3 Avoyelles Parish 4-H students earn Awards Trip

Three Avoyelles Parish 4-H members were selected to attend the annual 4-H Educational Awards Trip to sites in Baton Rouge and New Orleans on Nov. 18-20, during their Thanksgiving break.

The local 8th graders were Anna Gautreaux of Simmesport, who attends Avoyelles High, and Abigail DeLoach and Robert Hubbard, who both live in Effie and attend LaSAS.

Avoyelles tied with Bossier and St. Martin parishes for the most members of the elite group.

The 20 students from across the state were chosen based on their personal achievements and 4-H participation over the past year.

Those selected had “outstanding achievement portfolios” and were invited to explore the cities by taking tours and eating local cuisine, LSU AgCenter youth development instructor Tanya Giroir said. “Delegates enjoyed lunch at Café Reconcile, a restaurant that houses a program for at-risk youth in New Orleans.”

The 4-Hers learned about training that helps the ‘Reconcile’ youth enter the hospitality/restaurant industry.

The group also toured Mardi Gras World and the National World War II Museum.

In Baton Rouge, the 4-Hers were treated to a Sunday dinner sponsored by DEMCO utility company and visited the LSU Rural Life Museum and LSU Museum of Natural Science.

The trip concluded with an awards banquet in The Club at LSU Union Square on the LSU campus in Baton Rouge.

Trip sponsors included the LSU AgCenter, LSU Rural Life Museum, DEMCO, LSU Museum of Natural Science and the Louisiana 4-H Foundation.

AgCenter 4-H agents Liz Bryan, Stephanie Gravois and Elliot Scroggs accompanied the youth on their trip.