HOT PURSUIT

As a 4-Her things were never complete unless I won a trip to the Minnesota State Fair. It was one of the greatest highlights of my summers as a teenager.

Throughout the years I won trips for various projects, which meant only one thing. I got to stay at the iconic 4-H Building at the State Fairgrounds. It often ended up being a three-day reprieve from my hectic teenage schedule. In those days, we referred to it as the “4-H Hilton.” I think I still hear that phrase tossed around today.

Last month a landmark initiative began to renovate the historic 4-H Building. The State Fair and Minnesota 4-H have partnered to begin a major renovation of the three-story building that anchors the north end of the fairgrounds. The $35 million campaign will remodel the building and expand statewide 4-H programs.

To date, 60% of the fundraising goal has been achieved, largely in part to a $10 million donation from the Cargill family, which operates facilities across the nation and in Steele County. Other significant donations have come from the Ames family and Compeer Financial.

Exterior work is underway, though most of the renovations will begin immediately after this year’s fair. The building will be updated in time for the 2027 fair.

The building will be transformed with new stages for performing arts, public speaking and demonstrations; updated spaces for STEM activities, entrepreneurship, agricultural education and judging; a teaching kitchen; a media studio, among many other things. Beyond the State Fair, the building will house community workshops, camps and career exploration activities for youth from across the state.

The 85-year-old building has been a cherished space and launching pad for generations of Minnesota youth since 1939. I’m proud to have been a part of it during that time span.

Without a doubt, 4-H has transformed my life in many ways, some of which I’m still realizing today. For me, the 4-H Building was more than a structure and a place to stay for a couple of nights during the fair (oh, how I loved those cold showers in the mornings and the million steps, or so it seemed, to reach my bunk bed). It gave me life skills that I have been able to utilize throughout my professional life over the past four decades.

Besides showing projects at the State Fair, I also took part in the 4-H Arts-In program for several years. As part of the Arts-In, I managed (big surprise) the communications department. While Arts-In is largely focused on performing arts, I was able to cut my teeth in more reporting, writing, photography and production work in putting together a newspaper for the Arts-In participants. These are skills I use every week in putting together Minnesota’s best weekly newspaper.

My children have also been the recipient of what 4-H provides. In addition to winning trips with their projects, the 4-H Building provided so much more for them. My daughter was a State 4-H ambassador working all 12 days during the fair at the 4-H Building.

Today, nearly 5,000 youth earn trips to showcase their projects at the fair each year.

What’s especially encouraging with this initiative is that it comes at a time when the 4-H program is growing across Minnesota. The program, which is part of the University of Minnesota Extension, reaches nearly 58,000 youth and has increased by a third in the past four years. About 1,000 are from Steele County and many of them end up at the State Fair every August.

U of M officials are aiming to reach 100,000 young Minnesotans, with the newly renovated State Fair building serving as a premier center for youth leadership and development.

For years, 4-H inspired me, and it’s encouraging to see something as exciting as the renovated 4-H Building will likely inspire thousands more youth.

Learn more about the project and how to donate at www.4hbuilding.org.

I can’t think of something better than going in hot pursuit of investing in Minnesota’s youth.