"4-H is a community of young people across America learning leadership, citizenship and life skills".

About 4-H Teen Council

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The Lancaster County 4-H Teen Council is a leadership organization for youth in grades 7-12. Members are involved in several leadership activities such as organizing the annual 4th & 5th Grade Lock-In and the Ice Cream Social at the Lancaster County Fair. Teens also participate in community service projects.

More than 40 Lancaster County 4-H youth are part of 4-H Teen Council this year.

2008 Officers are:

• President -- Grace Farley
• Vice President -- Marian Hanigan
• Secretary -- Christina Mayer
• Treasurer -- Brad Morgan
• Historians -- Britini Waller and Ellen Muehling
• Adult Advisor -- Marilyn Schepers

Meetings are held the second Sunday of each month at 3 p.m. at the Lancaster Extension Education Center. New members are always welcome! For more information or to join, contact Tracy Kulm.

4-H Teens Lead Lock-In

Each January, Lancaster County 4-H Teen Council presents an overnight Lock-In for 4th & 5th graders. Attendees are treated to a fun-filled event and Teen Council members gain valuable leadership skills. More than 80 4th and 5th graders attended and over 30 Teen Council members were involved in the planning, organizing and presenting of 12 hours of activities! Here is a recap of the evening from a few of the teens:

A Successful Round-Up: Once again, Lancaster County 4-H Teen Council hosted a successful Lock-In. This year's theme was the Winter Round-Up, and 4th and 5th graders enjoyed creating their own brands and participating in a cowboy relay race. The children had a blast making their own cowboy hats, guitars and other crafts. Smiles abounded as teens led them in a variety of games throughout the night. It was exciting to see many of the younger members of Teen Council take larger leadership roles this year and learn how to put on a successful Lock-In. The increased number of attendees meant members had to make quick adjustments. The teens proved capable of handling the challenge and the Lock-In ran smoothly. The Lock-In was fantastic thanks to the efforts of many amazing hard-working teens! --Marian Hanigan, Vice-President

One of the Best Ever: I thought the Teen Council 4-H Lock-In was one of our best ever. In my five years on the council, the kids seem to have more and more fun each year. I think this is because we improve the event every year to make it more fun. The teens really illustrated their maturity throughout the entire night, and I could not be more proud to call myself a teen. All in all, the Lock-In was a huge success and I look forward to the future years. --Brad Morgan

Youth Have Fun: The 4-H Lock-In is a great way for fourth and fifth graders to make new friends and explore the wonders of working and cooperating in games. The youth learn things while they have fun doing it. This year our theme was Winter Round-Up and they had healthy country food. They got to make a bunch of craft items such as hats they could take home if they wanted. At the end of all of the fun activities the youth finally settled down to rest with some movies. They were all tired when morning came. We helped them pack and get ready to go home. Then we went home and slept and slept and slept, ready to start planning for next year! --Erica Peterson