Young rural American "very different"

Press, Volume CX, Issue 32439, 28 October 1970, Page 6

Young rural American "very different"

A Canterbury teacher, now in the United States, says the young people she has met in rural areas are quite different from the American youth she had read about in New Zealand.

She is Miss Georgina Rountree, formerly of Alford Forest, who is visiting the United States for six months under the International Farm Youth Exchange programme as a guest of the 4-H Club Foundation. Having lived with families in rural areas, Miss Rountree says that she has seen little of the problems of youth New Zealanders frequently hear about—student demonstrations, rioting, drug addiction, alcoholism and racial discrimination —"I am convinced that they are a minority group.”

few behaviour problems. Adult leaders act only in an advisory capacity to the youth council.

Washington next month for an evaluation programme. During her stay in Wyoming and Pennsylvania, she says, she has met extremely friendly people and the families with whom she has stayed have made her feel very much at home. Cattle round-up In Wyoming she has particularly enjoyed riding on the open range to round up cattle for calf branding—“quite a novel experience for a Kiwi to live in the “Wild West.” The ranches that she stayed on range in area from 3000 to 75,000 acres. Pennsylvania, she says, has proved to be more picturesque, with green pastures, rolling hillsides and many bams. But, she says, she felt glad to be a New Zealander when she heard about the severe winters and how stock had to be kept in bams for up to seven months. The International Farm Youth Exchange and other 4-H international exchange programmes are aimed at promoting international understanding and developing better informed youth lead-

Future leaders “These young people—the future leaders of the United States —are being educated in responsibility, independence, sportsmanship and leadership and at the same time are enjoying every minute of the experience,” says Miss Rountree.

At these camps she has learned, among other things, archery, square dancing, and how to make flowers from feathers. When she attended a county fair she was surprised to learn that the main part of the programme was the 4-H livestock projects. The most popular of these was the baby beef project, for which club members bought a beef calf and raised it for the fair—learning at the same time the techniques of judging, so that she has heard many parents admit that their youngsters knew more about stock judging than themselves.

Club pledges Miss Rountree says in a letter to “The Press” that she has been most impressed by the work of the nationwide rural youth organisation —the 4-H clubs.

Members, aged between nine and 18 years, pledge their heads to clearer thinking, their hearts to greater loyalty, their hands to larger service, and their health to better living for their club, community and country. .

A major ambition of every club member taking part in a beef project is to win the grand champion ribbon at the fair. At the conclusion of the fair the steers are usually auctioned and buyers pay high prices to encourage the youngsters.

They work on projects of their choice including raising animals, forestry, leathercraft, woodwork, electricity, cooking and sewing to increase their knowledge and skills.

The Canterbury visitor has attended two camps arranged by the club movement during the summer vacation. She says that a boy or girl member is elected each year 'as camp governor, and then organises this activity with the help of an elected coun-

Many of the buyers give the stock they buy to an organisation or a charity in the commurfity.

Move to towns

The adults, she says, seem to give whole-hearted support to the young people in the 4-H clubs, which are now apparently spreading into urban areas where the projects chosen are more relevant to members’ non-farm-ing interests. Miss Rountree is spending three months in each of two states and then will go to

This democratic type of organisation proved to be very successful and there are