There was a new element to Summer Synergy, the Olds Regional Exhibition's (ORE) annual camp that teaches young people the finer points of owning, caring for and showing animals.
This year, the event, which ran from July 8 to 13 included a judging camp to teach youth how best to evaluate animals. It was held from Sunday, July 8 to Tuesday, July 10.
"It was an opportunity to expose those young people to becoming better livestock judges, better decision-makers," ORE business development manager Tracy Gardner said, adding participants also learned how to say why they placed livestock in certain ranks.
"We had resource people here from Kansas State University who helped guide that process, as the U.S. has a really great livestock judging scholarship model. So it's a really great opportunity for our kids to tap into a resource we don't otherwise have," she said.
Gardner said ORE officials were "overwhelmed" with the response.
"We had over 80 kids participate, which far exceeded our expectations," she said, adding one student came all the way from Finland.
"We didn't know (what sort of response to expect) with a new event; we weren't sure," Gardner said. "We knew there was a need. We established that there was a need in the marketplace for us to provide that educational component.
"We just weren't sure what the programming would be able to fit into the schedules of our young people, and they felt it was a priority too, so they came."
