2024 Morgan County Livestock Ambassadors

Our Morgan County Livestock Ambassador program is off to a great start for the new year, and this marks the seventh year of this program being in place.This program allows youth in 9th-12th grades who have been showing a hog, sheep, and/or beef for at least five years an opportunity to give back to the livestock program and earn scholarship money. 4-H and FFA are always looking for ways to provide leadership and service opportunities for youth. This program encompasses all of that plus more. Youth who wish to become livestock ambassadors must fill out an application, get two letters of recommendation from non-family members, and write an essay about their personal livestock experience and how they can help other livestock members. After the application process is complete, they go through an interview with the livestock superintendents and the livestock ambassador advisors, Nicole Reed (4-H Program Coordinator II) and Hannah Giles (FFA Advisor). There are a total of five livestock ambassador positions available (two sheep, two swine, and one beef). 

If selected ambassadors will serve from May 1 – Aug. 31, and must fulfill the following responsibilities:

• Work with five – six, first or second-year livestock members, teaching them about livestock handling, feed programs, daily care, show day preparation, and showmanship techniques. Meet with new livestock members in May before the June Show and in July before the Morgan County Fair. After farm visits send a follow-up text or email to new members and cc 4-H Office and FFA Advisor.

• Assist new livestock members with filling out their 4-H or FFA portfolios.

• Make two livestock educational videos. Topics will be decided on as a group.

• Create an educational poster about your species to be hung up during the fair.

• Assist at the Morgan County Fair with livestock sale as determined.

• Help with panel set up and take down for June Show and Fair.

• Write an article for two livestock newsletters. 

 Rewards for livestock ambassadors upon successful completion are as follows:

• $250 Scholarship (Received upon successful completion of Livestock Ambassador duties)

•  Recognition at Livestock Sale and Achievement Night.

• Ambassador jacket for show days.

• One polo shirt to wear at events and when working with new livestock members.

• Resume/Scholarship building experience.

This year’s Livestock Ambassadors: 

· Sheep: Kayla Gale and Sydney Jensen

· Swine: Brynn Peterson and Jadie Shupe

Unfortunately, we did not have any Beef Ambassador applicants this year. 

Meet this year’s ambassadors: 

Kayla Gale: Sheep Ambassador

My name is Kayla Gale and I’m one of this year’s Sheep Livestock Ambassadors. Here’s a little about me. My parents are Jake and Kathy Gale, and I am the oldest of six kids. I have two sisters and three brothers who I love. I am 18 and just graduated from high school at Morgan. Since I was little, I have always had a special place in my heart for animals. I started showing sheep when I was 9 years old. It has been my favorite thing to do so far. I also have been a part of the rodeo royalty as well as horse 4-H. In 2021, I was crowned Princess of the Rodeo in Morgan County.

Since I was little, I have always wanted to be a vet. I have watched any and every vet show you can name, and I am always throwing out facts about animals and animal procedures. I love anything related to livestock and nature. This fall I will be attending USU and going into their vet program. I can’t wait to be up there and learn as much as I possibly can to become a vet one day. I’ve been preparing for this for a little while now, as I have taken many agricultural classes and participated in FFA. I have loved taking all these classes but when I’m not at school I’m at home helping my family on the farm, where we have a herd of sheep at home that I help take care of. In the winter, I spend many sleepless hours out in the barn helping ewes who are in labor,

warming up babies and feeding bottles on a bucket.

This year I applied to be a livestock ambassador and I am so grateful to have been selected. I can’t wait to help anyone and everyone who needs it or wants it, and I especially can’t wait to see the livestock program grow. I am one of two sheep ambassadors, the other is Sydney Jensen, and she is amazing, I can’t wait to work with her and get to know her a little more. Livestock is huge to me and so is the aspect of showing livestock. I have loved that each year in the livestock program, whether through, 4-H or FFA, I have always without a doubt learned something new that has been able to take me to the next level. When I was little and just starting out it was the ambassadors that came to my house to help me, that really made me fall in love with the program itself. I have gone to many camps where I have learned how to become a better showman and I can’t wait to teach kids in the program some of the basics I’ve learned, so they can become the best showmen they can be. I have also gone to many jackpots where I have learned how to create an appearance to the judge that you can always do good with. I have younger siblings who I am helping, and I have always been able to help my family, as they have been able to help me too. I can’t wait to get this summer rolling and watching kids get progressively better at showing. I am so grateful for this program as it has become my whole world and I hope I can create a good environment for the younger generation, so the program stays strong and growing.

Sydney Jensen: Sheep Ambassador

My name is Sydney Jensen, and I am one of this year’s Sheep Livestock Ambassadors. In 2018, I decided to start showing pigs with other family members of mine that were showing hogs. I was so excited, and I immediately fell in love with the animals! I continued to want to try new things and two years later I got the opportunity to show sheep. Since then, I have learned so much from my experiences. I have also learned a lot in the last six years from the Morgan County Jr. Livestock Program. It has been challenging and rewarding.

I decided that I wanted to become a Livestock Ambassador this year because of the new challenges that I would face. I continue to work with my sheep and try my best to help others with their projects! I have already learned so much about other sheep only from the first couple months of experience. I want to help mentor those who don't have someone to help them succeed with their projects.

I feel so grateful that I started showing pigs so long ago, and that I was able to continue learning about animals, farming, and livestock through the Morgan County Jr. Livestock Program. Going to different shows, learning from clinics, and talking to mentors, has helped me succeed in the shows, and I want to help others get to the point where they feel confident and comfortable with their animals.

Brynn Peterson: Swine Ambassador

My name is Brynn Peterson, and I am one of the swine ambassadors this year. I've lived in Morgan my whole life and have been showing pigs since I was 8 years old. I will be a senior in high school next year, and I love the junior livestock program! I'm super excited to be a livestock ambassador this year, 4-H has taught me so much and I love teaching kids about it! I'm excited for the opportunity to be an ambassador and to be able to support my community and the Jr. Livestock Program.

I’ve been around pigs my whole life. I was really scared of pigs when I was little, and my siblings would always try to scare me by trying to get me to ride them. I didn't think that was very funny. Even though I was scared of them, I always wanted to show them when I got old enough. I always love fair time and the environment there. The past couple of years I have put in a lot of effort to improve my showmanship and have loved showing even more. I'm grateful that I have had the opportunity to raise and show pigs throughout my life and make lots of memories.

Showing has taught me so many lessons that I couldn't have learned anywhere else. The main one being responsibility, I am responsible for keeping my pig healthy and helping it reach its full potential. Showing has also taught me patience with my animals and my family. I have also learned how to be a leader and help others succeed. I'm excited for an awesome year.

Jadie Shupe: Swine Ambassador

My name is Jadie Shupe and this year I am one of the swine ambassadors. I wanted to be a livestock ambassador because I am very passionate about helping kids. I love watching them achieve their goals and having success in the show ring with their project. When I was first showing I always had people helping me, friends, family, and even peers. They all helped me get to where I am today and being able to be that person for those kids is amazing. 

Last year I was a lamb ambassador, and it was so fun, I have so many memories. One of my favorite memories is when I had two kids in a class together. Both of their goals were to make it to the star class in showmanship and they both did! When they came out of the ring, they both came and gave me the biggest hug. I was so happy for both of their successes and to be able to be a part of it. Being a livestock ambassador may be hard but moments like those make it one thousand times better. 

  I show for many different reasons. One of them is that I love showing livestock. I love being able to work with an animal and then being able to show it off to a judge. Another reason is because I like to push myself. I’m the kind of person who will push myself to be the best that I can be. Showing livestock is hard, and sometimes you just want to quit and give up, but you must be able to push yourself past your limits. 

Our livestock ambassadors are already hard at work, and they are doing a stellar job. Youth learn best from their peers and that is why this program has been so successful and impactful for so many. If you see any of the ambassadors, be sure to tell them congratulations and ask them for their help if you need it. λ