- Author: Ashley Pyler
On Saturday, May 4th, thirteen Ventura County 4-H'ers participated in Southern Area 4-H Field Day which takes place at Mount San Antonio College (Mt. SAC) in Walnut, California each year.
Not everyone gets to present at Southern Area 4-H Field Day. In order to give a presentation at this event, you had to win a Gold Medal at your county presentation event first. However, you do not have to win Gold at county presentation day to compete in the Interview Contest at Southern Area Field Day. Since not everyone gets the opportunity to compete at this event for various reasons, all of the 4-H members present at the event were very honored and eager to compete.
This was a very long day for everyone competing. Check-in started at 7:45 in the morning. After check-in concluded, the members went on with their days, going to the rooms they were assigned to for their 4-H presentations and interviews. Members from Ventura County 4-H participated in the following categories: Illustrated Talk, Interpretive Reading, State Format Impromptu Speech, Area Impromptu Speech, Extemporaneous Speech, Educational Display Talk, Science or Engineering Presentation, Cultural Arts, and the Interview Contest.
In addition to all of the other 4-H presentations and the 4-H Interview Contest, there were several fun walk-in stations at the event happening as well to keep the members busy in between events. Perhaps the most popular station was the Entomology Contest Station. At this walk-in event, members would sit down and take a knowledge test for their age division about insects. Depending on how they did against other kids in their age division, they were awarded Gold Medals, Blue Seals, Red Seals, or White Seals at the end of the day. The Entomology Contest was run by a leader and three members from Ventura County 4-H. The adult leader in charge was Edith Sorensen from Conejo/Simi Valley 4-H Club, and the three youth volunteers helping to run the station were Anna Sorensen from Conejo/Simi Valley 4-H, Adler Striegel from Loma Vista 4-H, and Ashley Pyler from Loma Vista 4-H.
Some of the other walk-in stations throughout the day included a community service station where members made dog toys for local animal shelters in L.A. County, a STEM station where members made miniature monsters in paper cups by combining two chemicals, a Primary Clinic with activities just for Primary Members, and a Fashion Knowledge Contest where members could take knowledge tests about fashion knowledge (similar to how the Entomology Station was run).
After 4-H presentations, the 4-H Interview Contest, and walk-in stations had concluded, it was time for the final part of the competition. Each year at Southern Area 4-H Field Day, Cultural Arts Presentations and Share the 4-H Fun Skits are always at the end of the day, and take place in an auditorium where everyone can gather around, and watch the presentations/skits.
This year, there was only one Cultural Arts Presentation from Ventura County 4-H and it was presented by Ashley Pyler of Loma Vista 4-H. She talked about why she likes playing the piano and played "One Man's Dream" by Yanni on her keyboard. She was awarded a Gold Medal, and she was very proud to take her presentation to California State 4-H Field Day at UC Davis on June 1st to represent Ventura County 4-H at the state level.
The awards ceremony was held in the same auditorium as Cultural Arts Presentations and Share the 4-H Fun Skits. This year, all of the presentations and skits took 2 1/2 hours to complete, so all of the 4-H members had to wait very patiently for the awards ceremony to come. Once it did, however, the members were on the edge of their seats to see if their many hours of hard work and dedication had paid off, and if they had qualified for this year's state presentation competition at California State 4-H Field Day.
After the awards ceremony had concluded, everyone was proud of what they had accomplished, and they were more than ready to go home after a very long day down at Mount SAC. Everyone that got a Gold Medal in any presentation category was eligible to present that exact same presentation at California State 4-H Field Day at UC Davis on June 1st, with the exception of the walk-in events (Entomology, Fashion, etc.), and the 4-H Interview Contest, which are known as non-qualifying events. The 4-H members that earned Gold Medals for multiple presentations at Southern Area 4-H Field were only allowed to present one presentation at California State 4-H Field Day, along with participating in the 4-H Interview Contest.
Out of the thirteen members from Ventura County 4-H that participated in this year's Southern Area 4-H Field Day Event, five of them will be attending California State 4-H Field Day on June 1st. These hard-working members are Ashley Pyler (Intermediate Member with the Loma Vista 4-H Club), Adeline Vertucci (Intermediate Member with the Loma Vista 4-H Club), Livia Vertucci (Senior Member with the Loma Vista 4-H Club), Samuel "Sammy" Beylik (Junior Member of the Conejo/Simi Valley 4-H Club), and Kaylee Tan (Junior Member of the Conejo/Simi Valley 4-H Club). As a group, the Ventura County 4-H'ers won 24 Gold Medals, 5 Blue Seals, and 2 Red Seals. The leaders of all the clubs in Ventura County are very proud of all of the 4-H'ers who participated at this event.
- Author: Ashley Pyler
On the morning of Saturday, March 23rd, 36 Ventura County 4-H members gathered at the University of California Hansen Agricultural Resource and Extension Center (UCHAREC). Nine of the 36 members were with the Loma Vista 4-H Club. Members were also represented from the Conejo/Simi Valley, Santa Rosa Valley (SRV), and Mupu 4-H Clubs.
These members were here to attend the Annual 2019 Ventura County 4-H Presentation Day Event. All of these members have spent many hours preparing for this event, and were very excited to now finally go through with their presentations and interviews. However, the members were also somewhat nervous to present themselves in front of their evaluators. All of the presenters were wondering if they had prepared themselves enough for this very morning.
The event began at 9:00 a.m. with an orientation briefing presenters as to what to expect throughout the day. Once orientation concluded, all of the presenters went their own separate ways to complete all of their presentations and interviews. It was up to each presenter to determine their individual schedules. Members presented presentations in the following categories: Illustrated Talk, Demonstration, Science/Engineering Presentation, Education Display Talk, Interpretive Reading, Share the 4-H Fun Skits, and Cultural Arts.
The most common category that members competed in was the Illustrated Talk category. Several members also competed in the Interview Contest. This contest provides job descriptions, and each member competing creates a resume and cover letter matching their chosen job description for their age. They then bring their resume and cover letter with them to the interview, and practice their interviewing skills.
Presenters that felt very confident with their presenting skills took part in the Impromptu Speech Category. Many presentation evaluators consider this to be the hardest 4-H presentation category. To start, members are given a topic to present about. They then have 3 minutes to prepare an entire presentation with an introduction, body, summary, and conclusion. The presenters must also site their sources. To help them gather their thoughts, members are given a pencil and 5" x 7" flashcard. Once the 3 minutes are up, the presenter must stop writing, and give their presentation (their presentation must be 2-5 minutes in length).
Once most of the presentations were over, everyone ate their lunch, and watched the final two presentations of the day. The first presentation was an enjoyable Share the 4-H Fun Skit. About a dozen members of the Mupu 4-H club dressed up in their costumes and delivered a fun and humorous skit. The final presentation for the day was the only Cultural Arts Presentation for all of Ventura County 4-H and was presented by Ashley Pyler of the Loma Vista 4-H Club. She talked about Yanni, who is one of her favorite piano composers, and then played an excerpt of "One Man's Dream".
After the Cultural Arts Presentation was over, it was then time to announce the awards. Everyone from the Loma Vista 4-H Club did very well that day, but three of the nine Loma Vista 4-H members had a different perspective of the entire event. Alexander Blomquist, Rachel Lipscomb, and Matthew Ziegler were all first time presenters.
Alexander participated in the Fashion Revue and also presented a Science/Engineering Presentation. Rachel Lipscomb submitted photos in the photo contest, participated in Fashion Revue, presented an Illustrated Talk (Digital Slides) about why beagles make great pets for families, and applied for the position of Smoothie Maker with "Smooth Fruit Shack" in the Interview Contest. Matthew Ziegler presented an Interpretive Reading Presentation, participated in the Plant Science Judging Competition, and applied for position of Movie Clerk with "Reel Theaters" in the Interview Contest. All three of the first-time Loma Vista 4-H presenters did a phenomenal job at their first 4-H Presentation Day, and all three of them will excel with 4-H presentations for several years into the future.
After the awards ceremony had concluded, a generous group of 4-H'ers stayed late to assist with the event's necessary cleanup. Everyone presenting at the event worked really hard to prepare their presentations and interviews, and were rewarded with receiving red seals, blue seals, and gold medals. Participating in 4-H presentations and interviews may seem quite daunting, but anyone can do it who puts their mind to it. Even though presenting a 4-H presentation or interview seems really scary, it is a lot of fun once you are doing it. If you did not participate in this year's Ventura County 4-H Presentation Day Event, I strongly encourage you to participate in next year's event in 2020. In summary, the members got to strengthen their presenting and interviewing skills, and everyone had a wonderful time.
- Author: Valerie Zeko
Ventura County 4-H Presentation Day took place on Saturday, March 23 at UC Hansen Agricultural Research and Extension Center. Presentations took place in the small and large barns as well as our new conference room, and the interviews took place in our 4-H offices. All of the judges were very impressed! Regular 4-H youth members (ages 9-19) awarded a gold medal for their presentation at our VC 4-H Presentation Day can present the same presentation at Southern Area Field Day at Mt. SAC on May 4, 2019. Sign up here: https://ucanr.edu/survey/survey.cfm?surveynumber=20098
Illustrated Talk:
- Jake Robinson – GOLD
- Kaylee Tan – GOLD
- Samantha Robinson – GOLD
- Adeline Vertucci – GOLD
- Ashley Pyler - GOLD
- Nadja Klem - GOLD
- Livia Vertucci - GOLD
- Rachel Lipscomb - GOLD
Science / Engineering Presentation:
- Alexander Blomquist – GOLD
- Sammy Belik – GOLD
Educational Display Talk:
- Anna Linehan - RED
- Anna Sorensen - GOLD
Interpretive Reading:
- Kelly Quinn - GOLD
- Matthew Ziegler - RED
- Adler Striegel - GOLD
- Andrew Pyler - GOLD
Impromptu:
- Irelyn Kennedy - RED
- Ashley Pyler - GOLD
- Adler Striegel - RED
Cultural Arts:
- Ashley Pyler - GOLD
Interview Contest:
- Jake Robinson - GOLD
- Sammy Belik - GOLD
- Irelyn Kennedy - GOLD
- Rachel Lipscomb - BLUE
- Ashley Pyler - GOLD
- Shelby Wright - BLUE
- Anna Linehan - BLUE
- Kelly Quinn - GOLD
- Matthew Ziegler - BLUE
- Anna Sorenson - GOLD
- Andrew Pyler - GOLD
- Adler Striegel - GOLD
Share the Fun Skit ~ Thank you to the following Mupu 4-H youth for performing:
- Sofia Manzano
- Rocky Manzano
- Kelsey Hendren
- Saynt Manzano
- Mila Manzano
- Carson Bell
- Olivia Bell
- Katie Carr
- Jessica Davison
- Logan Davison
- Chris Mijares
- Bentley Thrasher
- Rook Johnson
- Luis Robles
- Sofia Arana
