If you’ve never experienced one before, witnessing a youth livestock event in Tennessee is to have an almost religious restoration of hope in the next generation of American leadership. And if anything, that’s an understatement.

From work ethic, discipline, mutual respect, and highly developed social skills, the very best of Tennessee’s 4-H and FFA programs seem to be uber-condensed into the participants of both the beef and sheep livestock events. This excellence was on full display at the 2025 Tennessee Junior Livestock Sheep Expo, held at Tennessee Tech University’s Hyder-Burks Agriculture Pavilion in Cookeville. From Thursday to Saturday, Oct. 23-25, more than 350 animals were displayed by 120 youth representing 33 Tennessee counties.

For its exhibitors and their families, the experience of Expo is a balance of fun and work, as evidenced by a contrast in tone between the barn and show ring environments. In the barn, exhibitors — ages 9 to 18 — and their families have staked out their own areas among some 150 stalls and are busy grooming their animals, often while chatting with fellow competitors. Sheep that aren’t currently being doted over on aluminum trimming platforms are snug in their stalls, many festooned in brightly colored blankets. The sound is a cacophony of livestock blow dryers, bleating sheep, public address announcements, and human laughter and conversation. Outside in the parking lot, families visit each other’s campsites and tailgates, sharing hot dogs and burgers, while youngsters walk their sheep around the grounds as if friendly dog owners at a suburban dog park.

When the youth enter the show ring, however, they are all business. Faces that, minutes before, were lit with smiles and laughter are now masks of stoic concentration, their focus fixed on the lone judge to the exclusion of anything else. When an animal becomes momentarily stubborn or misbehaves while making a circuit of the ring, its exhibitor shows no visible evidence of frustration but simply corrects the offender and moves on. When the placings are announced, the faces remain exactly the same, whether win or lose — no outburst of either joy or disappointment. In a culture that tolerates, if not values over-the-top celebrations and often disrespectful behavior in mainstream sports, the display of focus and discipline from kids as young as 9 at the Sheep Expo is almost incomprehensible.

For one exhibitor, 16-year-old Macon County High School junior Jayden Hesson, that laser focus and discipline, along with an animal with superior genetics, resulted in a surprise win — Grand Champion Commercial Ewe.

“I've never won this before,” said a breathless Jayden, looking over the nameplates on the large trophy soon after her win was announced. “Because of all the college stuff coming next year, I decided that I would really go for it while I had the time. I’ve never even gotten close with my black face [ewes], so this is just crazy; I still can’t believe it! I’m super grateful for all the support I’ve received from my family — especially my little brother, Owen — and from Ty Jones Show Stock in Scottsville, Kentucky. I literally couldn’t have done this without them.”

Having shown at Expo since 4th grade, she added that the event is the “final goal” of her sheep-showing season.

“This is what the entire year boils down to,” said Jayden, who plans to major in animal science and agricultural business at the University of Tennessee Knoxville after she leaves high school. “Expo is the culmination of everything I’ve been planning since April or May.”

Levi Johnson, a 17-year-old exhibitor from Campbell County, agreed.

“Expo is the main event for me, and nothing else compares,” he said while shearing one of his crossbred black face lambs with the help of his younger siblings, Mark and Sarah. “This is what I look forward to every year. Seven days a week, I put in two to three hours of work on my sheep.

“But win or lose, my favorite thing about Expo is the people I get to visit with and the sense of accomplishment I come away with.”

As it has been for the past several years, Tennessee Farmers Cooperative was a general sponsor of the show and donated ear tags to support the students in their endeavors.

The 2025 Tennessee Junior Livestock Sheep Expo winners were as follows: Breeding Ewe Showmanship Senior II: Brooke Young, Rutherford, champion; Addyson Trew, Bradley, reserve. Senior I: Abigayle Houser, Bledsoe, champion; Scout Ingram, Giles, reserve. Junior High: Gracie Shults, Unicoi, champion; Baylee Brown, Anderson, reserve. Junior: Harris Barnes, Decatur, champion; Jackson Houser, Bledsoe, reserve. Explorer: Barnes Bragg, Weakley, champion; Juna Loveday, Sevier, reserve.