RBC | Rio Blanco 4-H had eight members to the 4-H District 9 District Retreat in Glenwood Springs over the weekend. Liam Olson, Rio Blanco 4-H member from Meeker, served as the District 9 President from April of 2024 through this past weekend’s retreat. Liam worked with the District team of officers, five 4-H members from around the district, to plan and execute this year’s retreat, which included teambuilding, life skill workshops, ice breakers, dancing, and karaoke.
A highlight of the retreat for senior members was “Senior Think Tank” where the senior members were placed in groups of people that they didn’t know and completed activities that put them outside of their comfort zones to earn the most “bucks” for their team. Senior members could be found laughing hysterically while staring at other members while eating grapes with a straight face, cawing like a crow while flapping their arms, or digging through a “ball pit” blindfolded looking for ducks. The final objective for the senior teams was to perform a one minute skit in front of the younger attending members and 4-H Agents on a topic of their choice about 4-H.
The District 9 Retreat keynote speaker was 4-H Agent Todd Hagenbuch from Routt County. Todd tied the theme of the event “Strong Roots Run Deep” to his presentation. Todd showed the youth how strong roots don’t just run deep – they run wide, they interconnect with similar things, and they interconnect with dissimilar things. A strong ecosystem is diverse and can survive drought, wind, and heavy rain. Todd tied this into 4-H referring to our roles as leaders, group members, and people in our communities.
On Saturday afternoon, District 9 held officer elections for the 25-26 year. Hayden Garcia, Rio Blanco County 4-H Senior member from Meeker was elected as the District 9 Reporter. Liam Olson handed over the presidency to Sky Paeglow from Jackson County.
By HAYDEN GARCIA
