It was a night for tears: some shed from sadness, others from joy and gratitude.

Led by a record-setting bid of $210,000 for the grand champion market steer, the National Western Stock Show Junior Livestock Auction saw five record bids for the livestock raised by young people from all over the country.

It was the 119th junior livestock auction, and it’s the last one that will be held in the Beef Palace Auction Arena. The Junior Livestock Auction in 2026 is moving to the Sue Anschutz-Rodgers Livestock Center.

Most of the proceeds go to the exhibitors, with 10% to the National Western Scholarship Trust — which provides scholarships for agriculture studies and rural medicine at colleges in Colorado and Wyoming. In 2025, 110 students won scholarships.

The top eight animals in the reserve and grand champion categories — hogs, sheep, goat and steers — set a record of $637,000, topping the previous record set in 2023 of $585,000. 

That was led by the bid from Hutchison-Western for the steer named Thunder, owned by 14-year-old Madllyn Norvell of Tuttle, Okla., whose parents are also champion exhibitors.

It was Norvell’s first time exhibiting at the National Western, and she said she will use the money to raise more animals to show. Her goal after high school is to head to Oklahoma State University, join the livestock judging team and then follow in the family business — Norvell Consulting, an Oklahoma lobbying firm — and become a lobbyist for agriculture as well as oil and gas.

“You changed my life tonight!” Norvell said to the Hutchisons through tears after the winning bid was announced.

The Hutchison family’s bid broke a record held by Ames Construction, which has made the winning bid for the grand champion steer for the past 14 years.

The Hutchison family said the bid was in honor of “Buck” Hutchison, who died last July.

In 1963, Buck joined the lumber company his father founded in Iowa in 1956. Using a signing bonus Buck got from the Cleveland Indians, he founded the Commerce City-based Hutchison-Western company, which manufactures and distributes livestock and equine equipment, fencing and wire products, baling supplies, and lumber and building materials. 

Buck chaired the junior livestock auction committee for years, helping to raise $16 million in that time.

A record high bid of $125,000 was also set for the reserve champion steer, Mogcky, shown by 14-year-old Rhylee Rodgers of Searsboro, Iowa. The winning bid came from long-time auction supporters Transwest Trucks. 

Both steers got the red carpet treatment earlier in the day with an exhibit at the Brown Palace during afternoon tea.

Rylee Anderson, 18, of Chillicothe, Mo., took a record $55,000 for her reserve grand champion hog, Scout. The Denver Metro Chamber of Commerce took the winning bid.

Sean and Audra McNicholas, and the TKM Foundation of Nigeria, locally represented by the SSA Group, made a record $52,000 bid for the grand champion lamb, Tucker, owned by Clay Randall, 18, of Canute, Okla.

A new record was set for the reserve grand champion goat. Phillip, owned by Madden Wise, 18, of Brownwood, Tex. was sold to Wagner Equipment for $22,500.

The reserve grand champion lamb, Spook, exhibited by 15-year-old Brayden Bowers of Belmont, Wisc., sold for $42,000 to APC Resources.

Finally, Humble, the grand champion goat owned by 15-year-old Sayde Allan of Elk City, Okla. sold for a record $45,000 to Babson Farms.

Colorado exhibitors often see their animals in bidding wars from the standing-room-only crowd. This year, a dozen Colorado youth exhibited division champion, reserve champion and other top livestock.

The pace for the livestock auction is fast and sometimes a bit chaotic. Each of the 98 animals auctioned Friday are brought in one at a time, auctioned off (most will go to slaughter) and then quickly sent back to the barn for pictures and gifts from the exhibitors to the winning bidders. 

Backstage, it was common to see exhibitors crying, knowing their time with the animals they’ve raised was coming to an end. 

Colorado lawmakers at the state Capitol raise funds every year to buy animals from Colorado youth. They were represented Friday by ranchers Rep. Dusty Johnson, R-Fort Morgan and Sen. Cleave Simpson, R-Alamosa. The $12,700 purse was boosted by a partnership with the Colorado Future Farmers of America (FFA) Foundation and Executive Director John Stahley.

Johnson’s district includes Holyoke. That made a division second place crossbred steer shown by Tenley Becker of Holyoke high on their list, but Johnson said early on they probably couldn’t afford a steer. It’s been several years since lawmakers bid for a Colorado steer that usually go upwards of $15,000 or more. But with help from the FFA Foundation, the Johnson family and Growing Minds 4-H FFA, the group took the winning bid of $15,000 for Becker’s steer. Becker also took third place overall for her steer at last August’s state fair.

The coalition also took the first Colorado animal up for auction Friday night, a champion speckle-face lamb named Cracker, exhibited by Cade Simpson, 17, of Ault. The winning bid was $9,000.

“I was pretty happy for it,” Simpson told The Denver Gazette. He plans to use the money for college and raise more lambs for next year. It’s the second time he’s been in the livestock auction; the last time, also showing lambs, was almost seven years ago. 

“It definitely feels good to have a division winner,” Simpson said. He gave the lawmakers a hand-made wooden cutting board.

The fast pace led to a bit of confusion during the evening, when the lawmakers’ group accidentally bid and won a Missouri hog, shown by Rhett Forkner of Richards, Mo., at $5,000. But it goes to a good cause, and a good time was had by all.