And I'm Off

Every day, people ask me if I an nervous about basic training or the air force, and I always tell them the same thing; "Not really.'' I've just been so anxious to finally get in all these years, that the idea just isn't really that intimidating anymore. The only thing I have really been nervous about, is the Texas heat. I have never been particularly fond, of the humid summers here in Pennsylvania, Texas is in a whole new heat index! But I look forward to a change of scenery every now and then, and I'm particularly excited for my tech school, where I am going for Security Forces training. As of right now I'm planning on becoming a law enforcement officer after I get out of the service, but I might just end up staying until I am qualified for retirement! I'm not too worried about deciding what I want to do when I get, because I have four years to decide on that.

Thanks for reading, and God Bless.

Seth Jones, VP of IA

Memories

The month of June flew by right before my very eyes. State Days is right around the corner and my final year of 4-H is slowly coming to an end. I did enjoy my last year of camp this past week. I was the team leader of Phineas and Ferb, and it was an amazing experience. We all became a large family and had so much fun playing games, singing songs, and line dancing. As the week ended it hit me hard knowing that it was my last year, as a camp counselor, but I know I will always keep the fun memories in the back of my mind. As I move forward in my life I do have a few things left to look forward for the rest of the 4-H year. Those thing are my county fair which I am very excited about, and State Achievement days which will be a bitter sweet event to go to. State Days is the last time our State Council will be together and we will be inducting the new council. It will be sad to say goodbye to everyone and give up our positions, but it will be great to see the smiles on the new peoples faces as they get inducted. As a council we worked hard together and made it through a lot. We all did a job well done, and good luck to the new applicants for council, because this experience is a once and a life time opportunity.
State Council Secretary
~Samantha Gstalder~

Put on your seatbelt!

Too many times in life it is commonly mistaken that things always get easier towards the end of your assigned task, assigned duty, etc. However as the months continued to disappear and now having not even a full month waiting ahead the path has just had a few move bridges to cross.
The past month has left before we were even ready for it to begin. Summer is also now truly here. The pools, the friends, the fairs, and yes who could ever forget to mention those summer jobs that aways accompany summer. If anything the time has began to slip away even quicker instead of slowing down. July is here and that means our exchange trip to the Great State of Tennessee and then returning to the Keystone State to MC the 2011 PA State 4-H Achievement Days. Not just have the last 335 days been unforgettable, life changing, and even sometimes challenging but nonetheless I know that the last 28 days I have no fear will be all of that and so much more.
There are so many events and challenges that we try to prepare ourselves for as young adults becoming adults. We prepare to walk across the stage and receive our High School diploma, move away to college, a full time job, and even aging out of those youth organizations that got you to where you are today. We can prepare and prepare and prepare yet once those days come and we must give up the known to walk into the unknown we have to remind ourselves that the journey ahead will only broaden your horizon. I personally thought leaving high school and moving onto college was going to difficult but that was only the preparation for what I am going to feel and experience at the end of July. No longer being a traditional member of an organization that has help me to obtain so many accomplishments, built so many friendships and has created endless opportunities that continuously raise you above others.
This last month is going to be far from easy but I know it will be one of the most memorable months of life. Team, we could have never made it this far without each other. THANKS! You each have helped to make this a journey of a lifetime.

Your 2010 - 2011 Pa State 4-H Council President,
Logan Hall

Miss You In The Heartbeat

As I look back on the time I have had this year I can not believe it is already gone and I wish I could slow down the clock. I think they should change the name from council to family, becuase that's what we have come to be and we have overcame some of the obstacles that a family has to overcome to become one and thats what we have done in the last year. We all have our own identity but we can come together and form something that  becomes one and that is something of greatness and something that is hard to explain in words but that you have to experience for yourself. As the title says, it comes from a song def leppard wrote before they all went on there final tour and thats how I feel. As we all will go our seperate ways after we leave the stage I grant the best of luck to the ones that take our place and as we leave we all think it happened so fast this past year it was as if it was just one heartbeat and we will all miss it and wish we could go back and make it last longer but if you look to the past, you might miss the future that lies ahead for us all.

Thanks and God Bless,
Jonathan Yoder  Reporter/Historian

FUNd 4 YOUth

A few weeks ago, Crawford County had our annual FUNd 4 YOUth auction, where 100% of the proceeds go to Crawford County 4H. While attendance was down this year, we did in fact receive a thousand dollars more than last year! We are so grateful for all the local businesses and individuals that donated items and took the time to come out and bid on items. Even though my 4H career is rapidly coming to a close, I'm glad knowing that we have so many supporters in Crawford County, and I hope that 4H is around for many more years.

God Bless

Seth.

As the time ticks away

As the time ticks away I have realized I am a senior! WOW a senior it hits you from out of no where! I look at my past year and I have had so many giant accomplishments. My last year has been like a crazy dream that I'm so close to waking up from! The last few months of my dream will be filled with exciting adventures and memories that I will forever hold near and dear to my heart. My last few adventures will include a trip to TN with my great council friends and advisors and also state days. My fellow council members and my advisors are amazing people that I'm so grateful for. They have become my support system but not only a support system when I'm down they pick me up. When I need a laugh they make me laugh. They help me out as much as they can with whatever they can. The past week has been a rough one and my fellow members and ad visors were very understanding. I'm so thankful to have had the opportunities to meet such amazing people. And as the time ticks away the end will be bitter sweet. I will be very upset to be finished with council but ready to move on to the next big challenge in front of me.

TWO MONTHS! SLOW DOWN!

Summer has arrived! My freshman year in college has officially come to a close and summer has begun. The rumor that summer consist of relaxation is pretty much a myth. I have continued to stay busy with 4-H council duties as well as working summer jobs. However, if I had nothing to do I would be bored to no extreme. I know that all of the hard work pays off in the end and as the council year has two months remaining. Getting the chance to make trail mix at Fox Chase Farm near Philadelphia during Farm Table Day was a great way to give back and work with kids. Working with our younger youth is one of the most rewarding opportunities, they are our future. It is our duty as older youth and adults to help equip them with the skills to excel and succeed in life. Now that summer is here the month has done nothing but gone by faster, June is here.
As my last 4-H summer takes it's stance I know each event and each memory will be everlasting. I am going to miss raising my summer 4-H projects for the 4-H Round Up. The time spent and the hard work that is put into each animal to have them at their best quality for fair and round up. I know the month of July and August will bring bitter sweet moments but each one will build memories that will be with me forever.
Looking ahead these next two months are going to be filled with events and activities that build the bonds closer and bring each one of us together even more.

Soak Up The Sun!

Your Council President,
Logan Hall

Ride of a Life Time

May was a crazy month for me, from start to finish! The first week of May was Capital Days which just happened to be the same week as my finals at college, so there was a lot of pressure. Then after school was out I had a one day break because it was time to start working on my 240 hours for my internship and my minimester of summer school would begin. The class I took over the minimester was speech. The class was four days a week, for three weeks, and was 4 hours a night. The speech class was surprisingly a lot of fun. Fourteen complete strangers and I went to this class every night. As I went to class I learned something new about these people (probably more then we ever wanted to know), by playing icebreakers. We also did a group assignment, which again was a lot of fun. By the end of the class, I was actually very sad, because those strangers I met the first day are now my friends for life. The very last class the teacher set us in a circle and she gave us all a possible bag. It was a bag filled with quotes, ways to succeed in life, and the famous poem written by Robert Frost called The Road Not Taken. There are two quotes I received that I would like to share with everyone.


"Remember that there is no thrill in easy sailing when the skies are clear and blue; there is no joy in merely doing things which anyone can do. But there is some satisfaction that is mighty sweet to take when you reach a destination that you thought you would never make."


The second quote is...


"Each of us has twenty four hours a day and seven days a week. Time is available as an equal opportunity for everyone. Each of us just perceives time in a different way."


I know what these quotes mean to me but as you all are sitting here reading this think about what they mean to you.


Now that speech class is over which was a bittersweet experience for me I will take all those life skills I learned and will carry the memories I shared with those people forever. Speech class and work pretty much wiped out the whole month of May, but I did plan one more thing on the last Day. I actually got to go to the Montgomery school district, and give about an hour presentation to three Fourth grade classes. I talked to them about 4-H and and all the projects offered through the program. It was so great to see all the excited kids and how interested they seemed. I enjoyed my time with them and they all seemed to enjoy it too. Now that May is over I hope June will be just as fun and exciting as May was.


State Council Secretary


~Samantha Gstalder~

Busy Times Ahead!

Well summer is finally here after all of the crazy rain we have had lately. This means that this school year is coming to an end, which is kind of bittersweet because I had a really great year. I had classes with all my friends and didn't have any teachers that I didn't really like. But also with school out I can just call up a friend and hang out and not worry about any test or papers. May, as a 4-Her, has been pretty uneventful. But the next upcoming months are going to be packed full as I have camp, Tennessee, State Days, and hopefully our council get together. Outside of 4-H I will be very busy also because my family and I are going to Virginia Beach and Harrisburg and my sister is following in my footsteps and becoming an exchange student and heading to Italy for three weeks this summer with a short term exchange through Rotary. Also in the mix of that I have just a few soccer games left, and before you know it, school will be back and hopefully as good as this year has been. At State Days the new council will be brought in and our terms will be brought to an end. But something that I will never forget are the wonderful people and experiences that council gave me. It has been life changing and I wish everyone had the chance to do it. I would like to thank the other council members and our advisors for a year that I wouldn't change if I could. I became great friends with all of you and will miss you very much after this year.

Here Comes Summer!

WoooHoooooo summer is finally here but truly this summer will be a little bittersweet because it means my time is up with the State council and I will have to say goodbye to a group of friends that now have become a family to me and a part of my life. But on the positive side I have no homework or papers due and no more teachers and I can sit back a relax, just a little. As a write this I am thinking that I only have two more to write its kind of sad because I enjoy writing these blogs and it's my way of communicating to the people I may have or may not have meant yet, but I hope someday to meet. I guess  I know how Oprah felt counting down to her finale and how that must have felt. I just wish that every 4-Her had the time of their life like I have had the chance of experiencing these past months and how fast they have went by. This has truly been a life changing experience for me. So I hope ya'll have a wonderful Summer and enjoy every minute of it and live it to its fullest.
Sincerely,
Jonathan Yoder 2010/2011 Historian/ Reporter

Senioritis

At this moment in time I can feel the full effect of what many teachers and students at Maplewood High School call "senioritis"

Senioritis strikes most (99.9%) high school seniors around the mid point of their senior year, but can begin as early as 10th grade. I began experiencing the full effects of senioritis approximately two weeks ago, when my recruiter called and told me I had gotten my requested job in the Air Force. This was the only remaining concern I had about my near future, and once that had been put to rest, I decided it was time to just coast the remaining few weeks.

I've realized, the school can actually be an enjoyable place when you don't have to worry about studying for tests and doing homework. I have been lucky enough to have a study hall during an advanced foods class, and have decided to assimilate into that, so that I can work on my cullinary skills and not be completely unproductive.

May has been a pretty uneventful month for this 4-Her.

God Bless

Summer is near!!

As summer nears our schedules get busier. The council kids will all be doing there own thing coming together for are last few council events. The council has a trip to Tennessee planned and are all very excited to be heading there in July. After returning from TN we will be off to state days for our last big event. I will never forget the many incredible memories I have made while being part of such an incredible team. The council returned from capital days this month. As I was packing my bag to head out to the event that I had never attended before I was truly nervous. I was worried my parli pro skills would not be as good as they needed to and I had heard from previous council members that capital days could be a hard and trying 4 days but I found it truly enjoyable. The time i spent with my friends and the government officials was very exciting. This could be because I truly enjoy how our government works. So as summer nears and our schedules get busier we will all continue to enjoy our time left on council and our time left together as such an amazing team.


Echo Kincaid
Your State Council VPO