(Seguin) – After months of preparation in barns, kitchens, and workshops, hundreds of Guadalupe County youth are now seeing their hard work on display as the 2026 Guadalupe County Youth Livestock and Homemakers Show continues this week in Seguin.
The annual show, which began on Monday, continues through Saturday, culminating with the youth auction.
Dustin Morgenroth, chairman of the board of directors for the Guadalupe County Youth Livestock and Homemakers Show, says participation numbers are slightly higher than last year. He says this is the result of both strong youth involvement and continued community interest.
“The total entries, we have 1,607 entries and a kid can enter different entries. So, there are 574 kids that have signed up to be an exhibitor and there are 1,607 entries across the board. That’s from homemaking and all the animal livestock that is coming in. It’s slightly up from last year. It’s pretty close. It’s barely up but it is up,” said Morgenroth.
Morgenroth says these numbers represent months — and in some cases, a full year of preparation and effort by local youth.
“For some of these projects like your steers especially I know they have them for a little over a year or right at a year and different animals you have them from eight to six months and then like rabbits, they are only a one-month project so it’s a broad range. Even on the Ag mechanics portion where these kids are building projects and showing them – some of these kids have been working on them since last year’s show. Of course, for baked goods, they can be tweaking their different things throughout the year,” said Morgenroth.
Morgenroth says participation in the show illustrates the dedication that our youth have in the Ag community right here at home.
“It’s all of our youth, they have to be in one of the Guadalupe County schools’ FFA programs or they have to be in a Guadalupe County 4H and registered and show through the county 4H group. They don’t have to necessarily live in Guadalupe County. Most of them do but around the edges of the county, some of them might live in Bexar or Wilson County but actually go to one of the Guadalupe County schools – and if they are in one of those programs, they are allowed to show here. Of course, they have to be up to par level on their grades. They have to be passing all of their classes to be able to show,” said Morgenroth.
Wednesday’s schedule includes cattle judging beginning at 8 a.m. in the rodeo arena, swine arrivals and weigh-ins, and the drop-off of handicraft, needlework and ag mechanics projects at the coliseum.
Buyer registration is now live, and organizers emphasize that every buyer, regardless of the amount they plan to spend, plays a vital role in supporting local youth and ensuring a smooth auction process.
Community members are encouraged to attend the shows in person or watch them via the live stream, both available through the youth show’s website at gcys.org. Those wishing to support exhibitors financially are urged to register as buyers as soon as possible ahead of this weekend’s auction.
See photos on page 3.