t a lot of breeding ewes, there was a high level of quality competition, which made it very rewarding to win.” There were eight students, Mckenzi Harpster, Lewis Webb, Terry Ormsby, Luke Mowrer, Trinity Hardy, Katherine Webb, Sheridan McGargle, and Alyssia Coffman, who showed market lambs. Two of these eight placed pretty high. Mckenzi Harpster placed 2nd in her lamb’s weight class, and Terry Ormsby placed 1st in his age division for showmanship and Champion Light Weight for his weight class. 

The animal shows did not stop there, though. Dairy, beef, and FFA/4-H Market Steer shows were on Tuesday. At 8 am sharp, there was the Beef show with many members placing. In the showmanship category, Trevor Hawn placed 1st in his age division, and Lexi Espy placed 2nd in her age division. For Market Steer weight classes, Trevor Hawn won Reserve Champion Heavyweight Type Steer, Charlee Smith placed 2nd, Lexi Espy placed 2nd, and LillyAnn Brower placed 2nd in their weight classes. The top placings for carcass steers and rate of gain were also announced. Lane Sunderland won both Grand Champion Carcass Steer and 1st place Rate of Gain. As for the Dairy Beef show, there were not as many top places, but there were many students representing Juniata Valley. Some top mentions are Katherine Web, who placed 2nd in her age division for showmanship, and Sarah Foster won 1st place; it was Sarah Foster’s first year showing a dairy beef. She explained that she “enjoyed it so much, and winning first place meant so much to her since it showcased how much work she put into it.” Others who showed dairy beef were Mattie Casner, LillyAnn Brower, and Lewis Webb.  

One last animal show that Valley Students could compete in was the open dairy show on Wednesday. Many of the same students who showed in the FFA/4-H dairy show on Monday showed in the open show, but there were a few different outcomes. Top outcomes of the open show were Luke Mowrer won Reserve Grand Champion Female and Reserve Senior Champion Female with his Brown Swiss Yearling, 1st place with his Red & White Yearling, 2nd place with his Jersey Calf, Alyssia Coffman with a 1st place win with her Holstein Cow, 2nd place with her other Holstein Cow, and Trinity Hardy won 1st place with her Holstein Dam and Daughter. The last highest award won at the Dairy show was Premier Exhibitor and Premier Breeder banners, which were won by the Coffman family, with Alyssia Coffman and Mattie Casner showing the animals. Casner expressed that winning these banners was  “a huge reward.” To her, it showed just how much hard work they put into their herd.  

Although there were a lot of animals shown by Juniata Valley students, there were also others who competed in other things. In the FFA/4-H Hall, Johnson Hall, there were lots of exhibits by Juniata Valley students. This included posters that FFA members had done during ag classes throughout the school year, the Blue Juniata FFA scrapbook and display board, which placed 2nd and 3rd, respectively. One student won a purple ribbon for Grand Champion in Johnson Hall; this was Luke Mowrer with his corn silage. In Owen’s hall, the Blue Juniata FFA entered a display exhibit, winning 10th place with it.   

Throughout the week, many events were going on. At the fair queen pageant held on Sunday, Trinity Hardy won the Alternate Fair Queen.  At the Monay and Saturday derby, there were three Juniata Valley students out there crushing their cars up: Skylar Ulicne, Braydon Trimer, and Noah Norris. Other events that had some competition were the livestock skillathon on Thursday, the talent show on Wednesday, the Cattle Battle on Saturday, and the various truck and tractor pulls, including the minis on Sunday, the antiques on Wednesday, and the regulars on Thursday and Friday. There were also a few who participated in the tractor parade on Wednesday, Dairy Fun Night on Thursday, and the annual junior livestock sale on Friday.  

Overall, the Juniata Valley Students represented very well. They showed a good number of animals, exhibited things in a variety of halls, and competed in various events. The Valley had an amazing week at the Huntingdon County Fair.