4-H Projects Judged for 2022 County Fair Display

JAMESTOWN, NEW YORK (July 20, 2022), Cornell Cooperative Extension of Chautauqua County's 4-H program evaluated around 1,000 4-H Foods, Creative Crafts, Conservation, Sewing Projects, and other non-animal exhibits. Youth throughout Chautauqua County have been working for months, and in some cases, years to create true works of art. From photography to woodworking youth projects will be displayed in the 4-H Building during the 2022 Chautauqua County Fair.

4-H youth are ages 8-19 years with varying experience levels. Cloverbuds (youth ages 5-7) are not "judged" and all Cloverbud projects are awarded a Cloverbud Ribbon. Over 25 judges spent one-on-one time with 4-H participants evaluating their projects. Judges evaluate using the Danish system. The Danish system allows judges to determine based on a 4-H'ers age and experience, if they feel that the completed project is Excellent (Blue), Good (Red), or Worthy (White).

Youth presented each of their projects to a judge in the respective department, for example, a professional photographer may judge a photograph. Each judge spends a few minutes with each youth determining the youth's age, experience level, and providing encouragement and constructive criticism.

This year, 40 projects were selected to be displayed at The Great New York State Fair. County judges select projects that are exceptional for the youth's age and experience level. These items will be on display at The Great New York State Fair.

You can get a first-hand look at the exceptional projects created by Chautauqua County 4-H'ers by attending the 2022 Chautauqua County Fair, July 18-24 in Dunkirk. Youth projects are on display in the 4-H Building where there will also be children's activities, canine demonstrations, and public presentations.

Projects selected for State Fair:

From the Canadaway club: Adam Lesch with stenciled painting, project record, tin punch; Matthew Brown with bleached wearable, unedited color image, tin punch; Garrett Lesch with tennis pants, tin punch, stencil art. From the Little Broken Straws club: Kendall Drake with a shadow box glass etching, Hannah Cross with a cake. From the Summerdale Sunset Riders: Kinsey Witherow with solar printing, saddle rack; Carley Wilson with solar painting, saddle rack; Wyatt Portice with a tie-dye t-shirt, saddle rack; Dylan Portice with a saddle rack. For the Country Critters club: Tyler Crowell with copper tooling, ceramic Christmas tree and chess set; Grace Meyer with copper tooling, a record book, and a sunflower quilt; Rachel Comstock with a ceramic Santa Claus; Mackenzy Graziano with a ceramic bear set, and a blue quilt. From the Harmony Haystackers: Logan Ellsworth with bleached wearables, and three ceramic vases; Landen Ellsworth with a sock gnome; Haley Odell with a snowman/penguin ceramic set, two crochet doilies, an unedited black and white image, and an unedited color image. Lone members: Gavin LeBarron and his brother Everett with tie-dye t-shirts. Sherman country kids had lots of projects during the year. Madalyn Reading has a tie-dye t-shirt; Lexus Eschenbach with string art; Jonathan Coblentz and Kristen Heath each had a brush bot. Kristen also had a project poster; Caitlyn Kriner with a thanksgiving centerpiece. Levant Livewires assisted with Ian Lindell’s selections of diamond pot picture, and a tin punch; Braelynn Mistretta with a project poster and a wooden coaster set. And one member of the Frewsburg Hayseeds, Laine Carpenter with wool art.

Honorable Mention:

Grace Meyer with a project poster; Adam Lesch with project record and a record book; Ava Meyer with a ceramic red worm and a quilt; Emalise Runge and Rachel Comstock both with quilts.

2022 Special Judges Award for Horticulture: Chosen this year are Kristen Heath of the Sherman Kountry Kids with Terrarium, and Luisa Smith a lone member with a table arrangement.

2022 Special Judges Award for Foods: This year chosen were a flan de leche from Luisa Smith and Garrett Lesch of Canadaway Club with a berry Cheese Trifle.

The 4-H Youth Development Program is one of many programs offered by Cornell Cooperative Extension of Chautauqua County (CCE-Chautauqua). CCE-Chautauqua is a community based educational organization, affiliated with Cornell University, Chautauqua County Government, the NYS SUNY system, and the federal government through the United States Department of Agriculture’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture. For more information, call 716-664-9502 or visit our website at www.cce.cornell.edu/chautauqua. Cornell University Cooperative Extension provides equal program and employment opportunities.

Last updated July 20, 2022