Retlaw 4-H brimming with activity

PUBLIC SPEAKING: Retlaw Prairie 4-H Beef Club held its communications competition at Vauxhall Elementary School, which saw junior, intermediate and senior speeches and presentations. ADVANCE PHOTO SUBMITTED BY RETLAW PRAIRIE 4-H BEEF CLUB

By Chelsey Mills
Retlaw Prairie 4-H Beef Club Reporter

It’s been a very busy time of year for our members.

Our beef members had their calf tour on Jan. 19. We travelled to all the farms and looked at everyone’s 4-H calves. Our calves are looking great and progress is being made on the halter breaking.

Our tour ended at the Mills farm and the weather co-operated nicely, so we were able to have a hot dog roast, camp fire and a few sled rides with the toboggan being pulled by the quad. It was a fun little party, and it was nice to have all the beef members together.

Our communications competition was held on Feb. 7 at Vauxhall Elementary School. We started the evening with a potluck supper and then the competition started at 6 p.m. Our audience was very entertained by all the speeches, impromptus and presentations. Our junior and intermediate results came down to tie breakers, so the competition was stiff.

Junior Speeches: 1st Place: Blaise Odland – An Epic Game; 2nd Place: Torynn Plumb – Fiasco; 3rd Place: Christopher Mills – What Was I Thinking?

Junior Presentations: 1st Place: Ella Odland – Blades of Glory; 2nd Place: Sienna Howg – Sand Art; 3rd Place: Katherine Delanoy – Party Planning 101.

Intermediate Speeches 1st Place: Megan West – Family; 2nd Place: Kalley Howg – Decisions, Decisions; 3rd Place: Chase Plumb – If I Were a Superhero.

Intermediate Presentations: 1st Place: Vane Ferguson – Two Wraps and a Hooey; 2nd Place: Marie Wetherelt – Volleyball; 3rd Place: Emery Wetherelt – Paintball.

Senior Speeches: 1st Place: Chelsey Mills – What Should I Be Doing?; 2nd Place: Cody McClelland – Health; 3rd Place: Jackson Wetherelt – Sixteen.

Senior Presentations: 1st Place: Jessie Ferguson.

Thank you to all our judges who gave up an evening to help us out and thank you to Vauxhall Elementary for the use of the school. Our club greatly appreciates your support. First-place winners will continue on to the Taber District Communications Competition on March 2 at 9:30 a.m. at Barnwell School. Good luck to all our competitors. If our members place first or second at districts, they will then compete at the Southern Alberta 4-H Regional Speak-offs at Lethbridge College on March 16.

Our members will be clearing dishes at an upcoming wedding and we will be completing a community-service project by clearing dishes and cleaning up after the Vauxhall Academy of Baseball Banquet. We have a few more community-service projects planned before the end of the club year, so we will be busy with that.

Many of our members are attending Snowfest, Feb. 19 -22 at Elkwater. Snowfest is a skiing winter camp and our members always have the best time. The camp is for junior and intermediate members and many of our senior members help by counselling the camp. It is always so much fun and everyone looks forward to it.

Our pheasant project has ordered their birds and our club will be raising 300 birds for release. The birds will be arriving in May.

Many of our sheep project members have been busy with lambing. We are just at the tail end of our 4-H ewes lambing. We’ve had some pretty cute lambs being born.

Our horse project has been very busy with their rides. Their January ride included making dream catchers. The weather turned cold and the February ride was cancelled because it was just too cold to travel with the horses in the trailers. Their ride will be rescheduled for a later date.

Our next meeting will be March 4 in Vauxhall.