4-H News
Anna Burgess

Members of Jenkins County Middle and High School competed for district honors last weekend at Rock Eagle 4-H Center in Eatonton, GA.

Jenkins County was well represented last weekend at DPA. Congratulations to all participants!! As many of you know, members of Jenkins County 4- H went this past weekend to Rock Eagle to compete in District Project Achievement. They began preparing for this competition back in December when they had to submit a portfolio to the judges. The portfolios consist of all their accomplishments, leadership activities, community service projects, and make up 40 -50 percent of their score. The other 50-60 percent is based on a presentation. These students have been working extremely hard the past few weeks preparing for their demonstration, and the practice paid off! You should each be extremely proud of our youth.

In the junior competition, 9 out of 13 participants placed in the top 3. In the senior competition, 50 percent placed in the top 2 and 75 percent placed in the top 6.

Juniors coming in first place were: Ashton Sherrod- Better Breakfast, Emiliy English- Food Fare, Lavonte Lovette- Food Safety and Preservation, and Krista Gay- Human Development. Second place: Krysten Fail- Public Speaking, Jaquetta Grier- History. Third place: Chassity Wilkerson- Dog Care and Training, Jessica Herrmann- Sports, Callie Dailey- Target Sports.

Seniors placing first were: Charlotte Davis- Dairy and Milk Science, Adam Lanier- Fruits, Nuts and Vegetables, and Becca Rich- Housing and Environment. Second place: Danielle Dieteman- Dog Care and Training, Shelby Burke- Food Fast and Healthy, and Justin Lanier- Sports.

In July, the first place seniors will be awarded a trip to Atlanta for State Congress. During State Congress, they will compete against the winners from the other districts for state honors. Those who qualified for State Congress this year are: Charlotte Davis, Adam Lanier, Justin Lanier and Becca Rich. Justin won by sweepstakes.

Other participants were: Heather Bridgon- Food Fare, Marshella Herrington- Performing Arts Instrumental, Tabitha Trent- Performing Arts- Vocal, Chelsea Taylor- Sports, Walter Ivy- Sports, Brian Kirkland- Target Sports, TJ Flakes- Target Sports, Breanna Adams- Workforce Prep and Career Development, and Bridget Johnson- Safety.

Again, I congratulate all participants. They did an extraordinary job. We will be starting Cloverleaf DPA (5th-6th grade) on February 19. If you are interested or have a child interested in Cloverleaf DPA, please come by the office anytime next week and let's get started. Cloverleaf DPA is slightly different from Jr/Sr because they do not have to have a portfolio and their competition is only one day, March 24, in Effingham County. We will provide the transportation to and from the competition.

Those who are members of Project SAFE, don't forget about your practices every Sunday at 2 p.m. at the land fill! Good Luck to all and I hope you have a great week!