WARSAW — Five youth presented sheep and goats as part of the Purdue Extension Second Annual Poss-ABILITIES showcase at the Kosciusko County Fair Wednesday, July 12.

The showcase is an opportunity for kids with special needs to learn about livestock with the 4-H program. Each child was paired with a mentor family to guide them through the process.

The children worked closely with their mentors for several months to learn about 4-H, livestock and how to show an animal. Requirements for the program include an orientation meeting and at least three farm visits with the mentor family.

The children were paired with a specific sheep or goat during the meetings.

Working with 4-H members and livestock allows children to become familiar with raising and grooming animals.

Railly Miller and Skylar Payton are returning participants from last year. Railly is homeschooled and will be going into sixth grade. He said his favorite part of the program was working with the sheep and meeting new people. Railly’s mentors were Ryan Zorn and Elizabeth Zorn. Ryan is a sophomore at Wawasee High School. Ryan said he enjoyed seeing Railly learn to show on his own. Elizabeth just graduated from Wawasee High School. According to Elizabeth, working with Railly has taught her compassion and love for others, something she feels she will carry with her forever.

Skylar will be entering seventh grade at Edgewood Middle School in the fall. She said her favorite part of the program was spending time with the sheep and with her mentor, Jordyn Leininger.

“No matter what the obstacle is, with hard work and dedication, anyone can do anything,” said Jordyn, who will be a seventh grader at Whitko Middle School.

Hannah Kohler, Ian Cooper and Ruby Mock are first-time participants in the Poss-ABILITIES program.

Hannah will be in third grade at Jefferson Elementary School in the fall. She said her favorite part of the program was learning to walk her goat, Reagan. Hannah’s mentor was her sister, Abbi Kohler. Abbi will be in sixth grade at Jefferson Elementary. Abbi said she enjoyed teaching Hannah about goats and said she learned how to have patience with her sister.

Ian will be in third grade at Madison Elementary School. Ian said he enjoyed visiting the baby goats and feeding them with a bottle. He also liked petting them and watching them grow. When asked what he learned from the program, Ian said he learned that it’s hard to take goats places.

AJ Carra was Cooper’s mentor. AJ, who will be in ninth grade and is homeschooled, said he enjoyed learning to work with others.

Ruby will be in first grade at North Webster Elementary School. Ruby said she learned how to hold onto the lead when walking her goat and she also learned how soft goats are.

Ruby’s mentors were Arrington Krull and her siblings, Charlie Krull and Emerson Krull. Arrington will be in seventh grade. She said she enjoyed seeing Ruby’s face light up with joy and happiness when she saw the goats.

Mindy Wise, 4-H Youth Development Educator, Purdue Extension Kosciusko County, spoke about the Poss-ABILITIES Program. Wise explained that former 4-H member Mikaela Conley approached her about combining youth with special needs and the 4-H livestock program. Wise told Conley she was not necessarily sure how that would all work out but that if Conley had a plan they would make it happen.

“She has really run with it,” said Wise, “She prepared all the presentations we brought before the 4-H council and the public to get them interested in joining our program. We started out with two participants last year and have more than doubled our participation this year. We hope to see another double in our numbers for next year.”