Michigan 4-H members attend game at Breslin Center

By Kyle Campbell | Originally Published: 12/05/10 9:42pm |Modified: 12/05/10 11:36pm | No comments

Matt Hallowell | The State News

Greyling, Mich., resident Parker Learman, 10, cheers on the Lady Spartans Sunday night at Breslin Center. MSU Extension 4-H Day with the Lady Spartans gave children involved with 4-H the opportunity to see a women’s basketball game for free.

The MSU Extension 4-H youth group held its annual Day with the Lady Spartans event Sunday at Breslin Center.

Members of 4-H, their families and volunteers for the program from across the state attended the game, and at halftime nine children in the program recited the 4-H pledge at center court.

About 4,700 members of the 4-H community were in attendance, said Julie Chapin, the state leader for 4-H Youth Development Michigan.

“These opportunities are great because they allow people to come together and celebrate being a part of 4-H,” she said. “Also, it gives us an opportunity to expose young people to Michigan State University and the campus.”

4-H is a nationwide youth development organization that helps children explore future career options, said Michelle Lavra, the communications manager for 4-H Michigan.

“It sort of becomes a way of life,” she said. “When (members) grow past the youth age, a lot of them want to volunteer and be a leader.”

The Day with the Lady Spartans event is one of the few opportunities to bring members from all 83 counties of Michigan under one roof, Chapin said.

Unlike other statewide 4-H events, this event purely is for fun, Lavra said. She also was in 4-H as a child and said the experience has stayed with her.

“A lot of the statewide events that we host have more of an educational focus,” Lavra said. “This really is just about having fun. It’s about coming down, getting together and just having a good time.”

Dana DeLong, a parent volunteer in the Tuscola County 4-H group, was in 4-H as a child and still is involved.

“I was involved with it when I was growing up. I grew up on a dairy farm,” she said. “(It teaches) hard work, skills, work ethic and responsibility.”

Now DeLong’s four children — ages 16, 14, 11 and 9 — are in the program.

Although 4-H often is thought of as strictly a farming-based program, it has expanded to other fields and has changed during the years, Lavra said.

“A lot of people think 4-H is cows and cooking,” she said. “But the truth is, really it’s about civic engagement — it’s about citizenship and leadership. A lot of our programs are really aimed at helping kids explore career options.”

Events like Day with the Lady Spartans help build unity within the 4-H program, Chapin said.

“Kids look forward to this,” she said. “This is our sixth year with a 4-H day and women’s basketball, and they look forward to it.”