Maci Zimmer walks her calf steer at the Barlow Fair in September. (Photo Provided)

Maci Zimmer, 13, secured the title of Grand Champion feeder calf steer at the Barlow Independent Fair at the end of September.

She also won Reserve Champion feeder calf heifer and said she was proud of both her and her sister Madi who won third overall with her steer.

Zimmer was born and raised on a family farm in Stanleyville south of Whipple. She’s in eighth grade at Fort Frye and is excited for the school year.

“I don’t participate in any sports but I mostly am involved in 4-H and FFA,” said Zimmer. “I started FFA this year, but I’ve been part of 4-H for about five years.”

Zimmer said she’s been showing animals since she was 9 years old but she’s been raising cows her whole life.

Maci Zimmer poses at the family farm in Stanleyville near Whipple in the summer. (Photo Provided)

“My dad and uncle used to show and they thought it’d be something I was interested in,” she said.

Zimmer said it’s a lot of work to take care of the animals and she spends all morning and evening tending to them. She and her twin sister Madi are very involved in taking care of their animals and winning titles at the local fairs.

“We’ll wake up early in the mornings, feed them and wash and walk them,” said Zimmer.

She said they have cows, calves, and pigs but they normally show cows. She said she likes showing pigs the most because they have more of a personality than the other animals.

Zimmer has been showing her pigs at different fairs for the past five years and her calves about four years.

Maci Zimmer walks her hog at the Waterford Community Fair in August. Zimmer won the Reserve Champion hog title. (Photo Provided)

She has shown at the Barlow, Washington County, and Waterford fairs and wants to keep going. She said she enjoys the Barlow Fair more because she knows more people there and more of her friends participate.

“It’s a big accomplishment and I’m really proud of myself,” said Zimmer.

She said she’s won multiple titles like Grand Champion and Reserve Champion at different fairs over the years and she doesn’t plan on stopping anytime soon.

She said during the summer they spend hours of their day taking care of the animals and making sure everything has been tended to. She said it can be a little more difficult during the school year because they have to feed and walk the animals before and after school.

“It’s a lot of work,” she said.

Maci Zimmer poses with her feeder calf heifer at the Barlow Fair in September. She won Reserve Champion feeder calf heifer and the Born & Bred Award. (Photo Provided)

Zimmer has been heavily involved in 4-H over the years and said this is her first year joining FFA since it’s more school-oriented.

She said the main difference between the two is that FFA has more conventions and agricultural education. She said she wanted to join FFA so she could be more involved at school and with agricultural programs.

“It got me more involved and I wanted to try new things,” she said.

Zimmer said she’s taking an agricultural class at Fort Frye this year which she’s really excited about because she’ll learn more about farming and livestock.

Aside from her busy schedule, Zimmer loves to hang out with her friends and family. She said they have sleepovers and spend a lot of time riding four-wheelers around their property.

Maci Zimmer poses with her calf steer at the Barlow Fair in September. She won Grand Champion feeder calf steer and the Born & Bred Award at the fair. (Photo Provided)

“We mostly ride on our property or sometimes at another friend’s house,” she said.

Zimmer said they don’t have much planned currently since they just finished fair season but she’s looking forward to next year.

“I’d like to show lambs next year or a fat steer because the lambs have a lot of personality and they get really attached to you,”

Zimmer said she is excited for next year’s fairs but until then she’s focusing on school and her animals.

Amber Phipps can be reached at aphipps@newsandsentinel.com

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