With having over 120 project areas in 4-H for today's youth, you would think that 4-H wasn't having any problems keeping the system a comfortable place. Over the years, the number of adult volunteer leaders has dropped drastically making it hard for today's youth to participate in 4-H. The smaller the community, the less adult leaders are to be found and that is where the big problem is in the 4-H program right now.
4-H has many youth on the sidelines waiting for an adult leader to step forward and begin new clubs in various project areas. The only requirements to be an adult leader are the willingness to learn and share information with the youth in the their project areas, have a positive attitude, and can not have a criminal record. All learning and informational materials are free of charge and can be found in any county's 4-H extension office. Michigan State University Extension State 4-H Youth Programs are youth development programs that involves volunteers in providing positive, experiential, educational, opportunities for and with youth. Their mission is to create environments, through collaboration, that build strong, healthy youth who are proactive in a complex and changing world.
The 4-H program is in desperate need for adult volunteers to pass on their own skills such as leadership, achievement, citizenship, and communication throughout the world. Everyone has a skill that could be beneficial to another's life experiences whether it be cooking, farming, crafts, leadership abilities, business, or a healthy lifestyle. Becoming a leader and volunteering their time to youth in need of these skills is not only rewarding but beneficial.
It seems like just yesterday that I joined 4-H, but it has been almost 16 years since the actual day I got involved with the 4-H program. Throughout my years and experiences with 4-H, I believe that I have learned to become a considerate, mature, understanding, young adult. Along the years in being in 4-H, I have introduced many of my friends and other people into 4-H because of its positive influences.
I am proud to be a Manistee County 4-H member/teen leader and when I visit other places I try to have 4- H recognized as much as possible because I feel that growing up in the 4-H program has taught me to stay away from drugs, alcohol, and violence.
Today, kids lives are being ruined with negative influences such as drugs and I believe that if 4-H and it's adult leaders have helped me to stay away from those negative influences, that it just might help other kids as well.On February 19, 2000, I attended the West Central Region 4-H Leader Meet to enhance Positive Youth Development. There were only about 10 teen leaders there, but I feel that we got our point out to the adult leaders that we need more adults to volunteer their time and money to keep 4-H a possible positive organization for the next generation.
