Area youth provide cured ham for show, breakfast

Lane Huntsman holds his first cured ham. He earned a blue ribbon for it during the country ham show Tuesday at the Kingdom of Callaway County Fair.
Lane Huntsman holds his first cured ham. He earned a blue ribbon for it during the country ham show Tuesday at the Kingdom of Callaway County Fair.

More than 80 cured, country hams lined tables inside the 4-H home arts building Tuesday, creating a poignant aroma for all who came near.

Charlie Rosenkrans and his wife, Leslie Rosenkrans, looked over every ham, each a 4-H or FFA member's entry in the country ham show at the Kingdom of Callaway County Fair. The Rosenkrans, from Paris, Mo., travel all around the state for ham competitions. And Charlie, who has been judging cured ham for 25 years, knows his pork. How to pick a porker?

"What you want to do is put a combination of eye appeal, meatiness and something that is trim (in a ham)," Charlie Rosenkrans explained Tuesday as he pointed out an entry with too much fat.

To help the tornado-stricken people of Dumas and surroundings, donations can be made to the Delta Area Disaster Relief Fund, care of the Delta Area Community Foundation, P.O. Box 894, Dumas, AR, 71639, or through the Arkansas Community Foundation, 700 S. Rock St., Little Rock, AR, 72202.