The Junior Red Angus board of directors attended their fall retreat Nov. 17-19 in Oklahoma City. Junior board members in attendance were Cameron Ison, Paducah, Kentucky; Kenedy DeVoe, Justin, Texas; Gracie Rogers, Princeton, Missouri; and Zachary Griffeth, Marietta, Oklahoma.

On Friday, Nov. 17, the group traveled to Chickasha, Oklahoma, to visit the Grady County Fairgrounds where the inaugural Red Angus Youth Expo will be held June 9-14, 2024. During this visit, they captured video footage that will later be used to promote the Red Angus Youth Expo as well as the junior association. The directors mapped out contest and education workshop locations, show ring set up and trade show locations.

That evening, the directors visited the Oklahoma National Stockyards where they took in the history of the stockyards during the annual Christmas tree lighting.

On Saturday, members of the Oklahoma Youth Expo staff taught a leadership and professional development workshop. OYE staff included Executive Vice President Kass Newell, Vice President of Operations Bray Haven and Vice President of Communications J.D. Rosman. The junior board took away useful skills and knowledge on topics such as overcoming difficult challenges, the importance of internships, how to step out of your comfort zone to meet new people and how to positively promote a new event. The OYE staff was also gracious enough to let the JRA directors use their boardroom to conduct their meetings.

The team had an outstanding meeting following the workshop. They continued to have great discussions and accomplished a lot of planning for the upcoming year. One main area of focus was planning the Red Angus Youth Expo. The JRA leaders planned ideas for contests, workshops and fun activities for families and young future JRA members. The entire week should be an exceptional event for Red Angus families. Other areas covered in their meeting included fundraising ideas, JRA Round-Up planning and incentive program brainstorming.

The fall retreat was not without its fun. On Saturday evening, the JRA directors cooked pizzas and pasta together before heading off to test their skills at an escape room. The junior board had to use their teamwork skills and work as a group to escape the dungeon they were trapped in. With good communication and teamwork — and a couple of helpful hints from the game master — the junior board escaped before time ran out.

The fall retreat wrapped up meetings on Sunday. They also participated in a sire selection activity where they were given a female and two bulls and had to analyze the mating options and select the best bull to use. The JRA directors left the meeting geared up and excited for what is in store for the rest of this year and the start of 2024.

The JRA directors recently visited the Grady County Fairgrounds in Chickasha, Oklahoma, to make plans for the upcoming Red Angus Youth Expo in June.

Thank you to the OYE staff for hosting us for a leadership and professional development workshop, and for allowing us to use their boardroom for our meeting. From left are Bray Haven, Kass Newell, Kenedy DeVoe, Cameron Ison, Zachery Griffith, Gracie Rogers and J.D. Rosman.

Gracie, Cameron, Zachery and Kenedy celebrated their escape with a victory photo.

We kicked off the holiday season with the annual Christmas tree lighting in the historic Oklahoma National Stockyards. We wish you the very best during this Christmas season!