Steven Green, Munfordville, Ky., was honored as the 2017 Hereford Junior Herdsman of the Year, July 21, during the 2017 Junior National Hereford Expo (JNHE) in Louisville, Ky. He is the 22-year-old son of Don and Carol Green and a current National Junior Hereford Association (NJHA) board director. Green earned a bachelor’s degree in agriculture with a concentration in animal science from Western Kentucky University in May 2017. He plans to attend veterinary school with a concentration in embryology in the fall of 2019.

The Junior Herdsman of the Year finalists are chosen by a committee of national advisors then participants at JNHE vote for the winner. Green says being selected for this honor by his peers means a lot to him because he didn’t grow up in the Hereford breed.

How did you become involved in the Hereford breed?

I grew up on a 100-head commercial cow-calf operation. I started my show career showing steers here and there. There were some Hereford families at home that were really nice, and the more Hereford cattle I saw the more I just fell in love with the breed. I bought my first Hereford heifer in 2008, and they started accumulating from there. I really started liking them when we saw the positive influence Herefords have on our commercial cows. Baldie cows are the strongest cows in our herd right now.

What does winning the Herdsman of the Year award mean to you as a young Hereford breeder?

Being awarded the Herdsman of the Year is just a huge honor and blessing. I didn’t grow up raising Herefords. I don’t have two generations of Hereford breeders behind me. To me, it’s a huge honor that people can recognize the passion and fire I have for this industry and the Hereford breed. It’s simply a blessing.

You’ve been attending the Junior National Hereford Expo since 2010, what can you tell a young exhibitor to encourage them to attend a JNHE in the future?

The Junior National Hereford Expo and our junior Hereford program is a great networking and future-building experience. I love that kids come from corner-to-corner of our country to the JNHE each year. The networks you build and experiences you have by participating in the contests is second-to-none. I tell all the kids from Kentucky, ‘Not only will you have fun, but you’ll want to go again from now on.’ There are so many ways to grow and to have fun at JNHE. Just get out there and go. Get out of your comfort zone. Go make friends — you’re bound to meet them with more than 900 of them there!

How has being a member of the NJHA and the Board of Directors shaped you into who you are today?

The connections I have gained through being involved are remarkable. Right now, I am in Manhattan, Mont., at Churchill Cattle Co. Who would have thought when I bought my first Hereford in 2008, that nine years later I would be consulting and clipping on cattle at one of the top outfits in the country. Networking and building confidence in yourself are just a few of the many outcomes from involved in the National Junior Hereford Association.

What advice have you received from someone you look up to?

My grandmother told me, ‘I have one thing to myself, and that’s a life to live.’ She told me to take that statement seriously. Your life is the only thing you definitely have to yourself. Nothing is free in life, but it is the one thing you can control. So, go out there and live it to the fullest.

There is so much excitement and growth surrounding the Hereford breed right now. What would you tell a fellow Hereford enthusiast about staying involved in the Hereford breed after their junior show career ends?

Unfortunately, this was my last JNHE as a showman, but I will definitely stay involved. I think it’s important for them to take the role that people gave to them as mentors, and keep with it. You can’t quit and back out now that you’re too old for the junior shows. Just because you age-out doesn’t mean you’re finished in the industry.

Just the other day someone asked me what I charged some 4-H kids to clip their cattle for them. I told them, ‘I don’t charge much because there was somebody when I was a kid who clipped those type of cattle for me.’ I didn’t have the best heifers when I first started out, but someone took the time to clip my cattle for me. When I had my first carcass steer back in the day, he didn’t look the greatest. But, someone came and helped me when I was first getting started, and I don’t believe he ever charged me. I want to help those kids get started just like I did.

The biggest thing I’d tell retiring members is to stay involved and to keep positively influencing the lives of junior Hereford members.