Justin Crowe, 4-H Director and State Program Leader

As you might have seen from my social media, I am traveling with a group of college students to Botswana, Africa to work with school children on positive youth development activities. On our journey to Gaborone, Botswana we had a relatively long layover in Paris, France so the group decided to take in the Eifel Tower and the Lourve to experience Parisian culture. 

This reminded me of so many times when I was so focused on getting to a 4-H conference, an activity, or a contest that I sometimes forgot about the experiences in between. It’s not only about the contest or the awards program at the end but the road that got you there. The layover if you will. It’s about the long car rides traveling with teenagers as you laugh and tell stories. It’s about the late nights at the Extension office conducting judging team practices to get ready for the state contest. It’s about all of those experiences that get us there, that get us to the end results that are equally as important as that end result. So as you are thinking about your 4-H members and all the experiences you provide them, don’t forget to also enjoy the layover. 

Have a great week, Thanks for what you do.