leadership - 4-H Ontario

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A FULL CIRCLE STORY
What brings 4-H Volunteers back
By Stephanie Craig
Kim Desserre is a passionate Rainy
River 4-H Volunteer who loves leading
4-H Clubs. Kim’s 4-H story is one
that mirrors the story of many 4-H
Volunteers; she values hands-on
learning for herself and her Members.
Like many other 4-H Volunteers, Kim
started off her 4-H experience as a
Member. Kim completed 10 agriculture
Clubs, 23 homemaking Clubs,
attended the Regional Conference in
Thunder Bay and took part in the 4-H
Canada Interprovincial Exchange.
Kim was hooked on the 4-H “Learn
To Do By Doing” philosophy. “Part of
my love of 4-H is that it is a fun way
to learn new things,” explains Kim.
Kim’s enthusiasm for the program
led her directly into volunteering after
she graduated as a Member. Kim led
five Clubs and then decided to take a
break to focus on other aspects of her
life, including starting a family.
But like many fellow Volunteers, Kim’s
4-H experience came full circle when
her children became interested in
the program. Kim is now once again
heavily involved in the Rainy River
4-H Association. She happily renewed
her 4-H involvement when her oldest
son developed an interest in 4-H. “A
lot of us do it for our kids,” explains
Kim, “it’s really great that some of our
Volunteers have started 4-H with their
kids.” Her oldest son is now 17 and
her 15, 13 and 10-year-old boys have
all followed in his 4-H footsteps. Great
minds really do think alike!
Kim has a “passion for leading” and
she was happy to restore this interest
by renewing her 4-H Volunteer status.
Kim’s favourite part of the experience
is being able to bring youth together
to learn something new in a fun and
engaging way. “There’s so much
neat stuff to do,” Kim says. “I love
4-H because of the variety. You are
always trying and learning something
new. We find new things to do or do
something in a new fun way all the
time.”
There’s so much
neat stuff to do. I
love 4-H because of
the variety,” says Kim.
Since returning to 4-H, Kim has led a
variety of Clubs, her first being Take
A Kid Fishing Club. She’s also tried
out horticulture, sports, chocolate,
veterinary and sewing Clubs, just to
name a few. Kim has experienced ups
and downs with running her Clubs
just like any other Volunteer. One
particular hurdle Kim had to overcome,
which many other Volunteers struggle
with, was the change in 4-H policies
that required two 4-H Volunteers
for the creation of a Club. Kim was
skeptical about this policy at first but
she soon changed her mind. “It does
make the meeting run a lot smoother.
I’m really glad the policy is in place
now. It’s hard by yourself and it helps
with crowd control,” Kim laughs. She
also jokes about the occasional need
for a seating plan when Members start
to get “goofy”.
Like Kim, her four sons really
appreciate 4-H’s “Learn To Do By
Doing” approach. They often have the
need to be active and sometimes even
“goofy”. “My boys hate to write things
down so doing hands on learning is
the best way,” Kim says. “They like to
get outside and do social rec. They
really are my barometers of project
success.” If Kim hears “this is too
much like school” she knows its time
to mix things up to ensure Members
have a good time and absorb the
project material. “Sometimes you think
they really are just goofing around but
they will come to another project and
remember what you talked about,” Kim
explains.
Those involved in 4-H hear time
and time again that what makes 4-H
special is the “Learn To Do By Doing”
approach. Kim’s experience echoes
that. Members learn valuable skills
through their 4-H Clubs, and they have
fun while doing so. Kim’s passion for
learning through experience is what
keeps her Clubs going and gives the
Members of Rainy River a wonderful
and sometimes goofy 4-H experience.
Thank you Kim.
Leadership In Action • Winter 2011