MERIDIAN, Idaho — It wouldn’t be summer in Meridian without Dairy Days.
Between live music, local vendors, food trucks, carnival rides, Meridian Speedway’s Cruise In, and of course dairy shows, there’s fun for all ages this weekend’s festivities at Storey Park.
The important thing about Dairy Days; it benefits students looking to go into careers in the agricultural industry, as proceeds from the Carnival go towards scholarships for Future Farmers of America.
“It’s such an honor to work with these animals and kind of just learn all of the work it takes to get to the show ring," said Courtney Simon, with Meridian FFA.
Simon is one of those scholarship recipients, and the newly crowned Meridian Dairy Days Senior Princess. The Friday afternoon Dairy Show was the first time she showed her cow Tennessee.
“I didn’t get any showmanship till about last year, which was my junior year of high school because they had really discovered it. It very quickly became my biggest interest," said Simon.
Dozens of 4-H and FFA Students from across Idaho were showing their goats and cows. Simon says taking care of Tennessee is a daily job, and she has been practicing with Tennessee weekly for the Dairy Show.
“They do a senior calf runoff, that’s all the senior calves and she got second in that. Now she is going into the all Holstein runoff, and if we win that then we go to the final drive at the very end," said Simon.
After she graduates from Centennial High School, and with her pageant scholarship, Simon wants to study at the University of Idaho, “I’m going to double major in Agricultural Education and Dairy Science. I hope to come back and teach Ag for my FFA Chapter and be an advisor."
