PARKER COUNTY AG
WEAThERfORd
ChRisTiAN sChOOl
JAYLEE VAN NEWKIRK
BY MARSHA BROWN
O
ur May Ag Star is Jaylee Van Newkirk, an extremely creative
10-year-old who is in the 4th grade at Weatherford Christian
School. She designs and creates fashion (she’s the daughter of famed
fashionista Lorinda Graham-Van Newkirk). Jaylee is in her third year
as a member of Spring Creek 4-H. How did she get into showing?
Growing up, Jaylee’s mother was also a 4-H kid. “I made them get
involved with 4-H,” Lorinda said. “I showed when I was a kid and I
think it’s good for kids. I think it teaches kids confidence, responsibility
and teaches them to develop an eye for detail. You have to be wellgroomed; your animals have to be well-groomed. It also teaches you
confidence, compassion for your animals and self-discipline.”
Jaylee’s older sister (by 18 months) Charley also shows. So far, Jaylee shows two animals — a goat named Jimmy and a pig named Junior.
But Jimmy is closest to her heart and everyone else’s.
“She’s trained this goat to do tricks,” said Amber Stenberg, a neighbor. “She’s trained him to dance. It’s the cutest thing ever. I’ve tried to
buy that goat but she won’t sell him.”
Too ba-haha-ad.
That’s not to say that Junior doesn’t get his fair share of attention. With
Junior, Jaylee won Reserve Champion Market York at the Parker County Fair last year. And the great thing is that despite success in the show
ring, she still has Junior and Jimmy. That’s interesting since it’s generally a sad fact of ag show life that winners don’t usually get to go home
with their best friends at the end of the show.
“Well, they either go away (forever) or the buyer can donate the
animal back,” said Jaylee’s mom. “Both my girls go and talk to the pro-
MAY 2016
PA R K E R C O U N T Y T O D AY
sPONsOREd BY
86
spective buyers before the show and tell them they
want their animals back. They’ve always gotten them
back.” Of course they do. Who could possibly say
no to a 10-year-old girl and her dancing goat?
FOR ALL YOUR FARM & RANCH,
COMMERCIAL AND RESIDENTIAL
REAL ESTATE NEEDS
JIM MARTIN
817-538-6846
[email protected]
Specializing in Parker County Commercial Real Estate