KEMPTON, Ill. — For one young 4-H producer, his hard work paid off. Tyler Loschen, a member of the Cabery Specials 4-H Club of Kankakee County, won the Superior Young Producer Award in the Swine Division.

This young man was one of many junior swine exhibitors from across Illinois that competed in this annual event. Loschen is the son of Gary and Diana Loschen of rural Kempton, and is a sophomore at Tri-Point High School.

“The competition consisted of meat evaluation, quality assurance, a skill-a-thon, judging contest, and a swine management contest,” explained his mother, Diana.

In the contest, Loschen placed third in the judging division, second in the skill-a-thon, and first in the management test. Adding all the scores up meant that Loschen earned first place overall honors, and most important for his future, a $1,000 scholarship.

This was not the end of the road for Loschen’s competition. He will now join forces with his swine peers, along with other Superior Young Producers award winners from the beef and swine barn.

Together these junior competitors will try out for spots on the Illinois 4-H Skill-a-thon team. This advance team represents Illinois at the National 4-H Skill-a-thon event held in conjunction with the North American International Livestock Exposition in Louisville, Ky.