SALISBURY — More than 500 4-H members, volunteers, family members and N.C. Cooperative Extension staff from 19 area counties attended the annual South Central 4-H District Activity Day held May 3 at Gaston College in Denver. The top two winners in each age division and category for their respective county competed at this event.
Public speaking is a common fear among adults. 4-H District Activity Day gives youth the opportunity to practice public speaking and presentation skills. The day began with presentation and public speaking contests, as well as 4-H Entertains. 4-H presentation and public speaking contests aid youth in learning how to research a subject, organize ideas and practice public speaking and communication skills.
The 4-H Entertains program is a showcase of talent. 4-H’ers perform on stage in front of judges that critique their performance. Four acts were selected to perform during the awards assembly. All acts have the potential of being selected to perform at State 4-H Congress in Raleigh in June. A science fair was also held this year for youth.
Participating from Rowan County were Micah Furr, Nathan Gobble, Savanah Hipp, Hunter Lund, Sam Oster, Brooke Rose and Hailey Ziegelhofer. Gobble, Rose and Ziegelhofer competed in the 9-10 year old Electric, Small & Companion Animals and Horse categories, respectively. Gobble and Ziegelhofer earned gold medals, and Rose earned a bronze medal for their presentations.
In the 11-13 age division, Lund earned a gold medal in the Citizenship & Community Service category and Oster won a bronze medal in the Open Class category. Hipp earned a gold medal in the 14-18 Poultry category. In the 14-18 Public Speaking category, Furr earned a silver medal.
Gobble participated in 4-H Entertains. He played a clarinet solo and won a blue ribbon for his performance. Oster entered the Science Fair with his project, “Wood versus Aluminum,” and won a gold medal in the 11-13-year-old age division.
At the awards ceremony each year, pins are given to those who are participating at the district level contest for the first time. Rowan County 4-H had four first time presenters — Furr, Gobble, Lund and Rose.
Rowan County Cooperative Extension is also asked to provide judges for the contest. Judging the Beef and Pork Char-Grill categories were Carolyn Kluttz, Becky Lyerly and Vivian Ray. Providing feedback in the Cloverbud category were Penny Collins and Laura Vella. Cloverbuds are 4-H members who are 5 to 8 years old. All Cloverbuds receive feedback and a participation ribbon.

For more information concerning 4-H opportunities, contact Sara Drake, 4-H Extension agent, at sara_drake@ncsu.edu or at 704-216-8970. For more information about N.C. Cooperative Extension, call the Rowan Extension Office at 704-216-8970, or visit http://rowan.ces.ncsu.edu.