For The Tribune
The 4-H Junior Leaders program allows youth in grades 7 through 12 the opportunity to serve as youth leaders at the county level.
The Jackson County 4-H program has a very active Junior Leaders group that meets all year long to learn about the community, develop leadership skills and participate in a variety of service learning projects.
The 4-H Junior Leaders group met at Purdue Extension Jackson County on Sept. 13 to elect officers for the 2018-19 4-H program year. On Sept. 20, those officers met to plan out the 2018-19 program year for the Junior Leaders group.
The youth leaders take on various responsibilities, such as contacting local organizations to host monthly meetings, running meetings using parliamentary procedure, planning service learning projects and fundraising.
Sydney Wiesehan, a member of the Cortland Cattails 4-H Club, was elected president for a second term. The president has the responsibility of running the meetings and ensuring that Robert’s Rules of Order/Parliamentary Procedure are used to conduct business.
Kaelen Eglen, a member of the Hamilton Hammerheads 4-H Club, was elected vice president for a second term. The vice president sends out reminders for meetings and special activities. The vice president works with the president and takes the president’s place when she is not present. The vice president needs to be familiar with her job and the role of president.
Cassidy Burnside was elected secretary for a second term and is a member of the Vallonia Friends 4-H Club. The secretary has the responsibility to keep the records of the club’s business and activities. The secretary is the only person charged with this responsibility.
Emma Winks was elected treasurer for a third term. She is a member of the Outdoor Connections 4-H Club. The treasurer is responsible for keeping records of all money taken in and spent by the club. It is a job of trust and one in which youth learn how to handle and keep records of money.
Elected 4-H Council representatives were Michael Claycamp, Hannah Kerkhof, Sydney Loudermilk and Abby Wiggam. Claycamp is a member of the Junior Leaders 4-H Club, Kerkhof is a member of the Lucky Starz 4-H Club, Loudermilk is a member of the Leprechauns 4-H Club and Wiggam is a member of the Lucky Starz 4-H Club.
Council representatives serve as youth representatives on the Jackson County 4-H Council, the local policymaking and fundraising body for Jackson County 4-H. The purpose of a 4-H Youth Development Council is to help plan and implement a 4-H Youth Development program that is consistent with the mission and vision of both Purdue Extension and Indiana 4-H. Youth representatives play a critical role in ensuring the 4-H program meets the diverse needs of young people in our community.
Citizenship leaders for 2018-19 are Abby Stuckwisch and Hiley Obermeyer. Stuckwisch is a member of the Cloverleaf 4-H Club, and Obermeyer is a member of the Blue Ribbon Winners 4-H Club. Citizenship leaders encourage the group to take on a variety of community service and service learning projects throughout the year.
Recreation leaders elected to serve are Taylor Loudermilk, Allison Wynn and Bryan Brewer. Loudermilk is member of the Leprechauns 4-H Club, Wynn is a member of the Mighty Meat Goats 4-H Club and Brewer is a member of the Jackson County Warriors 4-H Club.
Recreation leaders are responsible for organizing activities to help members get to know one another, have fun and enjoy success through games, stories, picnics, etc.
Rebecca Lucas and Kirsten Raisor were elected as health and safety leaders. Lucas is a member of the Cloverleaf 4-H Club, and Raisor is a member of the Leprechauns 4-H Club. The health and safety leaders have the important job of helping members of Junior Leaders plan a fun-filled year of health and safety adventures.
The adult advisers for the Jackson County 4-H Junior Leaders are Tammy Martindale, 4-H volunteer, and Heather VonDielingen, 4-H youth educator.
If your organization is interesting in having 4-H Junior Leaders speak about their roles as officers or lead officer trainings, contact Heather VonDielingen at [email protected] or 812-358-6101.
For information about Jackson County 4-H, be sure to visit our website at extension.purdue.edu/jackson or “like” Purdue Extension Jackson County on Facebook.