Codie Yasieniuk of Hafford and Anna Verbonac of Marcelin were two of the 10 Saskatchewan 4-H members selected to travel to Montreal in September to attend the national 4-H conference.
Codie is a member of the Reining Riders 4-H Club and Anna is a member of the Crown Hill 4-H Club.
Applications from across Saskatchewan were submitted to the Saskatchewan 4-H association and, from those, 10 individuals were selected to attend the conference from Sept. 19 to 24.
A flag ceremony was held at the start of the conference as well as at the closing.
Ten 4-Hers were chosen from each province to attend the event whose theme was Destination Communication. A number of guest speakers were slated to address the youth discussing the value of effective communication skills among leadership.
This year the national conference provided opportunities for the youth to participate in a number of tours including visiting Pointe a Calliere, an old Montreal museum; science centre where groups made videos; an apple orchard where visitors were encouraged to sample a number of products derived from apple such as apple salsa, an apple condiment similar to ketchup, and apple cider; a tour of a goat farm resulted in the sampling of goat milk and goat cheese which the girls were not fond of and there was a tour of a CBC Radio station emphasizing the communication theme.
There were agricultural focused sessions for individuals to share their own 4-H experience and learn from others.
Another highlight of the trip was the Ghostwalk, where participants were provided with a map of the city labelling various historic attractions to visit. At each site the guests were enlightened with stories and legends of the unusual and supernatural combined with fun and factual history of Montreal city.
Conference attendees shared hotel rooms with fellow 4-Hers from across the country. Shared accommodations enhanced the girls' ability to make friendships and network with other groups from across the country.
"We made some friendships with not only the 4-Hers from other parts of the country but also from 4-H groups within Saskatchewan," said Codie. Anna agreed that sharing accommodations was a great experience.
Socials were held in the evenings for the members. It was an opportunity to visit, make friendships and, according to Anna and Codie, learn new dances such as square dances and country dances. The girls observed there were few male members attending the event and commented that they will encourage the male members to apply as "it was an incredible experience."
The girls had a mascot, Harold the Hare, that went with them throughout the course of the event. Upon preparing for departure, Harold was given to a 4-H member from Quebec.
The trip included a number of first-time events for Codie and Anna. First subway ride, first taste of goat cheese, first trip to historical Montreal, first taste of authentic Canadian poutine and, for Codie, it was the first taste of gelato, a delicious dessert made from milk, cream and a variety of sugars and flavours, and for Anna, a first airplane ride.
It was a lifetime experience, says Anna who highly recommends the experience to any 4-Her.
Codie encourages others to 'go make an experience'.
"You have to look for opportunities to do things and go places," says Codie, explaining there are many opportunities on the 4-H website. One just has to look for them. "There are so many opportunities for 4-H members to travel; they just have to apply/submit applications," Codie adds.
The national 4-H conference is the premier professional and leadership development event for 4-H members aged 16 to 25 years who are actively engaged in 4-H programs across Canada and its territories.
The website indicates the national 4-H conference is the pinnacle experience in 4-H citizenship, providing an opportunity for young people to connect, learn, engage, lead and impact their communities, their nation and the world.
