May 8, 2017 - 5:00pm -- sherman.1473@osu.edu
By Bradford Sherman
OSU Extension - Jackson County

“4-H: Your Ticket To Success” has been selected to serve as the 2017 theme for the Jackson County 4-H Youth Development Program.

The theme was revealed Monday, May 8 by Extension Educator Erin Dailey, following careful consideration by a panel of judges. Dozens of Jackson County 4-H and FFA members participated in a contest to come up with an appropriate theme for 2017; judges sifted through around 40 submissions before crowning a winner.Riley Adkins working with a Market Steer.

“I really do believe that the skillset obtained through 4-H is a ticket to a lifetime of success,” explained Dailey. “It is our hope that, through this theme, our members will celebrate the many skills and successes made possible by their participation in 4-H.”

This year's winning theme, “4-H: Your Ticket To Success,” was submitted by Riley Adkins, a member of the Medallions 4-H Club. She is an eighth grader at Oak Hill Middle/High School and is the daughter of Chad and Samantha Russ.

The theme will play an integral part in this year's Jackson County Fair, Dailey added.

“It will be featured on the front of the fair book, and all our club booths are designed with that theme in mind,” she said. “A lot of the activities throughout the week of the fair will follow along with that theme. This year’s theme, I think, will give them some terrific options.”

This past year, the Jackson County 4-H program reached 652 4-H members and Cloverbud youth in the county who took 1,148 4-H projects through 34 community clubs. Through these experiences, youth learned leadership, citizenship and life skills, as well as specific subject matter materials. These youth were directly impacted by 101 adult volunteers who exhibited the value of volunteerism and provided youth with a positive relationship with a caring adult.

The programs that take place through the Ohio State University Extension Office and the Jackson County 4-H Youth Development program are very diverse and reach numerous people in all walks of life. 4-H programming is about much more than the traditional stereotype of livestock and home economics projects. There are more than 200 4-H projects to choose from with projects ranging from electricity to theater arts and everything in between.