ADAMS – The largest youth activity program in existence honored its members recently.

Thursday, October 26, 2000

ADAMS – The largest youth activity program in existence honored its members recently.

The year 2000 Mower County 4-H Recognition Banquet filled the fellowship hall Friday at Sacred Heart Catholic Church, Adams.

Nancy Ingvaldson and Amber Graff, advisory board president and vice-president, respectively, were masters of ceremonies and welcomed guests.

The focal point was, of course, the boys and girls, as well as teenagers and young adults, plus adult leaders who serve over 600 youths in Mower County.

"4-H is not just about agriculture," said Ann Walter, a Mower County Extension Service educator who assists the program. "Agriculture is a part of 4-H. We’re the largest youth activity program around with both urban and rural kids participating."

The banquet culminated a year-long schedule of 4-H activities. The annual Mower County Fair in August and Minnesota State Fair in September may attract more attention, but there are also such competitions as the Ak-Sar-Ben Livestock Exposition, the World Dairy Expo and others that challenge 4-Hers.

For one night each October, every Mower County 4-Her enjoys basking in the limelight.

Among the honorees were 59 new junior or first-year leaders plus 11 new adult first-year leaders, who will be counted upon to nurture the 4-H program, according to Walter.

Thirteen new first-year beef exhibitors also were praised by Dave Quinlan, Mower County Extension Service educator.

In addition, seven new first-year swine exhibitors also indicate their livestock-producing parents see the need to bolster the swine exhibitor numbers.

As the number of livestock raised on Mower County farms continues to decline, keeping another generation involved in livestock projects is important, according to Quinlan.

The banquet always has its moments to remember. At this year’s banquet, one of them occurred when Harvey Sathre presented the B.J. Huseby Memorial Ward to the champion dairy exhibitor.

The award went to Cristy Sathre, daughter of Lynn and Jane Sathre, Adams. Harvey Sathre and Cristy Sathre are grandfather and granddaughter and it was Cristy’s second such award. Her older sister won the award, Tracy, won the award in 1995.

The Red Rock Rangers 4-H club may have had the "dirtiest" job at the Mower County Fair, but their performance paid off.

The Red Rock Rangers 4-H club won four of five herdsmanship awards for dairy, sheep, swine and overall. The London Willing Workers 4-H club won the other (beef).

For Justin Morris, son of Mr. and Mrs. Randy Morris and a member of the Telstar 4-H club, this year’s recognition banquet was a melancholy affair.

A top swine exhibitor in previous years, the youth saw his swine entries disqualified this year due to an outbreak of the pseudo rabies virus at the Mower County Fair. He was among 11 exhibitors who suffered the fate.

However, Morris earned two purple swine carcass awards and one blue swine carcass award at the prestigious Ak-Sar-Ben Livestock Exposition and was honored for those accomplishments.

Also, Julie Voigt’s name will go down in Mower County 4-H history.

The daughter of David and Beth Voigt was honored for serving as the 1999-2000 4-H advisory board president: the first youth to hold the position.

This year, the Mower County 4-H program welcomed 87 new members, who, arguably, are thinking about the time when they will cross the stage at the annual recognition banquet and be honored for their contributions to the largest youth activity program.