Jones County 4-H youth in action!
Jones County 4-H hosted the 2016 Youth in Action Day on July 13 at the Dan Parish Tech Center. During Youth In Action Day, 4-H members gave presentations and demonstrations, participated in consumer decision making, learned about horses in the hippology contest and completed the day with the Iron Chef cooking challenge.
The morning kicked off with four 4-H members giving talks. Matthew Birkeland taught us all how to be safer when taking care of our lawns with a hands-on talk titled “It is not how fast you mow, but how safe you mow.” Not only did we learn about riding and push mower safety, but also gained weed eater knowledge and insight into running a lawn mowing business. After we came back inside, Dylan Fuoss challenged our creative side and taught us to make stained glass art. Using basic household items, Dylan created a gorgeous design. Ty Fuoss followed his brother and educated us all on different wholesale and retail cuts of beef. His presentation featured a spectacular chart that our judge for the day, Nancy Bower, encouraged him to make into a poster for Achievement Days. Our final presentation was given by Cyrus Hendricks. He got his hands dirty while making bee pollinator balls. He was gracious enough to make seed balls for everyone to take home. Everyone in attendance seemed excited to watch the native flowers grow and bloom. All 4-H’ers were awarded purple ribbons for their efforts with top purples going to Beginner- Cyrus Hendricks, Illustrated Talk Junior- Ty Fuoss and Junior Demonstration to Dylan Fuoss.
After we judged and refueled from lunch, Youth In Action Day continued with our Iron Chef contest. In the contest 4-H members are given a “special” ingredient that they must incorporate into a dish. Contestants have 75 minutes to prepare and properly plate their dish. This year, the special ingredient was chocolate. Needless to say our focus was less on overall nutrition and more on a special occasion. Nonetheless, our 4-H members did have great knowledge on the antioxidants found in dark chocolate, and where able to share how all treats can be a part of a balanced diet. We had five 4-H members tempting our taste buds. Savanah Hendricks prepared an amazing Black Bottom Banana Cream Pie which was awarded Top Purple honors in the beginner division. Dylan Fuoss spoke to our sweet tooth with White Chocolate Oreo Balls which received a purple ribbon. Bridger Hight thought outside of the box and wowed us all with his Coconut Oil Peanut Butter Fudge for which he was awarded a purple ribbon. Alex Newsam’s Chocolate Fondue made everyone want to dive in and was awarded a purple ribbon. Finally, Matthew Birkeland has found a way to most women’s hearts with Chocolate Covered Strawberries that won him a purple ribbon. All 4-H members did a fantastic job and our judge, a longtime 4-H volunteer, was impressed with the kitchen skills each of them demonstrated.
If you are interested in learning more about the opportunities 4-H has to offer please call the Jones County 4-H Office at 669-7101 or email Kaycee Jones at kaycee.jones@sdstate.edu.