Bridgewater-Emery's Lehrman earns reserve champion award at Oklahoma cattle show

Jan. 25—EMERY, S.D. — Like many youth growing up in rural South Dakota, Cash Lehrman knows his way around a farm. Growing up on the family farm, he learned many of the ins and outs of the agriculture business.

And as part of the

Bridgewater-Emery High School FFA program,

along with his fellow students, he continues to explore that career path through classes, activities and competitions like the one he participated in earlier this month in Oklahoma.

Lehrman was named the reserve champion at the

2022 American Shorthorn Association Cattleman's Congress Junior Shorthorn Show.

"I've shown livestock since I was 3 years old, and the Cattleman's Congress is a new show that they implemented last year," Lehrman told the Mitchell Republic recently. "I went last year and then we went down there again this year."

Lehrman, 15, won his class in the junior show with a short-horned heifer, beating out approximately 70 other competitors with his entry. He estimated that between 800 to 900 were involved with the show throughout all its categories, with people converging on the event from every state in the country.

Livestock competitions are nothing particularly new to Lehrman, but he was pleased and pleasantly surprised to come away from a competition like this with a victory.

"It was actually kind of a surprise how it went. A very nice surprise," Lehrman said.

The victory was an accomplishment for the sophomore and the Bridgewater-Emery FFA chapter, Lehrman said. He enjoyed his time learning and growing within his FFA program, refining his knowledge of farm work and industry while focusing on the livestock aspect of the business.

But there have been plenty of other lessons he has learned working within the program, such as the finer points to business paperwork, good organizational practices and time management, that have also helped him expand his horizons.

"The main thing I've done is livestock evaluation at all the CDs as well as starting a (Greenhand Degree), which involves a bunch of record keeping and making sure I'm tracking everything down and have everything in order and looking the way it should be," Lehrman said. "It was definitely a challenge to overcome, but it was an interesting and fun challenge and I really enjoyed doing it."

What he is learning as part of the FFA chapter should serve him well as he looks to his life beyond high school.

"I'm certainly thinking of going the ag route. My future plans are to go to

South Dakota State University

and get a degree in agricultural science and then come back to the family farm and keep farming," Lehrman said.

Alex Toupel, FFA adviser for Bridgwater-Emery, said Lehrman is an example of how FFA program participants can excel in their field when they apply themselves to their goals.

"He's definitely been one of my all-stars out of that class. He's been traveling around the nation, and it's astonishing how much he can get accomplished," Toupel said.

The Bridgwater-Emery FFA program boasts about 85 members, and Toupel said there is plenty of work to do before the end of the school year. He is hopeful the state convention will go off without a hitch, but like many event organizers, officials are keeping an eye on the COVID-19 pandemic, he said.

In the meantime, the students will work on assigned projects and continue to develop a variety of skills. Toupel said there is much to learn for anyone who takes part in FFA, and a direct connection or aspiration to enter the agriculture industry later in life is not required to benefit from it.

"A lot of things we focus on in the classroom involve hands-on learning. All have hands-on projects that they have to complete during or by the end of the semester. We focus on record-keeping and building those base skills where students like Cash can join in and start growing even further," Toupel said. "And FFA is not just agriculture-based. It has leadership and team leading skills, all that stuff."

Lehrman agreed that there are lessons in FFA that can serve anyone well if they're willing to apply themselves to the work. He said he is already utilizing what he has learned in his everyday life even outside his agricultural background.

It's something he plans to expand upon as he continues his career with Bridgewater-Emery FFA, and it's something he knows even those with a minimal interest in farm work can find enrichment in.

"I learned a lot of things, like how to win and lose gracefully, and social skills because you have to get up and talk in front of people," Lehrman said. "Regardless if you grew up on a farm or not, there are many things in FFA that will probably interest a lot of people. I think I"ll be able to benefit for years on down the road."