Hannah Swanson of Westford was awarded the 1^st place Kent Lage Leadership Award for 2023. Hannah will attend McGill University in Montreal in the fall.

Hannah currently serves as the President of the Stoneybrook 4-H Saddle Club. She has shown her horse at the Middlesex County 4-H Fair and for the fairgrounds’ show series. She also has participated in the Eastern National 4-H Horse Roundup in Kentucky in both Horse Bowl and Communications. She will represent the Hippology team for the Roundup in 2023.

Hannah contributed to planning horse shows and a recent horse clinic as the youth representative to the Middlesex Horse Advisory Council.

In addition to her 4-H activities, Hannah plays the violin and viola in her school orchestra and teaches violin to four students. She also participated in her school’s Nordic ski team this past winter.

 

Ella Griswold, a resident of Hingham, is the 2^nd place recipient of the Kent Lage Leadership Award. Ella plans to attend Purchase College, State University of New York and major in Theater Design, Technology & Management.

Ella has been involved in A Round of A-Paws 4-H Club  for the past eight years, serving as President, Secretary and Treasurer. In the club, she participated in dog obedience, agility, and safety activities.

Ella has shown her dog, a Bernese Mountain/Poodle mix, at the Marshfield and East Middleboro Fairs. She also taught “Dog Breed Bingo” at the 4-H Winter Workshops and attended the 4-H National Conference in 2022.

Outside of 4-H, Ella has built sets and stage-managed theater productions, both at Hingham High School and Company Theater in Norwell. She also skis for her school’s ski team.

 

 

The Bill that could be Law 

Margaret Turpel from Essex County is a 4-H youth member who has gathered research and reached out to her representatives to file a bill that will put 4-H on equal footing with school sports and clubs. If this bill were passed into law, 4-H students will have the same consideration that student-athletes and club members get when absent for school-authorized activities such as games and field trips. Watch this video of Margaret talking about the bill here.  We are asking you to contact your state representative to be aware of the bill and to sign on as a co-sponsor. Keep reading to learn how you can take action now!

Why is this important? 

Share your story! The 4-H program is a local program that provides national opportunities. It is a research-based experience that includes mentors, hands-on projects, and meaningful leadership opportunities. In 4‑H programs, youth complete hands-on projects in areas like health, science, agriculture and civic engagement in a positive environment where they receive guidance from adult mentors and are encouraged to take on leadership roles. Kids experience 4‑H in every county and community in Massachusetts through in-school and after-school programs, school and community clubs and 4‑H camps. 

Take Action 

The most important outreach for this legislation will come from 4-H youth to their State Representatives. Exercise your ability to advocate and understand the legislative process. The best approach is for youth to personalize the draft letter below and share their projects, career development skills and knowledge gained from the 4-H program.  

Connect! 

To connect with your State Senate and House Representatives click through the link below and type in your home address: https://malegislature.gov/Search/FindMyLegislator.   

Also connect with the State Senate and House Representatives that are on the Joint Committee on Education: https://malegislature.gov/Committees/Detail/J14/192 

Follow the progress on this bill here: https://malegislature.gov/Bills/193/HD651

 

You can use this draft language for your email or letter and add your own 4-H experience to your Representative:  

Dear Representative ________, 

I am contacting you to request that you co-sponsor House Docket 651 filed on 1/16/23 by Josh Cutler- (Pembroke) Plymouth District 6 and Paul Schmid- (Westport) Bristol District 8. 

If passed, this bill would give students participating in 4-H the same consideration that student-athletes and school club members get when absent for school-authorized activities such as games and field trips. 

Share 1-2 sentences about how the 4-H program has made an impact on you. You can also use some of the information below and edit it to share about the 4-H program.

Your support is important to me and the success of the 4-H program! Youth who participate in 4-H are provided incredible opportunities to put their education in action by participating in local and national trips like National 4-H Conference held annually in Washington, D.C, National 4-H Congress held annually in Atlanta, GA, National 4-H Horse Round Up, 4-H Agriculture Day at the Massachusetts State House, the Eastern States Exposition where they showcase their projects, and so much more.

Thank you! I appreciate your support! 

Sincerely, 

… 

The Marshfield Fair bustled with activity from August 19^th-28^th. Plymouth County 4-H showed their dairy cattle, beef cattle, and goats, offering activities for children and families each day of the fair.

4-H also participated in the Big E, held from September 16-October 2. 4-Hers shined in Visual Presentations.

The Berkshire County 4-H Fun Day and Youth Fair celebrated its 80^th anniversary this year! Activities included animal demonstrations, dance performances, a craft fair, STEM demonstrations, and a goat milking contest.

The Massachusetts 4-H Foundation’s Board of Trustees has elected three new trustees and one new corporator for the 2022-23 year at its Annual Meeting held on May 10, 2022. Phil Trotter, Lindsey Larson, and Dr. Carey Leckie were elected as trustees, and John Lindquist was elected as a corporator.

Phil Trotter is a retired healthcare executive and built the claims operations department at Multigroup Healthplan (later Harvard Community Health Plan). Phil also held leadership positions at Healthcare Administrative Partners and Dedham Medical Associates. He completed his professional career as the Director of Revenue Cycle at Massachusetts Eye & Ear. Phil has served on the Board of Trustees for the Walker School, Big Brother Big Sister, and Friends of the Council on Aging in Dover. He has a strong interest in advancing opportunities for children in underserved populations throughout Boston.

 

Lindsey K. Larson works as an Economist in the Agricultural and Food Global Practice of the World Bank. Her interest in sustainable agriculture began in the Massachusetts 4-H Program, where she raised prizewinning dahlias as a member of the Flora, Fauna, and Feathers Club. After graduating with her BA from Dartmouth College, she worked for the National Geographic Society and World Wildlife Fund.

Lindsey earned both her Master’s of Environmental Management and MBA from Yale University. She worked in sustainable finance before joining the World Bank in 2019. Lindsey is a Social Entrepreneurship Fellow at the Jacobs Foundation, Lindsey serves on the Board of Restore Mass Ave, the Board of Advisors of the Northern Rockies Conservation Cooperative, and the Grants Advisory Committee of the We Mean Business Coalition.

 

Dr. Carey Leckie OT, OTD, OTR, CHT is an Occupational Therapist/Certified Hand Therapist currently employed as an associate academic fieldwork coordinator at Springfield College. As the leader of the K-9 Wizards 4-H Dog Club, she works with youth aged 5-19 to foster skills in leadership, public speaking, and emotional intelligence, while providing opportunities for members to improve dog knowledge and skills with their canine partners.

 

 

John Lindquist lives in Upton and is the owner of Lindquist Electric. He and his wife also run Town Line Farm, where they sell grass-fed beef, pasture-raised chicken, pork and lamb, seasonal
vegetables, and local products such as milk, honey, and maple syrup. A longtime supporter of the
Shirley Kane Memorial Golf Tournament, he loves 4-H and is happy to join as a Corporator.

 

 

4-H Alumna Lindsey Larson shares her experiences working at the World Bank

Many years ago, 4-H alumna Lindsey Larson came to the realization that it was important to promote the dignity of farmers. This belief drew her to a successful career in conservation and sustainable finance, in which people make investments with the intention of generating positive social and environmental impact along with a financial return, such as by promoting farming.

Lindsey’s experience eventually led her to the World Bank, where she works as an Economist in the Agriculture and Food Global Practice, connecting the concepts of healthy economy, healthy planet, and healthy people.  This past summer, Lindsey met with 4-H members and staff via Zoom as part of Massachusetts 4-H’s Career Exploration series.

The World Bank was founded in 1944 at the Bretton Woods Conference following World War II, Lindsey explained to the Zoom attendees.  As the largest development bank in the world, the World Bank works today to alleviate global poverty and promote shared prosperity throughout the world.

In her unit that manages $20 billion in projects worldwide, Lindsey works on two major initiatives. Through the Food Systems, Land Use and Restoration Impact Program, she supports projects that promote sustainable production of food and commodities such as coffee, cocoa, corn, and others.  She also leads an initiative called “Enabling the Business of Agriculture,” which analyzes how “friendly” countries are to their farmers and ranks them accordingly.

Farmers can often be vulnerable, relying on unpredictable harvests as their primary source of income, Lindsey explained. Farmers who want to transition to new, sustainable production practices often face large, upfront investments. While farmers in developing countries can get loans, the interest rates are often sky-high.

The World Bank develops solutions to reduce the uncertainties of the farming profession by addressing systemic risks (for example, creating insurance for crops ruined by bad weather) and focusing on ways to reduce costs in financing smallholder farms. These efforts support commercial banks in offering loans to farmers at reasonable rates.

According to Lindsey, the World Bank also supports access to data, such as statistics for weather monitoring. “There are increasingly better tools today, which lead to better data, which should lead to better decisions,” explained Lindsey.

Working toward such important goals can come with tricky moments. “It’s really difficult work,” explained Lindsey. “You may have a goal that seems simple and altruistic, but when you get into the weeds of these projects, things come up that you never thought of.” Much of the World Bank’s initiatives, said Lindsey, succeed by changing behavior in developing countries. “You have to get the right decisionmaker’s interest captured,” noted Angelica Paredes, 4-H Educator.

Lindsey’s decisions took root in her childhood, when she was an enthusiastic member of the Flora, Fauna and Feathers Club in Topsfield. She spent about 8 years in 4-H, showing Heritage breeds of poultry and growing up to 200 dahlias per year. In addition to wonderful memories, 4-H provided Lindsey with attributes that would serve her in good stead throughout her life, including confidence in her passions, as well as leadership and interpersonal skills. “4-H left me with a lot of lifelong skills and an appreciation for the natural world.”Lindsey urged 4-Hers to keep an open mind by listening and learning from others. She recommended they seek help from potential mentors. “Send emails asking for informational interviews and develop relationships,” advised Lindsey. “You never know where that connection might lead. Say yes to every opportunity, and build your network.”

Most importantly, Lindsey encouraged the young people to dream big about their future vocations, as she once did. “Think about your vision for the world…I’ve always been interested in agriculture due to the environmental impact, and to promote the value of human dignity. The decisions I make in my job make a huge difference toward those things.”