The Blue Ribbon Sale of Champions Foundation and Wisconsin State Fair Officials welcomed Governor Tony Evers and Wisconsin Secretary of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection, Randy Romanski, to the Governor’s Blue Ribbon Livestock Auction. At the conclusion of another high energy and successful event, the Governor’s Blue Ribbon Livestock Auction, at the 2023 Wisconsin State Fair, raised a total of $403,150.
“Funds raised at the Governor’s Blue Ribbon Livestock Auction support the Blue Ribbon Sale of Champions Foundation’s mission to educate and support the Wisconsin State Fair youth livestock exhibitors”, says Bob Johnson, President of the Blue Ribbon Sale of Champions Foundation. “These youth are the future of the Wisconsin livestock industry, and we were overwhelmed with the generosity of our auction supporters.” In 2023, the GBRLA provided $32,000 in scholarship awards as well as over $15,000 to fund Wisconsin State Fair Junior Exhibitor Showmanship, Knowledge Master Showman, and Reserve Champion Awards.
Bucky Badger and the sounds of the UW-Madison Marching Band brought the energy to the Case IH Coliseum. The bidding commenced as auctioneer Gary Finley started the night by selling the Grand Champion Steer, exhibited by Tori Crisp and sold to Kenosha Beef for $40,000.
Congratulations to all of the Wisconsin State Fair Junior Exhibitors who sold their animals in the 2023 Governor’s Blue Ribbon Livestock Auction. Below is a list of winning bids:
- Grand Champion Steer (Crossbred) exhibited by Tori Crisp of Union Grove, Winning bid of $40,000 by Kenosha Beef
- Grand Champion Barrow (Crossbred) exhibited by Ella Roehl of Darien, Winning bid of $19,000 by Meijer and Tyson Foods
- Grand Champion Market Lamb (Crossbred) exhibited by Brayden Bowers of Belmot, Winning bid of $15,000 by Beer Capitol Distributing and Molson Coors
- Reserve Grand Champion Steer (Crossbred) exhibited by Makinley Pohlman of Barneveld, Winning bid of $20,000 by Beechwood Sales & Service
- Reserve Grand Champion Barrow (Crossbred) exhibited by Claire Duch of New London, Winning bid of $15,000 by Meijer
- Reserve Grand Champion Market Lamb (Crossbred) exhibited by Trenna Cherney of Wonewoc, Winning bid of
$10,000 by Badger State Ethanol
- Grand Champion Bred and Owned Market Steer exhibited by Clara Henderson of East Troy, Winning bid of $15,00 by Wisconsin Souvenir Milk Caps
- Grand Champion Bred and Owned Market Barrow exhibited by Samantha Rake of Lodi, Winning bid of $9,000 by Leff’s Lucky Town
- Grand Champion Bred and Owned Market Lamb exhibited by Wyatt Nixon of Delevan, Winning bid $14,000 by Planet Earth Agronomy
- Champion Chianina Steer exhibited by Landon Rehberg of Elkhorn, Winning bid of $15,000 K&D Enterprises, Main Street County Store, Reproduction Provisions, Southern Lakes Plumbing and Heating, Four Seasons Storage, Ted Grant Farms
- Champion Berkshire Barrow exhibited by Amanda Miklaszewski of Franksville, Winning bid of $8,000 by Interstate Parking and Statewide Fencing Inc.
- Champion Hampshire Lamb exhibited by Lillianna Berget of Mineral Point, Winning bid of $7,000 by Meijer
- Champion Maine-Anjou Steer exhibited by Maggie Dutton of Darien, Winning bid of $6,500 by Keystone Light Motorsports
- Champion Poland China Barrow exhibited Talena Sprecher of Lone Rock, Winning bid of $7,000 by Giant Slide Inc, Tropics, Sky Fair, Mary Beth Carr, II Dog Enterprise, Crutchees Cheese-On-A-Stick
- Champion Natural Colored Lamb exhibited by Cate Cherney of Lavalle, Winning bid of $5,500 by Reyes Coca-Cola
- Champion Hereford Steer exhibited by Brady Jones of Darlington, Winning bid of $13,000 by Interstate Parking and Statewide Fencing Inc.
- Champion Yorkshire Barrow exhibited by Dalton Bennett of Durand, IL, Winning bid of $7,000 by Souvenir Milk Caps
- Champion Shropshire Lamb exhibited by Lainey Popp of Walworth, Winning bid of $7,000 by WE Energies Foundation
- Champion Charolais Steer exhibited by Shade Bunker of Sparta, Winning bid of $7,500 by Meijer
- Champion Hampshire Barrow exhibited by Owen Young of Edgerton, Winning bid of $8,000 by WE Energies Foundation
- Champion AOB White Faced Lamb exhibited by Katie Walkington of Bristol, Winning bid of $4,000 by Saz’s Hospitality and Milwaukee Admirals
- Champion Shorthorn Plus Steer exhibited by Emma Selbrede of Sparta, Winning bid of $6,000 by WirePro Electric, Swanson Hoof Trimming, CP Home Improvements
- Champion Duroc Barrow exhibited by Sara Kronberg of Milton, Winning bid of $10,000 by Evansville Community Boosters
- Champion Oxford Lamb exhibited by Caleb Tracy of Blue River, Winning bid of $3,500 by Alsum Farms & Produce
- Champion Angus Steer exhibited by Klay Lorentz of Woodville, Winning bid of $9,000 by Meijer and Tyson Foods
- Champion Chester White Barrow exhibited by Nicholas Duch of New London, Winning bid of $8,000 by Saz’s Hospitality
- Champion Southdown Lamb exhibited by Lexy Popp of Walworth, Winning bid of $3,500 by Walworth International, Farmer Brown Swine LLC
- Champion Simmental Steer exhibited by Neleah Bobolz, Winning bid of $16,000 by Molson Coors and Beer Capital Distributing, Blueprint Genetics, Mindemann Farms, Bovitec
- Champion Tamworth Barrow exhibited by Reece Theobald of Mt. Horeb, Winning bid of $5,000 by Advanced Fun Technology- Ejection Seat
- Champion Dorset Lamb exhibited by Rylie Theis of Poynette, Winning bid of $5,500 by Meijer and Alsum Farms & Produce
- Champion Shorthorn Steer exhibited by Bailey Abney of South Wayne, Winning bid of $10,500 by Cowan Cattle Co., TC Reds, C5 Farms
- Champion Hereford Barrow exhibited by Abigail Helbach of Amherst, Winning bid of $3,500 by Case IH
- Champion AOB Steer exhibited by Madison Russel of Shullsburg, Winning bid of $16,000 by Case IH
- Champion Spotted Barrow exhibited by Chad Achenbach of Eastman, Winning bid of $6,500 by WI Pork Association
- Champion Dairy Steer exhibited by Jorjianna Mejchar of Belgium, Winning bid of $13,000 by American Food Group
- Champion AOB Barrow exhibited by Kaila Cross of Poynette, Winning bid of $18,000 by Meijer, Kaycee Trust, Mindemann Farms, Leff’s Lucky Town, Miller Lite Sports Bar & Grill, Bunzel’s, Blue Moon Tavern, Major Goolsby’s Fein Brothers, Ironwood Golf Course, Hot House Tavern, Trawicki Electric
In addition to livestock, four Wisconsin Sports packages were also auctioned:
- Milwaukee Bucks Framed and Signed Print by MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo of the NBA Title. A one of a kind multi pictured print with a piece of the championship floor in Milwaukee. Purchased by Jim and Mary Quade Farms of Milton, WI for $1,500.
- Wisconsin Badger framed print signed by the Doak Walters Nominated Winners including Ron Dayne(1999), Montee Ball (2012) and Melvin Gordon III(2014). On Wisconsin! Purchased by American Foods Group for
$1,200.
- Milwaukee Brewers Framed Print signed by Willy Adames along with 4 tickets and parking pass to the Brewer vs. Cardinals on Wed. Sept 27th at 6:40 pm. Great seats on first base side in lower deck in section 112, row 18. Purchased by American Foods Group for $700.
- Green Bay Packer Framed and signed jersey by the legend Hall of Famer, Brett Favre. Signed jersey includes all of Brett’s Green Bay career’s statistics which makes this jersey a great collectible piece for Packer fans. GO PACK! Purchased by Jim and Mary Quade Farms of Milton, WI for $3,250.
Congratulations to all of the Wisconsin State Fair Junior Exhibitors who were awarded a 2023 Governor’s Blue Ribbon Livestock Auction Scholarship. Below is a list of the recipients:
$3,000 Recipient
- Talena Sprecher of Lone Rock
$2,000 Recipients
- David Thompson of Woodville
- Allison Loosen of Hartford
- Lauren Jones of Darlington
- Madisyn Henderson of Kenosha
$1,500 Recipients
- Sara Kronberg of Milton
- Hailey Jentz of Belmont
- Emily Zukowski of Menomonie
- Cora Capatske of Ellsworth
- Elizabeth Colwell of LaValle
- Abagail Stalbaum of Madison
$1,000 Recipients
- Isabelle Doherty of Johnson Creek
- Ethan Lulich of Lyndon Station
- Kyle Ellsworth of Elkhorn
- Maya Weinkauf of Waterford
- Ty Kershner of Lone Rock
- Annamarie Aue of Auburndale
- Isabel Roloff of Shawano
- Brooke Luedtke of Pardeeville
- Ava Leibfried of Hazel Green
- Taylor Himebauch of East Troy
- Kinsley Wetzel of Beloit
- Regan Suddeth of Mineral Point
