Baton Rouge, La. – Southern
University Ag Center Youth Healthy Living Ambassadors Rheagan Thomas, Nalaya
Prince, and Addisynn Robinson, all
from St. Landry Parish, traveled to Chevy Chase, MD to participate in the 2020
4-H National Youth Summit Series.
The summit was held at the National 4-H Conference Center from
February 11th -16th and was based on two components that
included Healthy Habits and Healthy Living.
During the Healthy Habits component, the youth participated in
workshops that were designed to increase their knowledge about the teachings of
Healthy Habits along with exposure to new ideas that could positively impact
their communities. For the Healthy Living component, the youth were tasked with
identifying and addressing specific issues that negatively impact their
communities. The team of Youth Ambassadors identified an issue centered on
limited access and resources to fresh vegetables in St. Landry Parish among
seniors due to the decline in the local Farmer’s Market. Focusing on areas that
may be considered to be food deserts, such as the Lebeau/Palmetto area was
another topic in the conversation. The team’s plan to address the issues that
were identified is to utilize resources provided by the Sustainable Agriculture
and Rural Development Institute (SARDI) to produce larger crop yields and host
a Farmer’s Market where elderly individuals in the community can receive fresh
vegetables free of charge. Installing a new Community Garden in the
Lebeau/Palmetto area was also planned for the very near future as well.
The remainder of the Healthy Living component included a service
project that required the youth to participate in making blankets for the less
fortunate and workshops based on topics such as Conflict Resolution,
Understanding the LGBTQ Community, Effects of Global Warming, Food Waste, and
many more.
The conference ended with a night tour of the Washington D.C. area
that included the Lincoln Memorial, World War II Memorial, Vietnam Veterans
Memorial, and the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial.
The Healthy Living Ambassadors are back home and ready to work
diligently in their schools and community to implement their plans! Kayla
Fontenot, SU Ag Center Youth Agent for St. Landry Parish and Chelsea Hammond SU
Ag Center Youth Agent for Orleans Parish were the chaperones for the trip.
###
No comments:
Post a Comment