Adair County 4-H’ers attend state conference

GREENFIELD – Adair County 4-H’ers Heath Downing, Skyler Rawlings, Hank Bohling, Michala Stull, Brooklyn Sammons, Shelby Soper, Ashlyn Kralik, Selena Rubio and Halee Wallace attended State 4-H Conference held on the Iowa State University campus in Ames. Julie Wallace, leader of the Richland Royals 4-H Club, served as chaperone for the group.

Bohling and Soper are members of the 2015-16 State 4-H Council and helped with the planning and activities during the conference. Rawlings was installed as a member of the 2016-17 State 4-H Council.

Closing session of the three-day event included capstone speaker Holly Hoffman, who was the last woman standing from the Espada Tribe in season 21 of “Survivor.” At age 44 with her children off to college, Hoffman wanted some challenge and adventure in her life. She put together a three-minute audition tape and a 24-page application to compete against about 100,000 other applicants from around the United States. She was shocked when she received the casting call in 2010.

“You find out a lot about yourself when you face starvation, sleep deprivation, fighting cold weather in a jungle and giant bug bites,” Hoffman said. “I didn’t brush my teeth the whole 38 days. I prayed every day. But, the life’s lesson that came to me was to never give up. I am thankful for my struggle because I would never have discovered my strengths.”

In her presentation, she challenged the audience to never give up.

“Defeat is a temporary condition, but giving up is permanent – you can’t go back,” Hoffman said of the days she struggled to keep going during her “Survivor” experience. “It is all in your attitude toward what you’re facing. If you take that step back and think about it, a setback is just a setup for a comeback in life.”

Hoffman shared stories about how her experiences changed her life and the way she thinks about things back in the “real world.” She encouraged the youth and other guests to take opportunities and focus on attitude, determination, confidence, desire, faith and perseverance to finish what you start. The audience walked away inspired to light the fire of successful living within themselves.

Hoffman left the audience with this quote from Maria Robinson: “Nobody can go back and start a new beginning, but anyone can start today and make a new ending.”

Other conference activities included mixers, workshops, dance, community service project, formal banquet, entertainment and closing session with awards recognition and installation of the 2016-17 State 4-H Council.