Seven months ago, Alexa Groeber got a new animal.

It was an Angus cross steer named Darold, who was born in February 2022. He first weighed 900 pounds before he ballooned to 1,400.
But at first, he caused problems with Groeber.

“When I first got him in January, he was very skittish,” the Montgomery County resident said. “We had to put a halter on him in a chute and he didn’t like that.”

Now, Darold is Groeber’s best friend.

“I balanced work, summer school and him,” Groeber said. “He’s my favorite part of summer so far. It really has been a great time. I didn’t think I would get this attached to him. He’s really my buddy now.”

Wearing a pink blazer, Groeber got to showcase Darold at the Junior Livestock Show on July 20 at the Montgomery County Fairgrounds. She finished 14th out of 29 exhibitors. Mid-Mo Concrete bought the steer.
Groeber said even though she didn’t get grand champion or reserve champion for Darold, she was happy to show a steer for the first time.

“I’m really excited for everybody coming out here and supporting me and all of the other buyers and sellers,” Groeber said. “It’s great to see so many people out here helping. There were a ton of people who helped me.”

Groeber plans to take Darold to the Missouri State Fair on Aug. 15 in Sedalia after receiving a first-time State Fair exhibition grant. Groeber said she is looking forward to the opportunity to make the two-hour trip to showcase her steer.

“I applied for it with a rabbit a couple of years ago and I didn’t get it,” Groeber said. “But I got it with my steer Darold this year. In order to show it at the State Fair, you have to send in a nose print so they would know it is him. So we went ahead and nose printed him before I knew if I could go. So I’m all good, ready and set.”

Groeber said she enjoys raising animals. She also has some rabbits and sheep and has another steer named Booger. She showcased rabbits for nine years.

“My dad is a general contractor and my mom works at a central office in Troy,” Groeber said. “I’m not your usual farmer’s daughter. But I did a lot of farming things and learned a lot of things. I know how to drive a tractor, run a skid loader, back up a trailer and hook up a trailer. It is all because of my community. I was able to show them another huge project that I can do. I had several people come up to me and say they were very proud of me. It means the world to me to see people seeing how much I worked and how hard these other people worked.”

The 17-year old Groeber was one of many exhibitors who got to sell their animals at this year’s auction. A total of 191 animals were sold, 29 of them were steer.

“The fair means a lot more because you really see the community and what they do for you,” Groeber said. “So I tried helping all of these younger kids with their rabbit showmanship. They did really well. I’m just really proud of everybody. I love seeing everybody coming out in this auditorium to see us, the people who work with animals for a long time. It just amazes me how much support we have in our community. I love it and appreciate it so much.”

Groeber will be a senior at Montgomery County High School this fall. She’s a member of the school’s FFA chapter and a president of the FCCLA chapter.