Beaufort County 4-H’ers win honors at State 4-H Congress

Published 7:40 pm Friday, August 4, 2017

Beaufort 4-H’ers received honors during the recent North Carolina 4-H Congress. This year’s 4-H Congress, held in Raleigh on July 29-Aug. 1, attracted more than 500 young people and their adult leaders for activities including presentations on a variety of subjects, leadership and citizenship training, service opportunities, officer elections and more.

Beaufort County 4-H youth and families arrived in Raleigh for state finals in 4-H presentation competition held at North Carolina State University. Six Beaufort County youth competed in 5-12 minute oral presentations in three different age categories, and one competed in the outdoor grilled competition.

These youth selected topics months ago and orally shared research-based information in a logical format. These public speaking skills will permanently help these youth throughout their lives — 4-H teaches life skills. Congratulations to all!

Additional youth representing Beaufort County 4-H at the 2017 NC 4-H Congress include: Edmond Brown, Kylie Bowden and John Hinsley. Beaufort County delegates enjoyed NC 4-H Congress, with events such as the Hugh Shelton Leadership Team at NCSU leading workshops in character education and stress and time management/leadership styles. Additional events included the NC 4-H talent showcase and a glow dance on Sunday night. Beaufort County 4-H Congress delegates also toured our capitol city on Monday. The delegation enjoyed breakfast at Carol’s Kitchen, a non-profit helping homeless women, before touring our state capitol, the Museum of Natural Science and the Poe Center for Health. Monday evening our delegation dressed up for the 4-H Gala banquet with awesome entertainment, followed by the gala dance. On Tuesday morning, we worked in teams at the final event of NC 4-H Congress 2017: hands-to-service “Feeding Children Everywhere.” We collectively packaged 80,000 meals in 35 assembly lines in less than two hours. These meals will be distributed across North Carolina to help feed the hungry. We packaged dry mix for jambalaya; each box holds 48 packs, which will feed 288 people, in the process, making 80,000 wishes come true.

Kaleb Davis, 17, son of Antromeed and Chris Johnson of Washington, was elected and installed at the NE District 4-H District President during the traditional candlelight ceremony at NC 4-H Congress. Kaleb will serve until the close of 4-H Congress 2018.

4-H is North Carolina’s largest youth development organization, equipping more than 247,000 young people each year with the skills to succeed and improve the world around them. 4-H programs and camps encourage young people to “learn by doing,” helping them to develop into active, contributing citizens. NC State Extension and the Cooperative Extension Program at N.C. A&T State University coordinate 4-H programs statewide. For information about Beaufort County 4-H, contact the Beaufort County Extension Center at 252-946-0111 or like us on the Beaufort County 4-H Facebook page.