Was anyone else here in 4H growing up? Was it a positive experience for you?

Tweet

How involved were you? I was in 4H growing up. I was in several horse clubs, a gardening club, and later a Member at Large (meaning I didn't belong to a club). My brother's and I always did projects not just at the club level, but also at the county level. I won in my category every year at county level and went on to District and State Level. Some of my projects included Photography of Horses, Skin Cancer, and Drunk Driving. Usually only kids over 13 went on to State Level. In Florida, when you go to State Level you go to the University of Florida for a week during the summer. You take some classes, you go to leadership seminars, you compete of course, there is food, dances, trips to museums, horse farms, etc, and the awards ceremony. Oh I guess I forgot to say that a project is your display, a 12 minute speech/presentation, and your work book/log book. You are judged against other people in the same catagory on your display, your speech and how you delivered your speech. It was a lot of fun. You stay in the dorms at UF. Two to a room. Chaperones had their own dorms. You meet other 4Hers from all over the state. My brothers and I were also involved with fundraisers at the County Extension. We were also in Teen Council. I was actually the Teen council leader after I graduated high school and my brothers were still in 4H. It was fun. We would have lockins, bonfires, dances, etc. Teen Council got a Youth as Resources grant and we hosted a summer camp for kids from Big Brother Big Sister, and the abuse shelter. We took them to the zoo and the aquarium and we had an animal theme. It was fun and taught us a lot. When we were part of the horse group we used to ride in parades, do drill team, barrell running, horse shows, etc. We went to Arabian Nights dinner theater and they let us be part of the show one night. When we were in the Gardening group the County has plots of land and we grew our own vegetables. I was secretary of my club one year and vice president another. Overall it was a very pleasant experience. It taught great leadership skills. It also helped me and my brothers with public speaking.