Pea idge senior readies entry for show ring at Benton County Fair

BENTON COUNTY — The 2010 Benton County Fair will be bittersweet for Sarah Meyers of Garfield.

This year is the Pea Ridge High School senior’s last year to show her animals. “I’m excited and I’m sad,” Meyers said. “It has been a really good time for me.”

Meyers, 17, has shown pigs at the fair for the past seven years. She said she decided to do something a little different this year, something a little more challenging - show a goat. “I’ve always wanted to try a new challenge. I always knew what to look for in a pig and didn’t know anything about goats,” Meyers said.

Meyers’ goat is Shasta, a meat goat who, according to Meyers, is strong-headed and super stubborn. Meyers has spent her summer making sure Shasta is comfortable around other goats and other people. Meyers said when she and Shasta go into the ring for the last time this week, she and the goat will be ready.

Meyers’ mother, Nancy Meyers, said she’s proud of her daughter and credits 4-H and showing at the county fair with giving her the confidence she needs to succeed in life.

Her daughter is “not afraidto try new stuff,” her mother said. “This is her first and last year doing goats, but she wanted to give it a try. I think a lot of kids wouldn’t do that, so 4-H has really given her the confidence she needs.”

Sarah Meyers said she couldn’t help but think about all the good experiences she has had at the fair and all the things she has learned from showing there. “I can’t believe it. It seems like it hasn’t been long enough and I’m going to miss everyone,” Sarah Meyers said. She is applying to colleges and hopes to study psychology and believes she’ll attend Arkansas Tech in Russellville.

Her mother said 4-H will always be a part of her life.

“I imagine she’ll keep a finger in 4-H. Maybe not in her college years, but I think she’ll always have something to do with 4-H,” Nancy Meyers said.