It takes speed, determination and a strong tolerance for mud.For more than 100 kids on Sunday,
all of these factors came into play as they chased down their porkers during the annual Catch-A-Pig,
held on the track at the Wood County Fair Grandstand.And this year’s event came with a special twist:
every contestant got a pig.Fair Board member Deanne Corken, who headed up the Catch-A-Pig, noted that
this year’s 104 registered contestants almost equalled the number of sponsored pigs, so six additional
pigs were provided to ensure that everyone went home with an animal. In past years, some Catch-A-Pig
hopefuls came away empty-handed.Once caught, the children will raise the pigs until December, when they
will be sold at the annual sale at the fairgrounds.Kids from 6 to 14 competed under a sunny sky. Local
fire departments hosed down an area cordoned off with wire fencing to soak and flood it."Mud.
That’s what makes it fun," Corken said. "It’s a good learning experience, the kids raising a
pig."Excitement was palpable before the event, as youngsters crowded around the wooden,
as-yet-empty hog pens and watched the preparations.Melanie Yarger, Rudolph, was there with her daughter,
Hannah."She’s been looking forward to this since last year," Yarger said. "It’s always
fun."When asked how she planned to catch her pig, Hannah just shrugged, but her mom filled in:
"Going to just hang on."The event started with the oldest classes first, the 11 to 14-year-old
boys. There were twice as many boys than girls participating.Just as the race is not always to the
swift, the pig does not always go to the skillful – luck seemed to rule. Once placed in the pen, the
porkers often milled around, rooting about in the muck, seemingly unaware of their would-be-catchers
until the charging children were nearly on top of them. The pigs frequently hung together in small
groups, making attractive and deceptively easy-looking targets during the early going.However, once
roused, the pigs ran in every direction, bumping into each other and sometimes breaking free into a
straightway run, kids hot on their heels, or tripping over each other in pursuit.Once caught, Junior
Fair volunteers helped heft the loudly squealing pigs to their holding pens.One boy held up double peace
signs with his hands, and did a "rodeo" dance as he proudly followed his pig back to the
pen.For Dane Creps, 11, Weston, there was a strategy for catching his pig."When they make your
hands all muddy, I shake them off so my hands aren’t all wet," he said."Just run out and try
to catch it as fast as you can," said Destiny Galloway, 12, Luckey.Jacob Trout, 8, North Baltimore,
carried out an epic struggle with his pig. The animal seemed almost uncatchable, squirming out when
repeatedly caught by the leg or grasped around the hindquarters, and making a long run for it throughout
the pen. Even Junior Fair members had difficulty corralling the animal after several
attempts."Yeah, very tough," Jacob said of his ultimately successful struggle with the porker.
"He was going, like, everywhere."Contestants, by division, were:• 11 to 14-year-old Boys:
Avery Bayes, Dane Creps, Keith Damschroder, August Eschoder, Sid Grames, Andrew Heyman, Owen Heyman,
Payton Kepling, Ian Kress, Dalton Limes, Derek Michaelis, and Seth Pullins.• 11 to 14-year-old Girls:
Hayley Bankey, Taylor Cepek, Brittany Euler, Stephani Euler, Destiny Galloway, Brandy Grilliot, Marissa
Langley, Janelle Moser, Olivia Ruffner, and Haley Trumbull.• 10-year-old Boys: Hayden Belleville, Robbie
Hunker, Luke Jones, David Russell, David Shelter, Fisher Trumbull, and Nate Warfel.• 10-year-old Girls:
Emily Atkinson, Avery Cepek, Alissa Heyman, Konnaly Kale, Chloe Lamb, Morgan Schick, and Amelia
Pullins.• 9-year-old Boys: Carter Creps, Cameron Deiter, Bryce Grant, Nathan Harris, Josh Timko, Cayce
Trout, Ross Welling, and Brandon Yarger.• 8-year-old Boys: Troy Amos, Edison Eschedor, Bryan Grilliot,
Benjamin Heyman, Nate Kress, Easton Schick, Jacob Trout, Anthony Veryser, Thomas Veryser, and Orlando
Cuevas.• 8 and 9-year-old Girls: Kylee Bankey, Ashley Brinkman, Jonah Guthrie, Madison Milligan, Katie
Oestreich, Elle Ruffner, Emma Ruffner, Morgan Simon, and Rose-Medalion Whitman.• 7-year-old Boys: Owen
Atkinson, Landon Bankey, Grant Belleville, Chris Brecht, Trenton Euler, Carter Foose, John Fyfe, Drew
Gase, Jacob Guthrie, Deane Lamb, Logan Perry, Jimmy Russell, Coale Sheeks, Tyler Thompson, Zachary
Trout, and JJ Weaver.• 6-year-old Boys: Tanner Amos, Tyler Amos, Logan Benedict, Jack Brown III, Dawson
Bushman, Landon Deiter, Ben Jones, Wes Kellermeier, Pierson McMillin, Carter Sheeks, and Trace
Trumbull.• 6 and 7-year-old Girls: Sara Casey, Jaylynn Hamm, Natalee Harris, Brooke Simon, Allison
Strasbaugh, and Hanna Yarger.Abby Gase was presented a pig from Tontogany Lodge #755 IOOF. Abby was
unable to compete in the event due to a disease which has rendered her unable to use her left leg.This
year’s Catch-A-Pig sponsors were: John and Jessie Bechstein Family Reunion, BeeGee Rental and Sales,
Forrest and Marsha Blake, Chuck and Shirlee Bostdorff, Bowling Green FFA, Roger and Judy Boyle, C
& C Farm Service, Linda and Dick Canterbury, Central Joint District Firefighters, Scott and
Dorene Damschroder, David Excavating, Russ and Jackie Downs, Emch Heating and Air Conditioning, Mark and
Jill Engle, Jerry Euler and Sons Farms, Paul and Lynda Flames, Ed and Denise Foos, Phil and Sara Foos,
Bill and Mary Gase Family, Jim and Virginia George, Penny Getz, Golden Key 4-H Club, Green Meadows 4-H
Club, Barb and Bill Heilman, Dean and Amanda Heilman, Dorothy J. Heilman, the Hentges Family in Honor of
Darrel Hentges, Keith and Ann Heyman, William Heyman, Hofner Grading, Honeycomb Salon, IOOF Centennial
Lodge #626,Bryan and Brittany Joseph, Josh and Hannah Kieffer, Peggy King, LeGalley Insurance, Jim and
Nancy Lein, Lemmerbrock Farm Drainage LLC, Adam and Jonica Limes, Dale and Ann Limes, Don and Kathy
Limes Family, Robert and Patricia Maurer, Midway Animal Hospital, Midwest Commodities LLC – Steve and
Teri Patton, Dale and Rosalee Moser, National Alliance on Mental Illness, Wood County; Northwest Tire
Service, Power of Yesteryear, Propane, Inc., Pullins Raspberries, Richard and Mary Queen, R&L
Farms, Harry Reynolds, John Reynolds Jr., Mary Lou Reynolds, Richard Reynolds, Jim and Ann Ruehl, Schick
Electric, Robert and Angela Strow, Steve and Amy Thompson, Tontogany Lodge #755 IOOF, Neil and Carol
Wagner, Paul and Laura Walters, Clark and Jennifer Warfel, Jack and Betty Whitacre, Wood County
Pediatrics, Wood County Township Association, and Tom Zulch.