KANSAS CITY, Mo. —  Kira Sayre, Arenzville, Ill., was awarded the 2023 Blin Family Scholarship during the 2023 American Hereford Association (AHA) Annual Meeting and Conference in Kansas City, Mo., on Oct. 20. In a special awards ceremony, the Hereford Youth Foundation of America (HYFA) and its donors proudly awarded $163,000 in scholarships to 27 National Junior Hereford Association (NJHA) members to help support their higher-education goals.

 Sayre is a graduate student at Colorado State University studying animal science, livestock behavior and welfare and has goals of working in higher education as a university professor. She is already working to achieve that goal with two focuses in her research; dairy calf health and teaching first-year students.

“I will be hosting weekly support sessions for this project where I help prepare students for their college career by discussing varying topics with them, including but not limited to, study tactics and quiz/exam taking strategies,” Sayre said. “I will also be acting as a teaching assistant for one class per semester for the two years in this program. ”

The Blin Family Scholarship, sponsored by HYFA, is a $2,500 scholarship in recognition of the first Lot 1 Foundation Female ever sold at the Mile High Night Sale in Denver, Colo. Star Lake Cattle Co. and the Blin family of Iowa consigned the female that sold for $100,000 and founded a fund that’s grown to nearly $1 million.

“The foundation takes great pride in our scholarship program and the opportunities we are able to provide to assist our young people throughout their college journeys,” says Amy Cowan, AHA’s director of youth activities and foundation. “The selection committee continues to be impressed by the high caliber of applicants and are confident that today’s NJHA members will be tomorrow’s leaders in whatever industry they pursue.” 

The scholarship fund is the bedrock of HYFA and countless youth are benefactors of its mission. This last fiscal year, the foundation celebrated net assets reaching nearly $6.3 million and in total $221,500 was given back to Hereford youth to assist with their college educations.

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The Hereford Youth Foundation of America (HYFA) was established in 1986 and is a not-for-profit 501(c)(3) corporation dedicated exclusively to scholarship and educational support of youth in the business of raising Hereford cattle. The mission of the Hereford Youth Foundation of America is to encourage, recognize and reward the development of life skills and values in the next generation of leaders by providing education, scholarship and leadership opportunities for Hereford Youth.