2003 State Fair booklet (pdf file)

Profiles of 2009 State Fair Masters
Profiles of 2008 State Fair Masters
Profiles of 2007 State Fair Masters
Profiles of 2006 State Fair Masters
Profiles of 2005 State Fair Masters
Profiles of 2004 State Fair Masters
Profiles of 2002 State Fair Masters
Profiles of 2001 State Fair Masters

MARY K. AND RAYMOND BORGMAN, HANCOCK COUNTY
...sometimes you have to be sneaky...

Mary K. and Raymond Borgman Photo by Erin Roth

Mary K. Borgman learned to make candy as a child by watching her mother at Christmas time. She began exhibiting at the State Fair fifty years ago "to see if I could beat somebody," she says with a good-spirited laugh. Mary has won more grand prizes than anyone in the candy division. And now she's competing with her granddaughter, whom she taught.

Mary Borgman mixes fondant Photo by Erin Roth

Mary's repertoire includes chocolate-covered fondant, toffee, pecan, and caramels. Mary and her husband, Raymond, now work together as a team. Mary stirs the sugar mixture while it heats to the precise temperature. Raymond skillfully chooses the prize-winning pieces of candy, sorting out those with "feet" (excess chocolate on the bottom). Over the years he has provided many tools for their trade, fashioning molds from metal scraps and salvaging slabs of marble.

Mary and Raymond have lived on their Hancock County farm for nearly 68 years, raising their four children and tending livestock. The Borgmans now fish for bluegill and catfish in the farm pond and make candy for holidays and birthdays as gifts to family and friends.

JIM AND RANDEE PATTON FAMILY, MONTGOMERY COUNTY
...I like the competition...

Jim Patton Photo by Erin Roth

In 1945, Jim Patton's grandfather bought his first Angus cow. Since then, the Pattons have been breeding some of this country's finest purebred Angus seed stock.

Jim's wife, Randee, didn't grow up on a farm, but she soon adapted, providing valuable support in the cattle barns while the rest of the family was on the road at shows. Their three children, Steve Patton, Susan Patton Gillen, and Beth Patton Korniak, are all ten-year veterans of 4-H, winning multiple competitions locally and nationally. Susan and Beth are three-time Silver Pitcher Award winners, an award given to the most-winning girl at the National Junior Show. And Steve has continued in the family tradition, managing LaGrand Ranch, a large purebred Angus ranch in South Dakota.

Jim Patton looking over the cattle on his farm    Photo by Erin Roth

Jim's father was known for having a good eye. Picking a good heifer or bull is the key to successful breeding. It has been a challenge over the years to stay current with the trends. Qualities that were once prized in a cow -- short, deep, and fat -- are now being bred out. "The cattle of the past don't resemble the animals of todays," says Jim. Lean is in and so the Pattons have had to adapt accordingly. Since his Grandfather Patton's era, the task of breeding purebred seed stock has become far more complicated, requiring a working knowledge of biogenetics. The Patton family's adaptability and "good eye" continue to serve them well.