Dozens of White County’s best and brightest youngsters are putting final touches on an assortment of projects in advance of the annual White County 4-H Fair. In actuality, it’s already underway as the Dog, Cat, & Small Pet Show was held on June 27th. The bulk of the 4-H Fair is still to come however July 5th – 8th with a July 10th kicker. About a dozen of the 140 members representing six active clubs who will exhibit more than 800 projects dropped in Kiwanis Thursday to show off some of their work.
Hunter Cronje was back again this year. 364 days ago, he was at Kiwanis to talk about the importance of hunting. Thursday, he expanded on the same topic that has taken him to state last year and this year as well.
Imagine…you grew lots of pumpkins on your farm. And then a bunch of deer destroy all those pumpkins while you’re eating at your favorite restaurant. To make matters worse, on your way home, a big buck jumps in front of your truck and wrecks it. My name is Hunter and we have a whitetail deer problem. Today, I’ll talk about the population increase, health hazards, and also the problems farmers face on a daily basis. The deer population is booming due to two major factors…
Also back for a second year in a row were Hadley Williams and Holly Hays. Last year, they took a sketch to state that featured the kids in a weekend update broadcast format. This year, the pair tackled a humorous debate on whether animal projects or craft projects were better.
University of Illinois Extension coordinator Amy McCarty says all exhibits will be evaluated using conference style judging, a process she says is becoming less common.
During conference judging, members display their projects, visit one-on-one with a judge, explain what they learned, and answer questions about their work. They then receive a rating based on both the quality of the project and their interview. Every member strives to earn a Best of Show award, be selected as a state fair delegate, or receive a Grand Champion honor.
Read more and see the schedule at White County 4-H Fair Kicks Off Saturday; Runs Through July 10th – WRUL-FM