Caroline Gaye didn’t know much about agriculture when she moved from North Dakota to Tipton, Okla., in 2020.
After watching fellow residents at the Tipton Children’s Home, a residential alternative to state-run foster care, raise and show livestock, Gaye decided she also wanted to participate.
“It gave me the opportunity to show my family back home that I could do it, that I could be responsible and take this on,” Gaye, 17, recalls. “I’d seen all of the good things that could come from being involved in FFA.”
In 2021, the Tipton High School junior (who also served as the Tipton FFA president) raised three gilts — Duroc, Hampshire and Spotted breeds — from weaning to six months old, managing all aspects of their care. She quickly learned the hard work and responsibilities associated with raising livestock.
In between feeding, watering, brushing, bathing and exercising the pigs, Gaye also trained them for the show ring. The process required hard work, patience and persistence.
“This process showed me that I can push through the hard times and get to the good part at the end,” she says. “All of the hard work I put in is helping to benefit me in the future.”
Gaye enjoyed the process and decided to raise and show another pig in 2022. She acquired Penny, a Duroc gilt, and spent six months preparing her for the livestock show at the Oklahoma Youth Expo. The training process allowed her to forge a strong bond with Penny.
“When I was having a bad day, I’d go sit in her pen and she’d make me feel better,” Gaye says.
Penny was popular in the show ring, earning a third-place overall finish in the Duroc Show at the 2022 Oklahoma Youth Expo Purebred Gilt Show. Penny sold for $17,000 and performed in the top 2 percent of pigs that are sold to national swine breeders.
“It’s exciting to see a student come from a background outside of agriculture and take the opportunities given to them and run with them — that’s what Caroline did,” says Tipton FFA advisor Tim White.
For Gaye, the value of FFA extends beyond learning about agriculture and showing pigs; it’s helped her find a niche in the organization, develop strong bonds in the community and gain skills that will last long after she graduates.
“FFA is not only about farming,” she says. “It will take you a long way if you invest the time and effort to make it your own.”
