American Steel Carports recently had the opportunity to attend the 2019 Johnson County Junior Livestock Show and Youth Fair. As a locally-based company, it is extremely important to us to support our local community as often as possible. We especially appreciate the chance to support the kids and young adults in the community because they are our future generation. It was truly our pleasure to donate a check to the Johnson County Livestock and Agricultural Association, and it was great to be there in person to support and congratulate these youth on all their hard work.

Most people do not realize how much hard work, time, and money goes into raising these animals in order to show them at a livestock show. These Future Farmers of America (FFA) students are entirely responsible for buying the animals and taking care of them. Some of their responsibilities include fencing, feeding, watering, cleaning troughs, grooming, cleaning pens, and observing the animals daily to watch for sickness and disease. FFA projects help our kids learn basic life skills that will eventually help them become better citizens by teaching them responsibility and helping them set goals, all while teaching them the knowledge of livestock production.

While showing support on behalf of American Steel Carports, I was able to interact with the FFA students and their livestock. These FFA students compete in 12 different divisions with animals such as chickens, goats, lamb, cows, turkeys, pigs, and rabbits. The goats were my personal favorite. As I was talking to one of the students, she introduced me to her goat, Ranger. He was so sweet and loving, but very hungry. Ranger tried to eat everything he saw, including my fingers. It was so sweet to watch Ranger interact with his owner. There was a bond there that really opened my eyes to these kids and raising their livestock.

It was our pleasure to donate to the Johnson County Livestock & Agricultural Association (JCLAA) because of all they do for the kids of this community. This association gives out over $28,000 in scholarships every year to the students who participate to further their education. This scholarship money helps them protect their current assets as well as invest in future ones.

Like JCLAA, American Steel Carports wants to protect our customers’ current and future assets by not only donating to this community, but also by building strong, durable, versatile, and engineer certified buildings. We proudly provide loafing sheds, agriculture barns, and storage units that protect their precious livestock through every season. It was our pleasure to attend the Johnson County Junior Livestock Show and Youth Fair. We hope to see them again next year.