V. Todd Miller LSU AgCenter
Pollock — Taking the lectern at the Louisiana 4-H Hall of Fame ceremony, state office honoree Robert F. Richard recalled a time from the late 1980s where he met a St. Martin Parish youth who wanted to show a lamb at a livestock show like her older brother had done.
“She could not leave her father’s side and shook in the stands as she watched,” Richard said. “We didn’t think she could go through with it, but with encouragement, she ushered the lamb into the ring and ended up getting a higher ribbon than her brother. That’s what 4-H can do.”
Richard’s story was one of numerous inspiring tales of youth engagement and development recounted by inductees and relatives at the gathering recently held at the Grant Walker 4-H Educational Center in Pollock, Louisiana.
Throughout her career of service, marked by longevity, inductee Nina Mills has served on advisory boards, the 4-H Foundation and the state fashion board, all while balancing her responsibilities as a wife, mother and grandmother.
“I’ve been at it for about 30 years,” Mills said. “Whenever I was the fashion board mother, a bunch of girls from all over the state were calling me Mom.”
As part of the team that pioneered the Natchitoches Parish 4-H Foundation banquet and auction that has raised close to $200,000 in the last seven years, Mimi Stoker called 4-H the “best youth organization on the planet” and said she was practically born into it.
“My daddy was a 4-H agent, and I was thrilled when I became one,” she said. “Once I was a shy, skinny 12-year-old girl who had a dream to show a champion lamb. Because of 4-H, that dream came true.”
Jackie McCreary from St. James Parish has been hailed as a connector, problem solver and champion for youth. She said the organization made her a better, more thriving adult in numerous ways.
“I’m a better public speaker, a better critical thinker, a better community servant and a better leader because of my involvement in the 4-H program,” she said. “The program provides career exploration opportunities for young people across the state, a lot of whom are working and living in underserved areas. It opens the door to all possibilities.”
Reggie Paul Bagala’s widow Marissa accepted the award for her husband, saying that Camp Grant Walker helped shape the man he became and said they had their official first date driving back from a 4-H Executive Committee meeting there. “Looking back, I guess you could say 4-H didn’t just help shape his future, it helped begin ours,” she said. “For Reggie, 4-H was never just an organization. It was where he learned to serve and to believe that one person really could make a difference.”
