Vegreville 4-H Beef Club Members Give their Hands to Larger Service

Vegreville 4-H Beef Club Members Give their Hands to Larger Service

Michelle Pinon - News Advertiser

My hands to larger service is one part of the 4-H motto, and it is exemplified in many different ways at the national, provincial and local level.

Members of the Vegreville 4-H Beef Club recently exemplified this by volunteering to serve lunch during a spring training clinic at Rocky Mountain Equipment in Vegreville.

“4-H, I believe is amazing in every aspect,” says Leader Kelly Weleschuk. 4-H Canada has been in existence for more than 100 years and has over 23,500 members and 8,500 volunteers.

“It teaches the kids work ethic because they have to get out there and feed those steers. My children feed them morning and night. You have to halter break them, and get them ready for achievement day which includes washing them, grooming them and clipping them.

Vegreville 4-H Beef Club members with several Rocky Mountain Equipment employees. Pictured from L-R: David Sen, Kristin Ogrodnick, Cody Weleschuk, Corbyn Ziegler, Cooper Axten, Avery Ziegler, Brady Weleschuk, Paiten Axten, Teegan Axten, Ally Pocock, Heinrich Fourie, Kelly Weleschuk, Peter Bullock, Peter Weibe, Kady McKinney and Kelly Doyle.

(Michelle Pinon/Photo)

On top of that, they have to do communications event, which is public speaking, and that is another great point.” Kelly says it helps members get out into thecommunity and speak to people whether it’s asking for donations or inviting them to their annual show and sale.

Each year the club performs a community service activity. This year members volunteered their time as well as donated $500 as a club to the Vegreville Christmas Bureau. Other activities members have been involved in include: record book clinic, public speaking workshop, and communications clinic. There are many more activities to come in the near future as members will learn writing pysanky, tour dairy barn at the Vegreville Hutterite Colony, attend a grooming and showmanship clinic and participate in a mock achievement day.

“It’s great to have mock achievement day to get that experience under their belts, so when it comes to the actual achievement day it’s not so overwhelming for them.

“This year we have 13 members and four cleavers. Thirteen market steers will be for sale. There are four heifer projects, and four cleaver projects, (calves born in January of this year). With heifer projects, we hope they will return next year as a cow-calf pair.”

Kelly is excited about all of the activities that lie ahead as does her three children: Brady, 13, Karly, 10, and Kaydee, 6. All members are already preparing for achievement day that will be held on May 30.