The District 5 Junior Holstein Association hosted the Wisconsin Junior Holstein Convention in Wisconsin Dells, December 27-29, 2024. Over 450 members, chaperones, and volunteers participated in a weekend filled with competitions and recognition.
Dairy Bowl
The largest event, Dairy Bowl, featured 32 junior, 21 senior, and 12 rookie teams. Shawano County won the senior division, followed by Fond du Lac County in second. Shawano County team members include Logan Harbaugh, Lydia Gwidt, Claire Betley and Addison Fischer.
The junior division champions, Brown County Team 1, edged out Fond du Lac County for the top spot. The Brown County 1 junior team consisted of Audrey Zirbel, Evan Brey, Ian Brick and Alivia Wiese.
Shawano and Brown County will represent Wisconsin at the National Holstein Convention in St. Louis, Missouri, in June 2025.
Rounding out the top five for the senior division were, Sheboygan County, Iowa County and Polk County, respectively. Finishing in third through fifth place in the junior division were Shawano County, Brown County Team 2 and Iowa County. This year dairy bowl teams were placed based on a knowledge exam. The top place in the junior division went to Agnes Haase, second place went to Evan Brey and third place was Alivia Wiese. In the senior division, the top score went to Logan Harbaugh, second went to Alison Gartman and third to Tristen Ostrom.
Dairy Jeopardy
In Dairy Jeopardy, Sean Webster of Brown County took first in the junior division. Second went to Evan Brey, Brown County, and Adella Loehr, Fond du Lac County, took third. Logan Harbaugh of Shawano County topped the intermediate groupwith Dylan Ryan, Fond du Lac County, and Macie Abraham, Sheboygan County, placing second and third, respectively. Brianna Meyer of Manitowoc/Calumet won the senior bracket. Chloe Breunig of Sheboygan County placed second and Matthew Ossmann of Brown County took home third place.
Speaking Contest
In the speaking contest, Wisconsin can send up to three delegates in each division to compete at the National Convention. To compete, youth must prepare a speech on a topic related to the dairy industry at a length assigned to their specific age division. Heading to the National Convention this year in the junior division are Lexi Metzler, Vernon County, Carter Coffeen, Brown County and Naydeen Gilbertson, Iowa County. In the intermediate division, Abby Meyer of Manitowoc/Calumet, took home top honors. Alivia Wiese of Brown County placed second while Logan Harbaugh, Shawano County took third place. Topping the senior division was Tia Hildebrandt of Dodge County, Brianna Meyer, Manitowoc/Calumet, placed second and Jazmyn Heeg of Clark County took home third. This was the first year extemporaneous speaking was offered and winning the division was Chloe Breunig of Sheboygan County. Second went to Lilly Peterson of St. Croix County and third to Josie Bailey of Vernon County.
