HOT PURSUIT

As I checked out Lacey Hoffmaster’s exhibits around the 4-H Building during the Steele County Fair, I was left wondering if she qualifies as an over achiever.

Hoffmaster, 10, brought no less than 19 projects to this year’s fair. In fact, when she was questioned about them, she had a hard time remembering and keeping them all straight. Some of her projects included photography, clothing, food preservation, fishing safety, home fire safety and her favorite, obesity in cats.

The reason for the cat exhibit being Hoffmaster’s favorite is because “I love cats so much.” With the project, she stressed the importance of why people need to keep their cats healthy.

“If cats are obese, they can develop lung and heart problems,” said Hoffmaster, who is a member of the Meriden Meadowlarks and will be in sixth grade at Owatonna Middle School this fall. “You need to develop a diet plan with the vet and try not to give them as much table scraps and treats,” she added.

Hoffmaster ended up with five champions at this year’s fair. However, she could not go to the State Fair because she is too young.

She was drawn into 4-H from her older sister. “I saw how good she was at it,” Hoffmaster said, adding she also had influence from her grandmother who judges 4-H and talks about how fun 4-H can be.

“The best thing about 4-H is that it’s competitive,” Hoffmaster said. “I will probably bring more than 19 projects next year because I want to challenge myself to do more.”

Another 10-year-old 4-H member I found was Lauralyn Dolan of the Deerfield Get There. She brought a couple paintings, clothing, fairy gardens and a rabbit to the fair. She said clothing was her favorite project because “I can go shopping and pick out exactly what I want.”

The most exciting part of 4-H for Dolan is having fun at the fair and doing fun activities throughout the year with her club.

Sophia Schiller, 15, of Blooming Prairie won a purple ribbon on a market barrow. Besides the hog, Schiller also exhibited a quilt. She is a member of the Straight River Stars.

Schiller likes the fair because “it shows how little things can bring everyone together.”

Her younger sister, Bella Schiller, 13, earned three purple ribbons. Her favorite project was showing hogs.

Bella Schiller started with the hog project three years ago with a little influence from her father.

“They are so fun to work with,” she said of the pigs. She purchases the animals from Chad Klemmenson and goes to his place every night throughout the summer to feed them and prepare them for show.

She has found 4-H to be so much fun. “There is a lot of team work involved and you get to make new friends and you get to win things.”

A crossbred dairy steer was Alexandra Herget’s favorite project this year. She also exhibited an oil pastel painting and photography.

For Herget, 4-H means new experiences and meeting new people.

The 4-H projects were up from last year, but still lagging somewhat behind from pre-COVID numbers, said Tracy Ignaszewki, 4-H coordinator. The biggest area of growth with the 4-H program has been the Clover Buds, which are 4-H members in kindergarten through second grade. Retention of members is the key in 4-H, she said, adding 4-H’s challenge is to keep kids interested in the youth program.

There are 472 4-Hers in Steele County representing 10 clubs, according to Ignaszewski.

It’s reassuring to see 4-H remains strong in Steele County with hundreds of young people going in hot pursuit of a program that prides itself on “learning by doing.”