During the second week of June, Smith County 4-H took 50 happy campers to the Clyde M. York 4-H Center in Crossville, Tennessee, for a fun-filled week of 4-H Camp. Despite some blustery weather at times, campers had a great time making new friends, trying new things, ziplining, swimming, making crafts, playing games, spending time at the fishing pond, archery range, rifle range, and lake, and enjoying a foam party and songs, stories, and s’mores around the campfire.
The following 4-H’ers from Smith County attended 4-H Camp with us this summer: Ali Kay Babcock, Alex Bodie, Braxton Carden, Gracie Craddock, Cecelia Cowan, Aiden Davis, Jake Dawson, Sam Dawson, Olivia Dallas, Sawyer Dillard, Hannah Dixon, Charlotte Driver, Clay Driver, Gracie Driver, Oliver Durham, Nathan Elmore, Jorja Flynt, Theron Geho, Will Gillispie, Mason Grisham, Aspen Gibbs, Ivee Gibbs, Bryant Harper, Aubrey Hicks, Eli Hickman, Scarlett Hicks, Amelia Hodges, Sophia Holder, Natasha Hollis, Lucas Hula, McCall Kemp, CJ Lawson, Oakley Lawrence, Willow Lawrence, Joshua Lee, Maizie Mahaney, Haley McDonald, Tristan McCarter, Jake Myers, Ethan Perkins, Kayden Perry, Charlotte Pena, Izabelle Quick, Ella Grace Tanis, Makaeleigh Tarpley, Marshall Taylor, Cole White, Chase Williams, Tucker Williams, and Gracie Wooten.
Our camp week was so successful thanks to our incredible team of adult volunteers and teen leaders. Thank you to Elston Gibbs, Janae Lawrence, Cynthia Zeitz, and Courtney Dickens for serving as adult leaders for our campers. Special shout-out to our new Ag Agent Will Herbert who came to hang out with us for a few days at camp, too! Will jumped right in, and we’re so glad to have him on our team.
Our Teen Leaders Kynlee Davis, Greg Dixon, Ja’Kodi Gibbs, and Evy Quijano also did a phenomenal job helping out campers and doing whatever else was needed to keep camp running smoothly!
We are so grateful to these individuals for spending the week with us and making an impact on our local youth.
Smith County 4-H would also like to thank the individuals and community partners who donated to our 4-H Camp Scholarship Fund. This year, our camp scholarships were made possible by generous donations from American Legion Post 57, Smith Farmers CO-OP, the Smith County Fair in memory of Willie Neal, the Jamie Evitts Memorial Fund, the 4-H Picnic at the Tennessee State Fair, and other private donors. This summer, 13 of our campers attended on half-scholarship.
Junior 4-H Camp is open to youth in Smith County who have completed grades 4-6, and we take around 50 youth to 4-H Camp every summer during the month of June! If you have any questions about 4-H Camp, would like to be notified when camp sign-ups begin next year, or are interested in financially contributing to our 4-H Camp Scholarship Fund, please reach out to the UT-TSU Extension Office in Smith County.
The 4-H Youth Development Program delivers programs through cooperative efforts of the University of Tennessee, Tennessee State University, and public and private sector volunteers. 4-H educational programs are offered to all youth, grades 4-12, on an age-appropriate basis, without regard to race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation or disability.
Thanks again to all of the volunteers, Extension Agents, and 4-H Camp staff that made our camp week safe and fun for all of our kiddos! It takes a village to make a 4-H program successful, and we’re so grateful for all of the people in our Smith County 4-H village!
For further information concerning the many opportunities that 4-H has to offer the youth in Smith County, call 615-735-2900 or email rpetty@utk.edu.
