More than 95 Oklahoma youth recently competed for $9,500 in savings bonds and scholarships during the 11th Annual Young Farmers and Ranchers Speech Contest, sponsored by the Oklahoma Farm Bureau. The contest was held March 13 at the OSU-OKC campus in Oklahoma City.
The YF&R Speech Contest was broken up into three age divisions: Junior, nine-12 years old; Intermediate, 13-15 years old; and Senior, 16-18 years old. The youth gave speeches in three division categories, including Agricultural Production, Agriculture Policy and Environment & Natural Resources.
Junior Division:
First, second and third place winners of each category of the Junior Division received $400, $200 and $100 savings bonds, respectively.
Winners in the Agriculture Production category were: First place, Tyler Schnaithman of Garber; second place, Laurie Fitch of Stillwater; and third place, Kaelea Crowell of Yukon.
Winners in the Agriculture Policy category were: First place, Reed Allen of Albert; second place, Layne Meriwether of Waynoka; and third place, Abby Hendrickson of Adair.
Winners in the Environment & Natural Resources category were: First place, Bridget Roush of Yukon; second place, Zakry Crowell of Yukon; and third place, Jacob Spady of Hinton.
Intermediate Division:
First, second and third place winners of the Intermediate Division received $500, $200 and $100 savings bonds, respectively.
Winners in the Agriculture Production category were: First place, Levi Moyers of Newcastle; second place, Amy Peel of Wetumka; and third place, Mikah Pendleton of Yukon.
Winners in the Agriculture Policy category were: First place, Katie Smith of Lawton; second place, Derek Shaw of Talihina; and third place, Tyler Price of Laverne.
Winners in the Environment & Natural Resources category were: First place, Cody McPherson of Chelsea; second place, Jordan Bulling of Mulhall; and third place, Kayla Wilson of Tuttle.
Senior Division:
First, second and third place winners of the Senior Division received $1,000, $500 and $200 scholarships, respectively.
Winners in the Agriculture Production category were: First place, Laila Hajji of Guthrie; second place, Ashley Willis of Kingfisher; and third place, Ashlee Richardson of Amber.
Winners in the Agriculture Policy category were: First place, Tyler Powell of Guthrie; second place, Ashley Mason of Jenks; and third place, Nikki Holt of Kingfisher.
Winners in the Environment & Natural Resources category were: First place, Chelsea Clifton of Kingfisher; second place, Cami Jeter of Copan; and third place, Stefanie Bowen of Newcastle.
