4-H groups show projects at Southern Iowa Fair

By WES KAPPELMAN
The Oskaloosa Herald

OSKALOOSA July 23, 2008 12:56 pm

— The Southern Iowa Fair means its time for 4-H members to show their horses, pigs, photography and other projects.
Renee Ferguson, a 4-H leader for Adams Champs, said in addition to coaching and mentoring kids, the group also holds cookouts and pizza parties, in addition to community service projects.
Adams Champs has 53 kids that compete in the gamut of 4-H events.
“We go from cattle to rabbits,” Jenny Edmundson said. “We have something for everybody.”
Edmundson said it can take anywhere from a week for a non-livestock event to several months to prepare for the fair.
Her daughter, Samantha Edmundson, will show in visual arts, food and nutrition, sheep and cattle. Edmundson, 11, said she probably like visual arts the best. She said her project took between three and four weeks of work.
Her favorite part of being in 4-H is playing with the animals. With her several projects, she figured she had been preparing for the fair for six months.
“The fair is really fun,” Samantha said.
Amy Griffin, 11, also in Adams Champs, is showing a bucket-bottle calf, a breeding heifer, a horse and carcass beef.
This is her second year in 4-H. Her brother, Scott, has been in 4-H for eight years.
Phil Griffin, Amy and Scott’s father, said 4-H teaches kids responsibility. With the calf, Amy had to feed the animal three times a day and take care of the animal. He said the bucket-bottle competition teaches kids how to grow and nurture animals, while other competitions focus more on showmanship.
Jacque Griffin, the two’s mother, enjoys the bucket-bottle calf competition.
“They’re little and they’re fun, they’re more like a pet,” Jacque said.
Jacque said the 4-H leaders do a good job of teaching the kids. During their meetings, kids also learn parliamentary procedure and help plan can drives and other community events.
Their son, Scott, had shown pigs for several years at the fair. This year, Scott’s last year to compete, Scott participated in the carcass beef competition.
Another Adams Champs member, Cody Foster, 16, is showing sheep, poultry, meat goods and photography. He explained that competing in several events is a balancing act.
“You just have to balance how you’re going to do everything,” Foster said. “It’s a lot of work, but it’s worth it.”
All the hard work pays off though, especially when a project gets selected to go to the state fair. Foster’s picture of a longhorn bull eating an ear of corn was selected to show at the Iowa State Fair.
“It’s fun to do, especially when you get to the fair. It’s the funnest time of the year,” Foster said.
Herald staff writer Wes Kappelman can be reached by e-mail at news2@oskyherald.com

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