The Vanderhoof and District 4-H Achievement Days went off without a hitch, attracting overwhelming support from the community that was eager to raise their hands for a bid.
Over four days, the Achievement Days were held at the Nechako Valley Exhibition Grounds from Wednesday, August 18 to Saturday, August 21, with a lineup of shows featuring swine, sheep, beef, horse, poultry and more.
It had concluded with an auction of 54 lots pulling in almost $225,000, said Vanderhoof and District 4-H Council leader Alex Kulchar.
“This year was just phenomenal support from the local businesses,” he said. “They were just happy to be out and able to raise their hand, I don’t know, but we’ve never had an auction that was that strong.”
Amongst the 74 members participating in the Achievement Days was 4-H BC Ambassador Iara Pavon.
This marked her last year with the 4-H club she has spent nine years with.
“I’m really thankful that we had the opportunity this year to do more stuff, especially in person,” Pavon said.
“It truly makes a difference in the attitude of not only the members but the community in general from what I’ve noticed.”
While many businesses, including Pavon’s own family that is second-generation beekeepers, have been adversely impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic and seen a reduction in sales, Pavon said it was amazing to see how many people were eager to support the 4-H auction.
The price of pigs never went below $6 a pound, she said.
Before Saturday’s late afternoon auction, Pavon assisted with the poultry show handing out ribbons in the morning.
Her photography project was purchased by Four Rivers Co-op.
“If it wasn’t for the 4-H program, I wouldn’t be a confident public speaker and I wouldn’t have had the opportunity to meet so many as an ambassador as well,” Pavon said.
“So this year, I’m actually donating part of my money that I raised from my photo to the 4-H BC Foundation as a thank you, but I’d love to become a leader and continue to help any members in any way that I can.”
For Kulchar, who has been involved with Vanderhoof and District 4-H for the past 15-years, he said seeing young members develop and learn lifelong skills through the program is highly rewarding.
“We’re always leaning on volunteers to help us out to help these kids develop their lifelong skills, so a really big thank you to everyone who supports any part of the 4-H program,” he added.
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