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4-H museum to honor heritage,
showcase development programs
4-H will get the showcase it deserves upon completion of a new museum under development in Jackson. The Pete Frierson 4-H Museum and Learning Center was dedicated last fall on the grounds of the Mississippi Agriculture and Forestry Museum. With building construction complete, work has shifted to the development of exhibits.
The facility will be first of its kind in the nation, organizers say. They envision it not only as a historical museum but as a development and learning resource for youth, 4-H volunteers and teachers.
Interest in the creation of a 4-H museum in Mississippi gained momentum in 2002 when 4-H clubs across the nation celebrated the organization’s centennial. Generous financial donations from strong 4-H supporters—including Pete Frierson, the late Jackson businessman for whom the museum is named—provided funding for the building’s initial construction.
4-H has a long history of service to youth across the nation. It began as a Cooperative Extension program to improve life in rural areas by teaching youth to “learn by doing.” Extension agents used the program to introduce improved methods of farming and homemaking. For example, boys in 4-H clubs learned how to use fertilizer to substantially increase their corn yield. Their successes usually convinced their fathers to adopt the new practices.
As the 4-H program grew, more emphasis was placed on the development of the individual rather than the product. 4-H was proving itself to be a flexible program responsive to changing needs. After all, its underlying theme has always been growth and development. In the 1950s more non-farm youth began joining 4-H to take advantage of its expanding opportunities.
4-H is even more far-reaching and progressive today. Seven million youth nationwide are active in 4-H clubs.
In Mississippi, 87,000 boys and girls were enrolled in 4-H last year. No doubt they were attracted to the 4-H promise of opportunity and learning in a vast array of subjects, from technology to the arts, citizenship to leadership.
4-H is accessible to virtually every Mississippian from 8 to 19 years old. Every county in Mississippi has at least one 4-H club and a 4-H professional to oversee the program. Boys and girls can participate either through a community club or their school.
4-H’s Clover Bud program reaches the younger set, from 5-8 years.
The backbone of 4-H is more than 5,500 adult volunteer leaders who work with Mississippi 4-Hers to advise and help them achieve personal goals.
One of the goals of the 4-H museum is to increase awareness of today’s 4-H programs and, we hope, banish the perception that it is strictly for rural youth. In fact, 40 percent of 4-Hers live in urban areas.
We urge you to join us in supporting the new 4-H museum in any way you can. It will be a valuable educational asset for youth and a unique tribute to one of America’s most successful youth programs.
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