It is an exciting time for 4‑H and I am proud to be part of the Grow True Leaders Campaign. I am so blessed to have been a part of Grow True Leaders Week and am honored to have been chosen as the national 4‑H Youth in Action winner in Citizenship. Thank you, National 4‑H Council, for making me feel so empowered. The week was an amazing experience and one that I will treasure for a lifetime. I went into our Media Training weekend unsure and a little nervous, but left with confidence and three new friends with amazing families. The Media Training weekend gave me a lot of insight on interviewing for television and radio.
I have always been proud of how 4‑H involves such a diverse group of people. I was amazed at the other pillar winners’ stories and enjoyed learning about their project areas. I am fortunate to have met Ru, Thaddeus, and Jacob. From the beginning we all really hit it off. They are what 4‑H is all about- growing true leaders!
During Grow True Leaders Week, my favorite experience was the Youth Rally. I really enjoyed teaching the Urban Gardening workshop and getting to know 4‑H’ers from around the nation! I also loved getting to tell my 4‑H story during the Satellite Media Tour with Jennifer Nettles and Miss America, Betty Cantrell.
The Gala was a beautiful event full of wonderful people who were gathered to celebrate and support 4‑H. I would be lying if I said that I wasn’t nervous! I enjoyed being able to network at the event and watching the performances and presentations! It was very humbling when it came time to watch my video and receive my Youth in Action Award.
I am so excited to see what the future holds and can’t wait to encourage our youth to reach for the stars and work to obtain whatever their dreams may be! All it takes is someone to ask us to step up and be a leader.
