News : Area Families Compete and Win at Cattle Congress

Angie Wittmer's Best of Show entry at Cattle Congress this year.

Barb Campbell's Best of Show at Cattle Congress for 2022

Wittmer's 1st Place win this year

Wittmer's 1st Place win this year

Wittmer's 1st Place win this year

Wittmer's 2nd Place win this year in the Computer Altered category

Barb Campbell's Paper Quilling

Kacie Campbells Butterfly Diamond art brough home a 1st Place ribbon from Cattle Congress

Painted by Kacie

At least three area women competed in the Cattle Congress art competition and came home with ribbons. Cattle Congress is another fair held in the Cedar Valley out of Waterloo each year. Beginning in 1910 Cattle Congress it brings folks from across the nation to compete in the dairy cattle completion. 

Both Barb Campbell and Angie Wittmer came home with Best of Show ribbons with their entries. Campbell's was in Competitive Arts and Wittmer won for her photography.

Campbell said that she tries to enter at least three different art competitions each year. She began entering at Cattle Congress in 2019 (and then it was closed during the 2020 pandemic). So far each year she has brought home the Best of Show in the Adult Competitive Arts. Campbell also had a first place win in the Paper Quilling category this year.

Art has been something that Campbell has dabbled in most of her life. She works mostly with oil painting now, but also does work with wire wrapping, glass painting, fabric work, colored pencil, watercolor & pencil. She said that pencil is her favorite medium.  

As a child, her mom saw that she had potential. So she signed her up to take art classes from George Carberry who lived near the river and the pool in Vinton. Carberry used to work as a backdrop artist in the movie industry when he was younger. The art classes lasted about a year because Carberry said that Campbell's mom should "save your money, I can't teach her anymore, she's a natural!"

Campbell enters along with her daughter Kacie. She said that this year both had entries in the Benton County Fair and Kacie brought home more ribbons than her mom. Kacie's talents can be seen in her butterfly diamond art creation (pictured) as well as a painted window that is at the family's home. 

Kacie enjoys being part of the Special Olympics each year. She also shares the artistic genes of her mom. and along with her diamond art, she does glass painting and drawing. Outside of art she enjoys babysitting her nieces and nephews, Hawkeye football and "camping, she loves camping!" mom said.

Kaiet brought home a first place win from the Cattle Congres with her diamond art. 

Angie Wittmer said that she's entered her photography at Cattle Congress for about seven years now, but this was her first big win in the category. Bob and Angie as well as their grandchildren had entries in the fair this year. 

This year her Best of Show photograph was shot with her phone and not some big expensive camera. The photo with Amrie, her granddaughter, and the calf named Tina was also competing against another of Wittmer's first-place wins. Both the canning jars photo and the calf photo went head to head to decide which would be this year's Best of Show winner. 

The Wittmers didn't limit their entries to just art. Angie's husband Bob and grandchildren Amrie, Kinzie, Kooper and Kolt also had winning entries. Bob took it away with vegetable entries!  He brought home a 1st place ribbon in red potatoes, slicing cucumbers, ugliest vegetable, Butternut squash, green bell peppers.

Bringing home 2nd place with his Roma tomatoes, red tomatoes, gourds, unique vegetables and largest vegetable and a 3rd place with cherry tomatoes.

Kolt Wittmer took after grandpa and won 1st place in gourds and Roma tomatoes and a 2nd place with potatoes.  

Kinze Wittmer had a mix of both vegetables and photography with two  Honorable Mention photos and a  2nd place win with mini gourds and an  Honorable Mention with jalapeño peppers and banana peppers.

Kooper Wittmer brought home a 3rd place photo, 1 Honorable Mention photo and  Honorable Mention jalapeño peppers and gourds.

Amrie Wittmer brought home two 1st place photos, one 3rd place photo, and one Honorable Mention photo.

Congratulations to all!

If you or a family member hold bragging rights in competitions locally or around the world, feel free to share them with the rest of us. Simply email the details to VintonToday@hotmail.com.