Lincoln County Fair & 4-H Camp!

July 1^st -July 12th were probably the busiest two weeks of my entire time as an intern. It all started with the Lincoln County Fair. On the first day, I helped enter items into Floral Hall. I couldn't believe how many items were checked in...a few people  brought carloads of items to enter! Once everything was checked in, it then had to be placed in the proper category so that it would be ready for judging. I was there working the whole day, and I even got to meet the radio personality that I have been talking to on the radio this summer (her son was entering some of his photography in the fair).

This lady was the judge for the baked goods. I stayed with her while she taught me what to look for in high-quality baked goods. She tasted every item, just like a good judge should!

This was the grand champion of all the baked goods. (It was a dried apricot pie, if I remember correctly).

 The next day was the rabbit & poultry show at the fair. There weren’t that many animals entered into the fair, and I think that may have been due to the bad weather that we had right before it started. Even so, it was a learning experience because the judges took the time to explain to each person why their animal(s) received the ribbon that they got.

                In the middle of the week, we had our monthly Lunch & Learn program. The recipe that we were testing was for bean enchiladas and we also made Spanish rice and salsa to go with it. After that was over, I set at the reception desk and answered phones. I had never answered the phones for the office before, so it was good for me to get that experience.

                To finish up the week, I visited the Farmer’s Market and passed out displays to each of the vendors. The displays held recipes for the vendors to display recipes to promote the products that they are selling. 

The week after that was 4-H camp. Lincoln, Boyle, and Powell counties all came together for camp at the J.M. Feltner Memorial 4-H Camp, which is located near London, Kentucky. I had never been to 4-H camp before, so I was very excited. The theme of the week was college, so all of the special activities that we did at camp were supposed to give the campers a taste of the positive aspects of college. Each cabin was supposed to resemble a fraternity or a sorority. We had College Game Day, a Rush Week Carnival, Greek Sing, and even a toga party! Some of the classes that I helped with include high ropes, cooking, fishing, and nature. I would probably have to say that fishing was my favorite, but I really wish that I had taken the time to climb the rock wall and go down the zip-line! The whole week at camp, everyone was hot, sweaty, busy, and tired, but I believe that everyone (including the few homesick campers), ended up having a good time. I had a great group of girls in my cabin, and I can honestly say that I missed them as soon as they left. One first-time camper in my cabin followed me around the entire week and always wanted to be right by my side everywhere we went. I had never had a young person look up to me like that before, and it caused me to notice that I really did have an impact on those girls. I am seriously considering coming back to camp in the future, even after my internship is over. Below are some of my favorite pictures from camp.

I let one of the campers in Nature class borrow my camera, and he asked to take a photo of me.

The nature instructor talking to the campers.

My wonderful Cabin 10 girls. I couldn't have done it without the ladies in the back row, but all of the girls were great, so they made my first time as an Adult Counselor easy.

On the last day of camp, everyone got a t-shirt to wear.