Sweetheart Diary April 2020

Happy April! February was certainly a busy month for me! I got to spend a large portion of the month at the Florida State Fair! I started off on opening at the Fresh From Florida Breakfast. Many commodities from around the state were able to sample their products. At the Florida Cattlewomen’s Booth, we sampled all beef sausage from a local company called Uncle John’s Cabin. Afterwards, I had the joy of attending the Governor’s Luncheon, where they named the 2019 Tampa Metro Civitan Citizen of the Year. The next day, I was back in the Florida Cattlewomen’s booth, sampling more sausage with my lovely Manatee County ladies! Ms. Chloe Bunyak, the current Manatee County Sweetheart, and her sister, Ms. Anna Bunyak, did a wonderful job helping me interact with he public. I had the weekend off, then was back again on Monday for the Women in Agriculture Luncheon. Here they named Dr. Jennifer Taylor the 2019 Women in Agriculture! Continuing on, the Ag Hall of Fame dinner had the pleasure of inducting a fellow cattle rancher Mr. Hugh Fred Dietrich III, as well as, Mr. John L. Jackson, and Mr. Robert Roberson into the Agriculture Hall of Fame. Throughout, my entire eight days at the Florida State Fair, I was able to help with the youth and open beef shows and showmanships. As well as, the youth steer show, showmanship, and banquet.

The last weekend, I had the honor of carrying our country’s flag at the ranch rodeo’s grand entries. Lastly, I ended my time at the Florida State Fair with the Youth Champion of Champions Dinner. Those eight days I spent at the Florida State Fair were truly amazing. I loved getting to see all the youth show off their hard work and to see their passion and determination. Although I miss showing and competing, I equally loved getting to support and help the next generation. The weekend after the Florida State Fair, I had the joy of attending the Polk County Cattlemen’s Ranch Rodeo. It was a day packed full of excitement and getting to watch my friends compete certainly made for a awesome day. We also got to introduce Polk County Cattlemen’s upcoming sweetheart Ms. Blair Buchanon and say goodbye to our sweet Ms. Hannah Cline! I finished up February along side of some of the Marion County Jr. Cattlemen! The Southeastern Youth Fair Ag Venture Day all week for different school grades in their county. Today we got to teach second graders about where their beef comes from and what byproducts come from beef cows! Remember if you have any questions or have an event that you would like me to attend, email me at caseywingate@ yahoo.com! Thank you and God Bless! Casey Wingate