Green County 4-H members Bella Andrews, Triniti Elmer, Dawson Bethke and Royce Brauer were among hundreds of 4-H youth who attended the 96th annual 4-H & Youth Conference at the University of Wisconsin-Madison campus in June. They joined about 500 other young people representing UW-Extension's 4-H Youth Development program in celebrating its 96th anniversary. The adult 4-H leader advising the county delegation was Ellen Andrews.

Bella Andrews highly recommends attending conference. She had this to say upon returning, "The Conference was great! I learned so much about leadership, partnership, and other people. The people I met were great. If you want to build on leadership skills in a fun way; 4-H Youth Conference is the way to go!"

The annual four-day conference gives youth a chance to learn about a variety of 4-H and other youth programs, experience hands-on learning in a university campus atmosphere, strengthen life skills such as communication and leadership, gain knowledge to share back home, and exchange ideas and form friendships with youth from around the state.

The delegates attended workshops and assemblies developed around the theme "Picturing Our Success" which highlighted leadership, individual responsibility, goal setting, healthy living, and living up to potential. Students participated in a variety of community service projects designed to stimulate interest in replicating similar projects in their own communities.

Workshop topics included everything from communication arts to building leadership skills, healthy living, STEM topics, youth citizenship, and a host of other exciting subjects.

The Wisconsin 4-H Foundation provided financial support for this conference.

For more information about 4-H or other UW-Extension Youth Development programs, visit http://fyi.uwex.edu or contact the Green County 4-H Youth Development office at (608) 328-9440.