Tennessee Team Earns Top Honors at 2015 National 4-H Forestry Invitational
The team from Tennessee won first place out of the 14 state teams that participated in the 2015 National 4-H Forestry Invitational, held at West Virginia University Jackson’s Mill State 4-H Camp and Conference Center near Weston, West Virginia from Sunday, July 26 to Thursday, July 30. In addition to Tennessee, other teams and individuals from our Southeastern were well-represented among states that received honors.
The 2015 Tennessee 4-H Forestry Team won top honors
at the National 4-H Forestry Invitational Competition in
West Virginia. Shown left to right: Emily Palacios, Julia
Palacios, Rebekah Meese, and Laura Palacios (Coach)
Congratulations are due to the Tennessee Forestry 4-H Team, which went home with top honors at the 2015 National 4-H Forestry Invitational held at West Virginia University Jackson's Mill State 4-H Camp and Conference Center next Weston, West Virginia from Sunday, July 26 to Thursday, July 30. The team comprised Emily Palacios and Julia Palacios both from Thompson’s Station and Rebekah Meese from Columbia and was coached by Laura Palacios from Thompson’s Station. To earn first place, they competed against teams from 13 other states: New York, which came in second, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Ohio, South Carolina, Virginia, and West Virginia.
At the Invitational, 4-H members competed for overall team and individual awards in events that included tree identification, tree measurement, compass and pacing, insect and disease identification, topographic map use, forest evaluation, the forestry bowl and a written forestry exam. In addition to Tennessee taking the first prize, other states from our Southeastern region were well-represented among those who received honors: Alabama came in third overall, Julia Palacios from Tennessee and Tim Caswell from Florida received the high point individual award and the third place high individual award, respectively, and Devin Hipp from South Carolina earned the Joe Yeager “Spirit of the Invitational” award, which recognizes an outstanding Invitational contestant for enthusiasm, initiative, and leadership.
Southern Regional Extension Forester Bill Hubbard, who was among the forestry and natural resource educators and professionals selected to judge the event, had this to say, "I absolutely look forward to this event every year. The week spent in the woods with my colleagues, and the 4Her’s and their judges is really rewarding from a number of perspectives. First, I get to be in the woods with little or no distractions from smart phones and computers! Second, I see the best of the best as far as our state 4Her’s. These kids come prepared, are super to be around and are downright fun to watch in action! Finally, seeing my fellow Extension and forestry colleagues from different parts of the country is always enjoyable! We hope to have even more participation next year!”
In addition to SREF's sponsorship, the National 4-H Forestry Invitational received support from our partners at the National Association of Natural Resource Extension Professionals (ANREP), the Society of American Foresters, and the USDA Forest Service as well as other great organizations devoted to forestry, natural resources, and education.
The 2015 4-H National Forestry Invitational.
Find the Southern Regional Extension Forester!
4-H is a youth education program operated by the Cooperative Extension Service of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, National Institute of Food and Agriculture and the state land grant universities. More than six million youth, 540,000 volunteers, and 3,500 professionals participate in 4-H nationwide, and nearly 100,000 are part of the 4-H Forestry Program.
For more information on the 2015 National 4-H Forestry Invitational, see the University of Tennessee's original press release, from which this story was adapted or view the National 4-H Forestry Invitational's website, which already has details about next year's competition.
