Macon County’s 4H Club won big at the state level in their latest shooting competitions, and they made sure to let their county government know about it.
In an address to the Macon County Board of Commissioners at the November meeting, several 4H Club members reported on a successful trip to the North Carolina State 4H Shooting Tournament in October. During the tournament, the junior recurve archery team, consisting of Lily Powell, Matthew Albers, Marco Morales and Wesley Merritt, placed first overall for the entire state. Albers also placed second overall for the state at the individual level.
Recurve archery has taken off in popularity in recent years and the 4H Club has become an important resource for local youths to give the sport a try. Open sight rifle is another popular event in the area, with the 4H team winning their last regional competition. Whatever their event, the club members who spoke to the commissioners agreed that they had grown a lot by working towards their goals together as part of the club.
“4H has taught all of us, not just me, to have confidence in each other, to work with others, to help each other, to help the community and also to have pride in working and the community and accomplishment,” Powell said. “We wanted to say thank you to the coaches, mentors and all of our 4Hers that help make 4H possible.”
The commissioners were happy to hear the good news. Some of them are former members of the club and remember it as a formative experience. Commissioner Ronnie Beale says that the Macon County branch of the club consistently does its home county proud in Raleigh and offers a lot to be optimistic about for the future of agriculture and community building.
“4H is still doing good things for young people,” Beale said. “We’re very proud of our 4Hers and not just what these kids do now but what they’re going to do in the future.”
Tammara Talley, the 4H youth development agent for the Macon County Cooperative Extension, deserves a lot of credit for the club’s level of activity and success over the last few years. However, she made sure to point out the role volunteers play in that success, including archery coaches Brett Adams and Cory Merritt. She says that there’s an extensive screening process in place for people who work with the 4H Club to ensure that they’re surrounding the kids with the best mentors they can have and that the results speak for themselves.
“They jump through a lot of hoops to be able to work with our kids,” Talley said. “We’re proud of the level of quality that they bring.”
For more information on the 4H Club, call the Macon County Cooperative Extension at 828-349-2046.