Justin Crowe, 4-H Director and State Program Leader

In 4-H, we work a lot of nights and weekends. Our 4-H program assistants and agents, along with our regional and state staff, give up lots of time to invest in our state’s youth. This past weekend, I had the pleasure of seeing some of that in action. The Southern Region 4-H Teen Leadership Conference, SRTLC, had to be postponed from fall 2021. The event was held this past week. With a mix of snow, rain, and 300 teens and adults from across the southern region, this conference was like all the previous SRTLC events – AMAZING! I enjoyed bringing greetings on Thursday night and seeing some of the activities in action. In my strong opinion, anytime you have 300 or so teenagers in the same room, it’s a recipe for selflessness, caring, and fun!

From there, I traveled to Atlanta to participate in the National 4-H Congress Design Team meeting. State 4-H Council President Jim Jenkins serves with me on that committee. We worked on the 2022 National 4-H Congress and are working, along with the team, on ways that we can ensure that this coming year is the best yet.

I get it. It’s one more weekend! It’s 3-4 more days away from home. It’s not always easy, and it’s not necessarily always fun, but it is rewarding. It’s exciting to see young people with a level of excitement that is second to none. So, from the bottom of my heart, thanks for what you do to make these events and the MANY, MANY others a success! Each of you give tirelessly and, for that, I am thankful for each of you.