B2—Lancaster Farming, Saturday, October 31,1981 / Donna Lucidi is spending her first days on the job getting acquainted with the 4-H program and learning about some of the nearly 100 projects available to young people. As people learn about her arrival, the number of phone calls Lancaster's newest agent finds work enjoyable BY SALLY BAIR Staff Correspondent When Donna Lucidi was small she begged her parents to buy a farm and move from the city of Pittsburgh. They couldn’t comply, but today she feels she's where she always wanted to be - in the heart of Lancaster County’s agricultural abundance and at the heart of the Cooperative Extension Service’s 4- H program. Donna is the new 4-H agent in the County, and will be busy working with the County’s 3,400 4-H’ers and the 74 adult volunteer leaders who carry out the growing 4-H program. Although her personal ex perience has been with Girl Scouts and not with 4-H, she is eagerly learning about the program and has formed a favorable opinion about it. “I think it is terrific in the way it helps the kids develop and become more responsible, more outspoken and more self-confident. They also get a tangible product, or see that in some way they have made a difference. “Another strength is the way the projects are evaluated. Sometimes it may be self-evaluation, but the young people are rewarded for their effort,” Donna concludes. While freely admitting that she has a lot to learn about farming, she is nevertheless eager to learn. She says, “Lancaster County is so clean and neat it looks like a pic ture book. I’m going to enjoy being connected with agriculture.” A graduate of Indiana State University of Pennsylvania, Donna studied home economics education and taught for 7% years at two high schools in Cambria County. She says she feels her years of teaching will be a benefit to her as she works with the young people in 4-H, saying, “I think I have had close enough contact to know what % kids believe in and what they will work for and how they respond to adults. I also have an idea of what will go over with them.” She enjoyed her years of teaching, but left there last January for a job as assistant manager of housing and food service at the Haze’ton Campus of Penn State. It was then that she realized how much she missed contact with young people. “I really missed not working with kids and seeing somebody change and grow into new abilities. It was an inside job, and even with doing volunteer work I felt it wasn’t enough. I wanted people to be the center of my life.” Extension work was not new to Donna because she had worked part time for the Cambria County Extension Service, setting up a homemaker’s prograin for hand crafts and teaching. She also judged 4-H projects there. Ac tually, she wanted to work in Extension when she graduated from college but hadn’t had the experience necessary for jobs open then." Donna feels she has arrived at a good time of the year, when 4-H activities are relatively slow, and when there are other activities which will help acquaint her with the people involved in 4-H. 91 (otnesifiad increases. Donna hopes to be invited to visit many of Lancaster clubs so she can get to know both 4-H’ers and leaders. “There are a lot of things hap pening, like the 4-H leader’s banquet, the Lancaster County Fanners Association exhibits at the Mall and a regional 4-H agents meeting.” She expressed surprise about the warm welcome she has received here, explaining, “I was real surprised that 4-H is such an im portant factor in people’s lives. There seem to be a lot of people involved in the program and it has a-lot of'community and parental support.” Donna adds, “Everyone seems glad to have somebody to hold down the fort, and they’re won dering how the program will change. I want to keep up what Nancy has done.” Nancy, of course, is Nancy Meyers, who left that position in September to go into full time fanning with her husband in New York State. ' Donna has already been filling Nancy’s shoes in some regional committee positions and has therefore met neighboring 4-H agents. She responds, “Everybody’s been kind and un- derstanding and patient, and I think they’ll be good to work with.” In the time since Nancy left and Donna arrived on the scene much of the 4-H work has been done by JoAnn Enders, who served as a £Lsm „l *WM*t‘’f^^fktSf* ~" *’^’Frpiff^^ v* r^p^rj^Jfc ' - -rj V Vv “i v . nr V^ V /Ca«S?^i^ a( dlj^Pß ■Jf c * ■* part-time 4-H assistant and who is the organizational leader with her husband Hal of the Mountville 4-H Club. Donna says, “JoAnn has been a big help to me.” Donna is looking forward to being invited to attend 4-H club meetings to see first hand what projects are being carried out and to get to know both 4-H’ers and leaders. She says she’d like to attend as many club meetings as her schedule permits. Having attended one meeting of County Council, Donna commented, “It seemed like a pretty industrious group of young people. ” She is also getting caught up on paperwork that has piled up since Nancy’s departure, and is already getting involved in such far off projects as next summer’s in coming Massachusetts exchange program and training programs for leaders. “I want to attack each thing as it comes up. There is a lot of paperwork and mailing,” Donna states. She feels she has not been here long enough to make any sweeping proposals for the future, so she says simply, “I would like to in volve more of the inner city kids in programs, and I’m sure there are new areas to be developed. She said she is impressed with the number of projects offered in 4- H, saying the variety makes it “universal in scope.” She added that she would like to develop some projects which may not have been used for some time. “I think the variety is good. There is something for every group, and at least the project is there if there is an in terest.” She added that her initial reaction is that 4-H is more structured than Girl Scouts, ad ding she feels there is more thinking required on the part of the individual, and more self- evaluation, plus a more com petitive feeling. Donna finds nothing wrong with the competition built into the 4-H program, saying, “The whole world is competitive and even if the competition is only against oneself it is the only way to develop and get better. I think competition is good, and we must reward everyone for their work so that no one is overlooked.” She likens it to her work as a swimming instructor when there are those who do not pass the test at the end of the 'instruction. Everyone, however, receives a certificate as a recognition that they did participate and work hard in the program. This gives each participant a sense of ac complishment. Donna is settling into an apart ment and getting to know the area. She has many interests to pursue in her spare time, including refinishing antique furniture. She uses all the furniture she refinishes, but points out with a laugh that she may soon have to begin selling some to make room! In her previous homes Donna has enjoyed the produce from a large garden and has done a lot of canning and freezing. She’s already looking ahead to next summer and hoping to find a small garden she can call her own. (Turn to Page B 4)
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