Building friendships, creating connections

NEW RICHMOND, Wis. — Representing the county fair she grew up loving was something that came naturally to Phia Kamm.

“I’ve always been a dairy kid and serving as the St. Croix County Fairest of the Fair has allowed me the opportunity to see and learn more about our fair,” Kamm said. “When I decided to run, I figured it would be my last year as an exhibitor, so why not give back to an organization that truly has given me so much.”

Kamm represented St. Croix County at the Wisconsin Fairest of the Fairs competition, Jan. 8 in Wisconsin Dells as one of 33 vying for the state title. There she was selected as a Top 10 finalist and was chosen by the other contestants as the winner of the Miss Congeniality award.

“That meant as much to me as if I’d won, because it wasn’t something I was trying to do,” Kamm said. “That meant the other girls liked me and I did what I had wanted to do going into the contest: make new friendships, build new relationships and create connections.”

Kamm, a sophomore at the University of Wisconsin-River Falls studying dairy science and food science management, is involved on her family’s farm, Nova Holsteins, where they milk 185 registered Holsteins and Jerseys.

At college, Kamm serves as the secretary of the school’s dairy club and participates in intramural sports programs with other club members. She is also a member of the St. Croix County 4-H dairy judging team and will be traveling with her team to the Royal Highland Show in Edinburgh, Scotland, later this summer, after placing third last fall in the National 4-H Dairy Cattle Judging Contest at World Dairy Expo.

After completing her degree, Kamm plans to return home to join her family’s operation. She stays involved while attending school, coming home during breaks and on weekends. She takes care of calf management duties such as registrations, vaccinations, tagging and dehorning. She also milks in the mornings.

“I love it here so much and I am so proud of the herd we have developed,” Kamm said. “I want to come back and continue developing great cattle with my dad and uncle. I’m a big dreamer, I have so many plans for the future.”

Robots and an on-farm creamery, where they will process their milk into cheese and ice cream, create the fabric of Kamm’s future hopes and dreams for her family’s farm.

Sharing with other young people about the life she was blessed to be born into Kamm said is a priority. She hopes to someday take over the role of chairing her club’s dairy committee from her father.

“It’s truly so important to me to give kids the opportunity to show,” Kamm said. “Last year we took 32 head from the farm — I hope that never stops. Our doors are always open for kids who want to explore that passion.”

Serving as her county’s Fairest of the Fair, her final year as a dairy exhibitor will give Kamm the chance to not only experience the fair outside the dairy barn but also provide a platform for her to showcase her love of the dairy industry.

“Fair season is my favorite time of year,” Kamm said. “I love sharing everything about the life I have on the farm, and I love watching kids fall in love with their animals.”

Participating in the statewide contest was an experience Kamm said she will not soon forget.

“The really neat thing about this year was the number of girls with dairy backgrounds,” Kamm said. “We all really bonded over that. Even the judges commented on the wide variety of ag backgrounds throughout the whole group.”

Kamm said she did not enter the contest with great expectations, hoping to perhaps earn a spot among the final 10 contestants.

Kamm said one-on-one time with the judges comes during a 13-minute interview. She said the other interactions contestants have with the judging panel are made up of group interactions, typically with 5-7 other hopefuls. Contestants are also evaluated on a prepared radio spot and on their responses to two impromptu questions. Additional impromptu questions are asked of the Top 10 contestants and again of the final five.

“I enjoy public speaking, so that was not difficult for me,” Kamm said. “But navigating the dynamics of the group interactions was a little challenging.”

As part of her candidacy, Kamm prepared a basket consisting of a variety of items that represented St. Croix County for the Wisconsin Association of Fairs’ annual fundraiser.

“I got a lot of support from our community, assembling my basket,” Kamm said. “Everyone I asked for a donation was so willing to help out. That was wonderful.”

Kamm said she was surprised by the diversity of the demographics of the contestants.

“We came from a lot of very different places in life,” Kamm said. “Ages ranged from high school seniors to the oldest contestant who was 27. Despite all the differences, we all really connected.”

Between workshops and interacting with the judges, Kamm said each day of the event was full.

“The convention was really easy-going, with a lot of socializing,” Kamm said. “I describe myself as an introverted extrovert — I love people and talking to them, but some of those days by 9 I was ready to go to bed.”

Kamm said she came away better for taking part in the competition.

“All of the girls were truly incredible,” Kamm said. “I truly got lucky with this group — I walked out with some of the best friends and connections that will last me a lifetime.”