By Madison Britt
County 4-H Agent
Summer has flown by with many different 4-H activities happening! At the beginning of June, 19 Cloverleaf 4-Hers attended camp at Rock Eagle 4-H Center where they participated in a variety of activities such as swimming, canoeing, hiking, archery, completing a high ropes course, learning about reptiles, healthy lifestyles, and Native American culture, and of course drinking lots of Icees.
At the beginning of July, our Coffee County BB team traveled to Rogers, Arkansas to compete in the 2022 Daisy National BB Gun Championship Match. In the spirit of competition, the BB team and coaches dressed in costumes to match their transportation which was kindly provided by the Coffee County Sheriff’s Department. Overall, Coffee County 4H BB placed 14th out of 55 teams from around the country. As for individual scores, Mason Harper placed 5th, Caden Carter placed 25th, Cara Griffis placed 72nd, Natalie Gutherie placed 118th, Taylor McClelland placed 157th, Harleigh Hope placed 214th, and Megan Batchelor placed 259th. Coffee County 4-H is extremely proud of our team and coaches for all their hard work and their family’s dedication. Thank you to our coaches, WB Merritt and Ashley Gutherie, for an amazing season and so many great memories for the kids. This could not have been possible without the financial and in-kind support of our community partners. We appreciate all you do to support our community.
Our older Junior 4-Hers attended camp at Camp Jekyll on Georgia’s coast. Because this camp is focused on the island lifestyle, campers learned about beach ecology, climbed Driftwood beach’s trees, canoed on the Tidelands Pond, seined the intertidal zone for fish, squid, and crabs, hiked through the maritime forest, played on the beach, and so much more.
Then, for our Senior 4-Hers, they headed to Rock Eagle to continue their education in 4-H’s focus areas of Healthy Living, Agriculture and STEM, and Civic Engagement. Also, they can develop their leadership skills and community service skills while at camp.
The Coffee County Extension staff would like to thank all our 4-Hers, their families, the adult volunteers, and counselors for making camp run so smoothly. If your child would like to receive information about Camp 2023, please give the office a call to be added to the info sheet.
In addition to attending camp, a group of Cloverleaf 4-Hers went to Brunswick to visit our friends at the Department of Natural Recourses – Coastal Resources division where they had a great time learning about saltwater fishing and marine conservation with a local agent. The kids received their own fishing poles and tackle box where they practiced rigging it and tying their own hooks. Then, they headed down to the dock for a few hours of fishing and seining. There was even a surprise treat – a tour of a US Coast Guard patrol vessel! After catching a few fish and a lot of jellyfish, we headed inside for an afternoon of marine education games. To end the day, the kids went on a hike through the salt marsh where they caught many Fiddler crabs and snails in the grasses. Coffee County 4-H kindly appreciates the work of Georgia DNR and the U.S. Coast Guard.