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DIXIE NATIONAL JUNIOR ROUND-UP

Every year, for one week in early February, youth who raise livestock and participate in the 4-H & FFA livestock programs in Mississippi head to Jackson for the annual Dixie National Junior Round-Up Livestock Shows. These youth bring show entries from their junior livestock projects to compete for champions of their individual categories.

The Dixie National is the showcase for the 4-H & FFA livestock programs and livestock industry; it is also the site of the largest junior market livestock shows in Mississippi. The Champion and Reserve Champion of the Junior Steer Show, Junior Market Lamb Show, Junior Market Swine Show, Junior Market Goat Show, and Overall Champion Mississippi Bred steer, lamb, and hog are singled out for a special tribute at the Dixie National. The exhibitors purchased many of these animals last spring, and these young exhibitors with champions have worked long and hard to raise their outstanding animals.

First, boys and girls exhibit their animals at one of the five district shows within the State. If they receive a blue ribbon on their animal at the district show, they can then participate in the Dixie National. There were over 1,600 market animals at the five district shows and over 1,100 ended up at the Dixie National Junior Round-Up, from which the 38 champions were selected. These champion animals were sold to the highest bidder at the Sale of Junior Champions auction.

2007 DIXIE NATIONAL SALE OF JUNIOR CHAMPIONS

The 38th Sale of Junior Champions was another great event for our youth involved in the Animal and Dairy Sciences Program.  The Sale Committee is to be commended for the hard work they put into this sale to make it a very successful activity.  This was the thirteenth year in a row for the sale to gross over $100,000.  Gross total for the 38 animals sold was $279,008.50.  The nine steers averaged $9.44/lb.; the thirteen hogs averaged $23.85/lb.; the thirteen lambs averaged $35.69/lb.; and the three goats averaged $52.00/lb.  The Grand Champion Steer was purchased by Ergon, Blue Cross/Blue Shield of MS, and Governor Haley & Marsha Barbour for $17.00/lb. for a new record total of $22,916 and was the highest selling animal in the sale.  Wilson’s Meat House purchased the Grand Champion Hog for $25.00/lb. for a total of $6,425.  Brookshire’s Grocery and Regions/AmSouth Bank purchased the Grand Champion Lamb for a new record price of $60.00/lb. for a new record total of $9,060.  Direct General Insurance, Co., Bobby & Barbara Martin, Cary & Mary Childs and Bob & Amber Lee Glover purchased the Grand Champion Goat for a new record price of $80.00/lb. for a new record total of $7,200.

Buyers who purchased animals were APAC, AT&T, Attala Frozen Foods, BanCorp South – Corp. Headquarters, BanCorp South – Hinds Co. Division, Bank of Yazoo, Bank Plus, Beth M. Harris Foundation, Blue Cross/Blue Shield of MS, Boots & More, Bozeman Farms, Brock Plumbing, Brookshire's Grocery, Brown Bottling Company, Capitol Body Shop, Cherry Deddens Real Estate, Cimarron Mortgage, Confish, Inc., Cooke, Douglass, Farr  & Lemons, LLC, Coyote Wild, David Landrum LLC Development, Delta Western Feed Mill, Deviney Construction, Dixie National Booster Club, Direct General Insurance, Inc., Entergy of MS, Ergon, Inc., F.G. Enterprises, Farrow Amusement Co., First South Farm Credit, Frierson Bailey Lumber, Gary Clark & Company, Governor Haley & Marsha Barbour, Gray-Daniels Ford, Havard Pest Control, Hemphill Construction, Horne, CPA, J.D. White Electric, Key Constructors, L-3 Vertex Aerospace, Land Banks of MS, Laws Construction, Lewis Electric Company, Lewis Trailer Sales, Matthews, Cutrer, Lindsay, PA, Molpus Woodlands, MS Ag Company, MS Fair Commision, MS Ag Commissioner Dr. Lester Spell, MS Farm Bureau Casualty, MS Farm Bureau Federation, MS Highway Commissioner, Nissan North America, Nucor Steel, Puckett Machinery, Puckett Rents, Regions/AmSouth Bank, Representative Chip Pickering, Rick’s Pro-Truck, Rogers-Dabbs Chevrolet, Selby & Richard McRae Foundation, Smith, Harper & Morgan Rodeo, Southern Cross Underwriters, Inc., Southern Farm Bureau Casualty, Southern Farm Bureau Life, Stribling Equipment, Structural Steel Company, Tackett Fish Farms, TeleSouth Communications, Tellus Operating Group, LLC, Tico's Steakhouse, Trustmark Bank, Tubb Equipment, Utility Constructors, W.B. & Isabel R. McCarty Foundation, W.S. “Red" Hancock, Waste Management, Watson Madison County Ford, Watson Quality Ford, Whitten Farms, Wilson’s Meat House, Yates Construction, W.P. Brown, Cary & Mary Childs, Bob & Amber Lee Glover, Cris & Eddie Guillot, Jennifer Hall, Cecil Harper, Ronnie Herrington, Tom Hixon, Bryan Jones, Mark S. Jordan, John Lundy, Bobby & Barbara Martin, Dr. Jim & Mei Mei Newsome, Hal & Linda Parker, Tommy Peaster, John Phillips, Ray Phillips, Paul Smith and Barry Wax.

Others who made contributions to assist with the sale and the scholarship fund were: AdCamp, Inc., Black Creek Outfitters, Capitol Ag Services, Inc., Catering by George’s, Chimneyville Smokehouse, Inc., Cowboy Maloney's Electric City, Cross Creek Farms, Daigle Enterprises, LP, Delta Electric, Dennery's Restaurant, Dixie National Booster Club, Electric Power Associations of MS, Fountain Family Foundation, Fowler Buick, Gary Clark & Co., Hass Outdoors, Inc., Harreld Chevrolet, Herrington Bros. Farm, Hesselbein Tire Company, Inc., Jimmy Sanders, Inc., Lazy 91 Club Goats, Lynn Phillips, Inc., Merchants & Farmers Bank, Merchants & Planters Bank, Mississippi Beef Council, Mississippi Pork Producers Assoc., MS Serum Distributors, MSU Division of Agriculture, Forestry & Veterinary Medicine, National Awards Campus Supply, Parkway Pentecostal Church, Planters Bank, Southern Tractor, Staplcotn, T.P. Weisenberger & Company, LLC, Taylorsville Feed-Seed & Garden Ctr., The Clarion-Ledger, The Gaddis Farms, Truck Trailer & Equipment, Inc., Trustmark National Bank, Wilson Harreld Real Estate, Dr. Joe Baker, Ben Lamensdorf, Isabel R. McCarty Foundation, Bob Montgomery and Robert Murphee.

The Sale of Junior Champions continues to mean a lot to our Mississippi youth livestock program.  The 38 sales have grossed a very impressive $3,501,138.35.  The first sale in 1970 had a gross total of $7,621.35.  This outstanding activity has come a long way in 38 years!

We salute all buyers, contributors, sale committee members, Extension staff members assisting with the sale, and other supporters who help make this a special event. 

Scholarships
2007 DIXIE NATIONAL SALE OF JUNIOR CHAMPIONS ACADEMIC SCHOLARSHIPS
Photo of winners
The Dixie National Sale of Junior Champions Promotion Committee presented twenty-five $1,000.00 academic scholarships. Winners were: Karen Woods, Yazoo 4-H; Jennifer K. Williams, Hinds 4-H; Roxy Lane Cooper, Lefore 4-H; Patti Braddock, NE Jones FFA; Maggie Cawthorn, Copiah 4-H; Brent Lee Warren, Simpson 4-H; Josh Holifield, Jones 4-H; Joseph Speed, Seminary FFA; Emma Collins, Scott 4-H/Forest-Scott FFA; Jamie Stuckey, Lawrence FFA; Carl Gregory, Pontotoc 4-H; Taylor Williams Reeves, Leake 4-H; Melissa Lea Easley, Pike 4-H; Corey Riley, Lawrence 4-H; Jessica Blackwell, Seminary FFA; Kristen Cauley, Sunflower 4-H; Candace I. Bradley, Jasper 4-H; Meagan Arender, Smith 4-H; Jonathan Chase Dickens, Lamar 4-H; Porcha Scott, Hinds 4-H; Brantley Pearson, Humphreys 4-H; Hannah Swoope, Humphreys 4-H; Jordan James, Sunflower 4-H; Amber Brooke McCaughn, Scott 4-H; and Ashley M. Harris, Humphreys 4-H.

Alert your 4H'ers and FFA members about the scholarships for the next year. Applicants must be seniors in high school and must exhibit an animal at the 2008 Dixie National Junior Round-Up. Exhibitors who have an animal(s) in the 2008 Sale of Champions or exhibitors who receive Premier Exhibitor Awards will not be eligible. The scholarship will be payable to the university or college the winner attends as a full time student (college or university must also be in Mississippi). Scholarship applications will be sent to each county Extension office and FFA chapter about mid December.

2007 Mississippi Livestock Council Scholarship

The Mississippi Livestock Council presented a $500.00 scholarship to Ashley Stringer of Jasper 4-H.

Dixie National Junior Round-Up Premier Exhibitors

Eighty-one exhibitor applications were received for the Premier Exhibitor Program at the 2007 Dixie National Junior Round-Up. The Sale of Junior Champions Promotion Committee sponsored a $1,500.00 academic scholarship for the Premier Exhibitor in beef, sheep, swine, dairy and goat. There were 29 exhibitors in the beef division, 16 in the dairy division, 4 in the lamb division, 24 in the swine division and 8 in the goat division. The 2007 Premier Exhibitors are:

Beef – Zachery Brower, Calhoun 4-H/Bruce FFA
Dairy – Kaitlyn Hardin, Pontotoc 4-H
Lamb – Samantha McCardle, Copiah 4-H
Swine – Angelia Hogue, Yazoo 4-H
Goat – Taylor King, Yazoo 4-H

Dixie National Junior Round-Up Supreme Dairy Female Award

The grand champions of each breed and the Grand Champion Commercial Dairy Heifer competed for the Dixie National Junior Round-Up Supreme Dairy Female. Breanna Ladner, Tate 4-H, received this award with her Grand Champion Holstein animal. She received a $1,000 scholarship presented by the Dixie National Sale of Junior Champions.