June 18, 2010
Summer has arrived early this year with a great deal
of heat and humidity, but Georgia 4-H always prepares
for summer because it means that nearly 10,000 young
people will participate in a summer camping experience
at one of our five Georgia 4-H centers. This year is
no exception, and on May 31 we opened the 4-H camping
season at four of our five centers; on June 7 we began
Junior Camp at Jekyll Island 4-H Center for seventh
and eighth grade 4-H members. 4-H camp is a special
time for young people as many of them take their first
trip away from home. They learn new social skills,
overcome homesickness, and make new friends, but when
Georgia 4-H members attend camp this summer, they will
also learn more about healthy lifestyles, financial
literacy, and will benefit from the many science based
programs and resources available at our 4-H centers.
Special thanks to the many people who help send children
to camp. 4-H camp is a reasonably priced experience
for many young people, but there are some children
in Georgia whose families cannot afford the cost of
camp. County agents and volunteers on the local level
make an effort to find resources to cover the cost
of children’s attendance at 4-H camp each summer. For
the past five years the Georgia 4-H Foundation has
been able to provide camp scholarships for more than
1,000 4-H members to attend summer camp at Rock Eagle
4-H Center, due to the generosity of the Compton Otis
Baker Trust. Mr. Baker was a long time friend of Georgia
4-H, and he made provisions in his will for his trust
to assist Georgia 4-H members in attending camp at
Rock Eagle. We are grateful for the generosity of Mr.
Baker and thousands of other individuals and businesses
across Georgia who help send 4-H members to summer
camp.
In addition to summer camp, we have just completed
the Georgia
State 4-H Horse Show at the Georgia Agricenter
in Perry, GA. Nearly 300 young equestrians were involved
in the competition at this year’s State 4-H Horse Show,
and the winners will be eligible to compete in the
Southern Regional Horse Championships in Clemson, SC
in late July.
State
4-H Horse School has also been conducted in
June, and preparations are being made for 4-H/
FFA Beef School which will be held in Athens the week of
June 20.
Georgia 4-H’ers are also preparing for State
4-H Council which will be held the weekend of June 25-27 and will
include the election of the 2010-2011 State 4-H Officers.
The 2009-2010 year concludes with State
4-H Congress,
and we have had another excellent year in Georgia.
State 4-H Congress will be held July 20-23 at the Crowne
Plaza Ravinia in Atlanta, GA. During State 4-H Congress
we will recognize all state 4-H scholarship winners,
winners of judging events, shooting sports, horse and
livestock shows, and other special projects winners
that have been named throughout the year. Competition
will be held for the state level 4-H project achievement,
and state winners will be announced during the week
of State 4-H Congress.
On a final note about 4-H camping in Georgia, it is
our distinct privilege to be actively involved with
delivering 4-H programs to military youth across the
state of Georgia. A number of our state level faculty
and many of our county agents are engaged in 4-H Military
Programs. During the first week of camp beginning on
May 30 through June 4, Fortson 4-H Center hosted Operation
Purple Camp, a week of camp for youths experiencing
deployment made possible through the National Military
Family Association. Just this week, June 13-18,
over 125 teens flew to Atlanta from 41 states to attend
the Air
Force Reserve/Air National Guard Teen Summit at Wahsega 4-H Center. While learning more about
programs for reserve component families throughout
the country, they were introduced to the Georgia 4-H
Camping Program.
Georgia 4-H is honored to support military youth,
but we were also very saddened on June 1 to learn that
U. S. Army Ranger, SPC Jonathan K. (Jon) Peney lost
his life while supporting Operation Enduring Freedom
in Kandahar province, Afghanistan. Jon, while not a
Georgia 4-H’er, was the husband of Kristin Felton Peney,
a former Clarke County
4-H member, who currently works
as the Administrative Associate at Burton
4-H Center on Tybee Island.
The heartfelt expression of gratitude to Jon for his
service to our country has touched the 4-H family in
Georgia over the last few days, and our thoughts and
prayers are with Kristin and Jon’s family in this time
of their loss. This tragic loss came the day after
Memorial Day, when we had remembered the many heroes
who have died in our nation’s service to provide the
wonderful freedoms that we all enjoy. Georgia 4-H is
proud to be a partner with the United States Military.
Until next time, continue “To Make The Best Better.”
Sincerely,
