Weekend is for kids, cows

May 16, 2007

By Brenda Sexton-The Courier-Herald

The Enumclaw Junior Dairy Show at the Enumclaw Exposition Center draws a bit of emotion each year.

There's usually the frustrated youngster whose “pet” project won't cooperate in the show ring before the judges. The tears of joy from a proud parent when their offspring earns top honors.

But Saturday, there will be a number of participants feeling an emptiness that will be filled with a wisp of sadness.

This year, organizers are dedicating the dairy show in memory of former Washington Junior Holstein Association members Hannah Zylstra and Dan Frohning. Both Snohomish County teens, who were well-know in dairy circles, met untimely deaths. Frohning was killed in a hunting accident in October and Zylstra died in a car accident in December.

They are being honored for their zest for life, love of family and friends and passion for the Holstein cow.

“They always exhibited here. Everyone knows the kids,” said Chinook Dairy Club adviser Becky Birklid. “Normally we don't dedicate the shows to anybody, but they were so full of life and it was such a tragedy.

“All the little kids looked up to those kids,” she said.

Zylstra was a champion senior showman at the 2006 Western Washington Fair. Her work in the showmanship and fitting ring awed audiences. She took top FFA honors in fitting and showing at the Evergreen State Fair the past two years. She was also a 4.0 student at Snohomish High.

Frohning was a fifth generation dairyman. He had a passion for genetics that led him to participate in the All-West/Select sires breeding school and take over the breeding program for his family's farm. In 2004 he earned the Ellene Kearney Award, the highest honor bestowed on a dairy 4-H exhibitor at the Evergreen State Fair.

Although the Enumclaw Junior Dairy Show doesn't draw as many as it once did, it's still substantial. It draws about 100 participants representing 150 animals from 20 to 25 clubs from Washington and sometimes Oregon.

Local participants include the Chinook Dairy Club of Enumclaw, one of the oldest clubs in Washington state. The club was started in 1945. The Enumclaw Junior Dairy Show celebrates its 70th year this time around.

Of the 14 youngsters expected to participate from the Chinook Dairy Club, many are second and third generation farmers who will bring dairy stock representing Guernsey, Jersey, Holstein and milking short horn.

Visitors are welcome to watch for free or check out the number of educational displays.

Friday evening, the gates open for a public speaking exhibit. At 10 a.m. Saturday fitting and showing competition begins. Type classes begin at 1 p.m.

Brenda Sexton can be reached at bsexton@courierherald.com.

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