Fort Worth Stock Show and Rodeo
Exhibitor Tristan Hines and Ed Bass, chairman of the Fort Worth Stock Show and Rodeo, with Steve, Grand Champion Steer.
The return of the Fort Worth Stock Show and Rodeo after a pandemic interruption brought with it a record-shattering take for youth exhibitors.
The Junior Sale of Champions $6.125 million, the Fort Worth Stock Show Syndicate announced on Monday. The total was the highest figure in Syndicate history, by more than $1.3 million, officials added.
A record-breaking purchase for the Grand Champion Steer of the Show set the tone Saturday morning at West Arena. The Grand Champion, a 1,319-pound European cross named "Steve," sold for $310,000, topping the previous high of $300,000 set in 2020.
The Reserve Champion was purchased for $190,000, making the total for the first two animals sold a half million dollars.
“This was just a phenomenal return for the Sale of Champions,” Fort Worth Stock Show Syndicate chairman J.T. Aughinbaugh says. “The excitement in the community leading up to this year’s sale was unparalleled, and it showed on Saturday morning. We are so proud to see the impact that our sponsors and donors are making in the lives of these young people, and we are already looking forward to 2023.”
In 2020, the sale raised $4.749 million, the first time the sale ever totaled more than $4 million. The Syndicate has now distributed a total of more than $30 million to exhibitors over the past eight sales, an average of $3.75 million per year.
The sale benefitted Texas 4-H and FFA youth from all over the state of Texas. Since its inception in 1980, the Fort Worth Stock Show Syndicate, which now numbers nearly 150 members, has helped purchase more than 9,300 animals at a total price in excess of $70 million.
In addition, the Syndicate has helped children pursue their educational and agricultural goals over the past four decades. Once again, the organization will award two dozen $10,000 scholarships to FFA and 4-H students as part of the James M. “Jim Bob” Norman Scholarship Fund. Over its history, the scholarship fund has distributed more than $2.5 million to area students.
For more information on the Fort Worth Stock Show Syndicate, visit FWSSS.com.