Judging teaches valuable life skills

SPRING VALLEY, Wis. — Bob Traynor is a believer in the role dairy judging plays in turning young people into critical thinkers and proficient communicators. He is such a firm believer that he has devoted 39 years to coaching the Pierce County 4-H dairy judging team.

A lifelong Holstein breeder and enthusiast, Traynor spent his life developing Honeycrest Holsteins on his Spring Valley farm, which was dispersed in 2015.

Traynor was inducted as a member of the class of 2024 Wisconsin 4-H Hall of Fame laureates in April during a recognition program in Wisconsin Dells. He was nominated by long-time Pierce County 4-H agent Frank Ginther and former Wisconsin 4-H Youth Development Specialist Melanie Miller.

“I was always a really shy kid when I was younger, and 4-H really helped me get past that,” Traynor said. “I was fairly self-confident, but 4-H helped bring out my personality. With 4-H, a kid can pick something they really like and they can excel at that.”

He said 4-H allows them to shine when they might not have had the opportunity to do so elsewhere.

4-H has been a part of Traynor’s life for as long as he can remember. He witnessed his father serve as the leader of his 4-H club for 16 years and his older brother, Jim, serve as a leader for 10 years.

“We just grew up that 4-H was a part of life and judging, in particular, was phenomenal for me,” Traynor said. “When I heard they needed a 4-H judging coach here in the county I thought, ‘Yeah, I could do that.’”

Since that time, Traynor has not looked back, having stewarded an estimated 350 youth through the program, instilling what he considers important life lessons along the way.

“There is the reason, and then there is the real reason,” Traynor said. “Evaluating the cows is really the smallest part of what kids get out of judging.”

Traynor said the development of critical thinking skills and the ability to communicate are the most important skills learned through dairy judging. Those skills will take a person far in life, he said.

“You’re looking at a problem — the four cows,” Traynor said. “You have to figure out in about 10-12 minutes how you’re going to place those cows and come up with reasons to defend your placings and give that to a stranger.  The ability to speak in public, being able to defend your reasons, eye contact, the whole deal, those are life skills that are huge whether you’re any good at judging or not.”

Traynor works primarily with the senior-level dairy judging teams in Pierce County, while Peter Coyne begins developing the younger members.

“What is really cool for me is when a kid gets it, the switch flips,” Traynor said. “These kids come in at 13 years old, they’re shy, scared and don’t want to give reasons. You work with them, coax them along, then suddenly there it is, they give you a set of reasons that knocks your socks off. ... As they’re leaving, you’re about to explode with excitement. It’s the most satisfying thing.”

For Traynor, not every teaching moment happens in the presence of dairy cattle. He said he tries to get his kids to march with the El Paso Marching Band, which is a local group that participates in area parades.

“It’s all drums, we dress up in pretty loud clothes, and in general just act crazy and have fun,” Traynor said. “Teenagers are usually pretty self-conscious about everything, especially what other people think. If I can get them to march, act goofy and not worry about what anyone thinks, let go of their inhibitions, it helps them open up and become more confident.”

That tutelage and dedication has paid off for Traynor and his evaluators. His teams won the Wisconsin state 4-H judging contest in 2007, earning the right to represent Wisconsin at the National 4-H Dairy Judging Contest at World Dairy Expo. In 2012, Pierce County placed third in the state contest, going on to compete at the All-American Dairy Show Invitational Youth Dairy Cattle Judging Contest held in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. That same team went on to place second in the 2013 state contest.

The judges Traynor has worked with have gone on to succeed beyond the 4-H competitions as well.

“I’m proud of the fact that four of our kids have gone on to place in the top four at the collegiate level at World Dairy Expo,” Traynor said. “There might be other places that have had more, but I think that is remarkable for our county.”

Traynor said he continues to enjoy teaching young people the skills that can be gleaned from placing a class of four cows. His senior team recently placed second at the Area Animal Science Days contest held in June in Shawano, earning the chance to compete at the state contest that will be held in Madison in August.

Traynor said the real victory comes when 4-H students come back as adults, enrolling their own children in the program and bringing them to judging practices and becoming the next generation of 4-H leaders.

“We have quite a few second-generation kids we are working with in the judging program,” Traynor said. “That is really satisfying, to see these kids grow up, placing value in the role 4-H played in their lives, and wanting to share that with their own children.