Celebrate Pennsylvania 4-H Awareness Week March 17-23
4-H Marks 100th Anniversary With National Conversations
WASHINGTON, D.C. Lau
ren Annett of Lincoln University,
Elizabeth Garduno and Luis San
tos of West Chester, and Laurie
Szoke, 4-H coordinator, Chester
County, were part of 1,200 youth
and adults from throughout the
country participating in The Na
tional Conversation on Youth
Development in the 21st Cen
tury, a national summit spon
sored by 4-H to create a youth
led action plan to improve urban,
suburban, and rural communities
nationwide.
Seventy-nine 4-H youth and
adult delegates participated from
Pennsylvania. Comments of the
Chester County 4-H’ers follow.
“I want to thank all the people
who helped organize this conver
sation. I’m glad I was able to be a
part of the 1,200 youths and
adults throughout the country
who attended this wonderful con
versation. I got to meet really
nice people from all around the
country, Congressmen, a WNBA
Portland Fire player, Gold Med
allist Rulon Gardner, and the
$250,000 winner in “Who Wants
To Be A Millionaire,’’ Nancy
Reed. This conversation was a
great opportunity for those who
attended to be united since Sept.
11. One of the interesting speak
ers was Rulon Gardner. He said,
“You can never get something if
you don’t do your best to obtain
it.” This sort of describes what
I’m doing in my community. I
help others and then I get help
when I need it. 4-H showed me
that I can accomplish anything if
1 put a lot of effort into it” —Luis
Santos, West Chester.
■ >. 1
List of people Santos got to
meet:
• Nancy Reed, winner of
$250,000 on “Who Wants To Be
A Millionaire?”
• Rulon Gardner, Wrestling
Gold Medallist in the Summer
Olympics in Sydney
• John Bridgeland, USA Free
dom Corps
• Adam Putnam, Congress
man in Florida
• Jackie Stiles, WNBA basket
ball player from the Portland
Fire
• Ann Veneman, Secretary of
Agriculture
• Jeff Trandahl, Clerk of
United States Congress
• Harris Wofford, America’s
Promise Chairman
“My first year in college has
not been so easy. I’ve had to
make a lot of choices...good and
bad. I have had my “ups” and
“downs.” This was one of the
times I felt I couldn’t go any fur
ther. Attending the conversation
has not changed my life but it has
made a difference. 1 came out of
it with a new perspective and
with new ideas of how to be a
better person; to work hard for
what I believe in. One of the
speakers that really motivated
me was Rulon Gardner, the cap
tain of the USA wrestling team.
He said that no matter how
tough it can be that we can make
it better. To always change a
“can’t” to a “can.” Now, I’m
ready to go back to college and
start working to be a better per
son and to achieve my goals; to
come and help my community in
a better way.” —Elizabeth Gar
duno, West Chester.
The National Conversation’s
findings, which will be tabulated
using instant polling technology,
will be presented to President
Bush, members of Congress and
other political and community
leaders in April.
Speaking at the National Con
versation, USA Freedom Corps
director John Bridgeland said the
purpose of President Bush’s new
volunteer initiative “is to ask
every American to stop, to pause,
to ask the question, ‘What will be
my great service to my neighbor,
my community, my country and
the world?”
Bridgeland hailed the youth
participating in the National
Conversation, as well as the mil
lions of 4-H members throughout
the country: “You are the rising
generation, and I know with your
commitment to public service,
you can in fact become the next
greatest generation.”
Also speaking at the 4-H sum
mit was Harris Wofford, chair
man of America’s Promise, who
described the youth in attendance
Lancaster Farming, Saturday, March 16, 2002-B5
as “the promise in America.”
Further, he underscored impor
tance of their role in USA Free
dom Corps: “You are vital parts
of those armies of compassion
that President Bush has called
into action.”
“Power Of YOUth
Pledge” Campaign
4-H youth presented Bridge
land and Wofford with a large
check representing more than 1.3
million hours committed thus far
by 100,000 youth and adults to
the “Power of YOUth Pledge”
Campaign, a volunteerism drive
aimed at improving communities
nationwide. The individual com
mitments were made to address a
variety of community needs in
cluding:
• Helping a younger person
(17,641 pledges totaling 282,221
hours);
• Improving my community
(14,096 pledges totaling 187,748
hours);
• Helping an older person
(16,723 pledges totaling 178,826
hours);
• Mentoring and tutoring
(8,496 pledges totaling 137,905
hours);
• Building respect and toler
ance (10,165 pledges totaling
136,954 hours);
• Improving the environment
(12,110 pledges totaling 119,333
hours).
Bridgeland described the
“Power of YOUth Pledge” Cam
paign as “an engine of humanity
that can change our country and
the world” and “a great gift to
America.”
4-H Marks
Centennial Anniversary
4-H is sponsoring both the Na
tional Conversation on Youth
Development in the 21st Century
and the “Power of YOUth
Pledge" Campaign to mark its
100th anniversary.
“Rather than erect a monu
ment to ourselves, we decided to
make a gift to America by identi
fying the needs of our commu
nities nationwide and to develop
a youth-led action plan that ad
dresses these needs,” said Donald
T. Floyd Jr., president and CEO
of National 4-H Council. “The
Conversations will identify how
to make America better and the
Power of Youth Pledge Cam
paign will provide some of the re
sources to get the job done.”
4-H is grateful for the generous
donations of its many partners to
support both initiatives; Ameri
can Honda Motor Co., Inc.,
American Income Life Insurance
Co., AOL Time Warner Founda
tion, Best Buy Children’s Foun
dation, Coca-Cola Fountain,
Con Agra Foods, Eastman Kodak
Company, Fleischmann’s Yeast,
General Mills, Inc., Hilton, J.C.
Penney Company, Inc., John
Deere, Kraft Foods North Ameri
ca, Lutheran Brotherhood, Mon
tanto, The Pew Charitable
Trusts, Pioneer Hi-Bred Interna
tional. Inc., Precious Moments,
Sodexho, and USDA Rural
Business Cooperative Services.
“The generous support of our
public and private partners is a
strong indication that America
has heard President Bush’s call
to service loudly and clearly,”
said Floyd.