By Sydney Jorgenson – Special to the Navarro County Gazette
Over the last week, the Navarro County Youth Expo has been the place to be. Throughout the week, multiple different projects ranging from market steers and lambs to agricultural mechanics and woodworking projects have been exhibited. Mildred FFA showed up to compete in the goat show this past Wednesday and not only the students, but also their new, first-year, agricultural science teacher, made memories they would never forget.
Last week, eight out of the eleven goat exhibitors from Mildred, guided by Ag teacher Kinsey Lane, earned themselves a spot in the sale the following Saturday.
After a short interview with Lane, it was very apparent that all of the praises from parents of her dedication were true. Lane said that she spent “countless hours” in the school barn helping to prep her students and their goats for the expo. The dedication and work did not stop there though. If you look on the Mildred Friends of Youth’s Facebook page, you will see countless photos and videos of Lane making sure her girls looked perfect in the ring.
When asking Lane about her involvement with goats, she said she actually used to “despise goats.” Her perspective began to change when she realized through her student teaching years that there were a lot of students interested in showing goats. She put her feelings aside and began to focus on learning everything she could about the goat industry in case she was “faced with a large number of goat showmen.”
Lane’s time spent gaining knowledge payed off this past week during NCYE. Lane says that one of her proudest moments in her career was placing four students in the sale during one class at the NCYE. She says that for many, it “seems like it would not be a challenge” but for her, it was one of her greatest accomplishments. She says that getting to watch as “our hard work payed off” is something that she will carry with her for a lifetime. Lane says that even though that was one of her proudest moments, going into NCYE she told her students “win, lose, or draw, I want to make sure that this experience taught you something.” She also told them that she is “proud of all the hard work” that each student had put forward this year.
After speaking to some of Lane’s students, they all can attest to her dedication to not only her students but also her future students. Not only does Lane spend countless hours in the barn, she also ensures that the future generations are educated on just how amazing the agriculture industry truly is. Lane’s students commented on her perseverance and courage.
While Lane’s students had their doubts about her advice with the goats, they all came to find out that there is “madness to her methods.” And no, I didn’t say that backwards. There is insane amounts of dedication that go hand in hand with her methods. But I guess you could also say that there’s a method to her madness as well. Her students and their parents thank her for all of her dedication to her students and their projects.
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