LOUISVILLE, Ky. — The Kentucky State Fair offers some of the highest level of competition for young Kentuckians showing livestock.
What You Need To Know
- Brother and sister, Jackson and Sonia Shoemaker compete by showing pigs
- Jackson Shoemaker, 11, has been showing the animals for more than half his life
- Shoemaker has won several awards for his efforts
It’s the kind of competition that just wears you out, but young Jackson Shoemaker is riding such a wave of success the summer has been flying by.
“Now me, I’ve been doing this for six or seven years,” 11-year-old Shoemaker said. The Kentucky State Fair is Shoemaker’s 18th competition of the year showing swine. He’s been competing since May and won’t finish until November and the Lewis County native has made a name for himself.
“I’ve been placing Reserve Champion in my division, in Grand, almost everywhere we went,” the young showman said.
“I am very proud of them. They do a good job. They enjoy it. The main thing is they’ve got to like to show,” grandmother Mary Shoemaker said. Grandma Shoemaker is much more of a child wrangler than any other kind, spending her day in the barn making sure her entire clan is read for each show.
Jackson Shoemaker says showing has taught him a lot. “Showing swine, for children, teaches them responsibility and how to take care of an animal,” he shared.
He has many more years of competition ahead of him, but his 22-year-old sister Sonia Is finishing her last year of FFA competition. “I put in all the hard work and dedication into these animals every day in the barn until late at night. Up early in the morning, making sure I make my last year the best one,” she said.
The brother and sister duo have spent the summer racking up the accolades. And with one last Kentucky State Fair, Sonia Shoemaker wants to make it memorable. “It’s been a long time coming, so it gets a little emotional.”
All ribbons aside, Sonia and her brother Jackson represent the best the fair has to offer.