Showmanship starts young

RUSHFORD — Paul Bartsh has led a life revolving around agriculture. Working with cattle is what he knows best thanks to the environment he was raised in. To this day, Bartsh remains an advocate for the cattle industry. As a full-time beef production and show feed specialist for Purina Animal Nutrition at Farmers Win Cooperative in Rushford, he gets to talk cattle all day long. Outside of his job, he shares his interest in cattle with young people through the show ring.

“Showing cattle is a lot of work,” Bartsh said. “But for most of us, we don’t do it for the prize money; … maybe for bragging rights, … but mostly just because it’s what we love to do.”

In 2020, Bartsh and three other committee members launched the Minnesota North Star Point Series, which focuses on youth development and showmanship at a state level.

“The North Star Point Series is a group of shows that are sanctioned statewide, but some kids go on to show at junior nationals, with shows throughout the country,” Bartsh said. “The skill level of the junior exhibitors involved in the point series has helped Minnesota showman exhibitors become standouts in the livestock industry.”

The NSPS is run by committee leadership with multiple people operating behind the scenes. Committee members attend shows regularly and have some delegated responsibilities as well.

“It helps break it up for us,” Bartsh said. “We all have families, and most of us work full-time jobs while raising and showing cattle ourselves.”

Lakyn Lind, one of the founding committee members, oversees the sanctioned shows and the Showman App. The Showman App is how the exhibitors participate in NSPS. It organizes the data involved with the registered exhibitors and the registered breeds while also tracking the points they have earned. Tara Thorson and Theresa St. Germain were also among the founding committee members but are no longer directly involved. They, along with Bartsh, saw a need for the program.

“The Minnesota junior cattle industry needed something new,” Bartsh said. “We saw what programs like this were doing for kids in other states, so the four of us got together, planned it out and laid down the rules. We looked at it as a way for a group of us to give back to the industry.”

Trevor Mente and Autumn Feine were not there when the NSPS kicked off, but as the NSPS has grown, the need for their roles has evolved. Bartsh, Mente and Feine attend shows and find sponsorships for the NSPS each year. Caroline Mayer, new to the committee this year, will offer her support and skills throughout the show series and also organize the end-of-year banquet and prize sector for the NSPS. Junior committee members Emma Heiden and Wyatt Herman also attend shows and help the NSPS with various tasks as well as create social media content along the way.

With 24 sanctioned shows on the 2026 calendar, youth participation numbers continue to rise. The NSPS serves as a great opportunity for those involved in the cattle industry to perform as exhibitors and network while earning points towards recognition as the season nears its close.

“Anybody who shows in this industry has had to learn to be on time and be responsible,” Bartsh said. “To be successful in the show industry leads to the same skills it takes to become a successful adult, and we see that all the time. A lot of these young ag kids are getting some of the top jobs out there because of their work ethic.”

Participation in the NSPS requires a $40 entrance fee per exhibitor and $10 per animal. Points are accumulated for those ages 7 to 21 starting in April with their first show and running through October. Titles are awarded to the top 10 exhibitors, the top three showmen, the top five breeding heifers and the top five market animals every year. Additionally, the NSPS also recognizes the top two winners in each respective breed.

“Practice makes perfect,” Bartsh said. “You can see the difference from the showmen some of these kids were five years ago to the showmen they are today,” Bartsh said. “The other thing that’s been really cool to see is these North Star Point Series families, the ones that are hitting the road and showing every weekend, … they’re growing and becoming a closer family.”

Sponsorships are a main focus for the NSPS’s mission. Sponsorship money helps cover the costs of the end-of-the-year achievement banquet and prizes awarded to the junior exhibitors for hard work and dedication.

“We really take the time to think about who makes a good fit when we think about procuring sponsorships,” Bartsh said. “We tend to focus on anything ag related that we think would be a good fit for them to take interest and want to invest in the youth in Minnesota and the future of our livestock industry.”

Bartsh estimated they gave away $25,000 to $30,000 worth of prizes last year. Items like show-boxes, pop-up tents, tables, chairs, banners, shirts and other items are given away as prizes at the banquet. The committee also holds an auction each year at the banquet, where businesses can bid on an advertising portion of the upcoming year’s NSPS new T-shirt design. Only three spots are available. The NSPS works with Sullivan Supply Inc., also a sponsor, each year after deciding on a theme for the upcoming season. The T-shirt auction is a great way for supporters to get noticed and become involved.

“Individual breed associations are typically the ones that help the most,” Bartsh said. “A lot of other sponsorships come from producers who are in the industry selling cattle themselves; … farmers, cattlemen and women, they have our backs.”

The banquet has been held the last couple of years in Waseca at The Mill Event Center. Bartsh said it is informal, with the main mission being to celebrate the hard work the children have done throughout the show season.

“It makes me proud to watch these kids grow,” Bartsh said. “From where we started to where we are today and seeing the program grow, … it is very rewarding to see the growth the junior beef exhibitors have made in the last five years.”