Bottom Row: Mason Hebert, Kerrigan Fitch, Ladaedrea Moore, Bianca Latulas, Kaylyn Hardy, Claire Stansbury, Florencia Scaglia, Megan Bourg Middle Row: Monique Hebert (4-H Agent), Nick Hebert, Rhett Lanie, Avery Kingman, Bryce Leslie, Tyson Chastant, Tyler Romero, Steven Sumrall, Sherri Patout (Adult Volunteer)Top Row: Josh Fredieu (4-H Agent), Cameron Champagne (Counselor), Cassie Champagne (Counselor), Bryson Chastant, Ian Guillotte (Counselor)

Seventh-grade 4-H members from around Iberia Parish recently were given the opportunity to experience 4-H Challenge Camp. Challenge Camp was held April 15-17 at the LSU AgCenter's Grant Walker 4-H Educational center in Pollock, La. 4-H Challenge Camp allows youth to experience various challenges from a hands-on approach. Participants were able to “learn by doing” an assortment of activities such as walking through "spider webs" (made from rope) without touching the web, swinging from a rope to cross an “unsafe” container, and constructing frames out of coat hangers to hold large bricks. These programs were capped off by the boat-building project in which team members got to build a “working” boat out of nothing but cardboard and duct tape. The boat then had to be paddled across the Camp Grant Walker pool in order for the project to be a success.

Youth are faced with many difficult challenges on a daily basis. 4-H and Challenge Camp give our youth the valuable tools such as self confidence, self esteem, and decision-making skills that allow them to overcome those challenges.