County Youth Leadership

Salena Woodall:

Salena Woodall has been selected as the newest San Diego County 4-H All Star. The All Star award is a serving honor that will see Salena all over the county meeting with members and leaders. To help cut down her load of constantly introducing herself we interviewed Salena so that the 4-H community can get to know more about her and why she became an All Star.

Why did you want to be an All Star?
When I first joined 4-H all I wanted to do was animals, I had no idea that there was more to 4-H, not until someone told me. When I was first told about the All Star program, it was like a whole new world was opened for me. I would not be the person I am now if someone had not shown me all the opportunities there is in 4-H.

Becoming an All Star has been a goal for me since I was twelve. I would watch the All Stars at county events running around helping and making their county's 4-H program better. I wanted to be like the All Stars making a difference in our community, county, and 4-H program.

How would you encourage greater participation among Intermediates and Senior members?
In my opinion the best way to encourage the pre-high school and high school members is to tell them to get involved in the county, sectional, and state opportunities. Step up to the plate, there is quite a few opportunities just here in our county, like the project committees, teen council, and county council. The reason why I say this is because; most intermediates are not informed about all that is outside of the club.

By the time they are seniors they do not see how 4-H has more to offer to them so, they drop out early to prepare for college. What they do not know is that 4-H has a lot more to offer. I know there is quite a number of young people who are pursuing a career in technology. The California 4-H Technology Leadership Team is a great way for youth who are interested in technology to expand their knowledge, use what they know to help problem solve, and gain life experiences. I have found very few 4-H members who even know about this. I know many youth feel very busy or think that going outside of the club is too much work, but the truth is that going beyond the club is very beneficial to their life. It not only helps them in their future careers but also in their daily lives. Now just telling them won't motivate them, at times they need a push. Just pushing a youth does not work but coming along side them, encouraging them, as they do more that takes them toward their goals, and out of their comfort zone

Do you have a personal quote that guides you in life?
One of my favorite quotes is, “feedback is the breakfast of champions” or how I like to say it, “Criticism is the breakfast of champions”. This is so true. When I first joined 4-H every time someone gave me some criticism on how I showed my animals or how my pictures where blurry I would not take it very well. Over time I noticed the seniors going up to their leaders or the judge and ask for criticism. I decided to do the same and ask the judges what I was doing wrong. At first their criticism seemed unreasonable but I followed it and found that I was doing better. I soon was asking every time I got a chance. Now I look forward to hearing any of the judge’s criticism.

What’s the best part about being in 4-H?
There is a lot of great things about 4-H. It is hard to say which one is the best, but one of the best things for me is all the AWESOME people you get to meet, and the more you get involved in 4-H the more great people you meet. I think the greatest thing about it is you will have a long lasting friendship with all those people.

Faith Knipe:

Faith Knipe, San Diego County All Star and all around awesome 4-H member. Faith starting in 4-H because her best friends/ neighbors Lydia and Miranda Cain did. They were always at meetings or events and could never hang out with her. She thought, what a better way to hang out than go with them? So she joined, and she is so glad that she did.

She has been a member since 4th grade that makes 8 years at the end of this 4-H season. Faith believes definitely that 4-H is serving youth of the community in a substantive way. She says, “By teaching kids leadership, speaking and other life skills, 4-H prepares youth to be productive, independent members of society for the future. The community service and learning opportunities that 4-H provide also allows kids to interact and express themselves in a safe and fun environment.”

One of the big goals in her life is to travel. By bonding with and hearing the stories of other 4-H members and adults, she has realized that there is so much to do and see in the world outside of San Diego. “4-H has allowed me to embrace the diversity of my surroundings, making me curious to see what the rest of the world has to offer!”

Faith applied to be an All-Star so she could be more involved at the county level and have an opportunity to work with adults and other facilitators on a service project to benefit her community. To Faith, an All Star is an extremely dedicated 4H-er who is willing to put others before themselves. He or she must be charismatic, confident and above all, a leader. She said of the program, “All Stars are the face of San Diego County 4-H and should be honored to hold such a title.”

Faith was asked if she had a message for teens and her response had some impressive points; “One: Truly embrace what 4-H is teaching you and use it the best you can in your community and future. Two: Don't be afraid to be yourself! Sometimes it may seem hard to do, but it will always work out better in the end. Three: Work hard in school, but save time for yourself and loved ones. School gets tough, but as long as you set aside relaxation/down time, you can do whatever you set your mind on. Finally, try to look on the positive side of every situation and person. You will get the most out of anything if you look at it as a challenge as opposed to not being able to do it. Everyone has something special to bring to the table (big or small) and we should all be given the opportunity to do so, just as 4-H allows!”