Living the 4-H Pledge

In October, 2018, Hurricane Michael caused catastrophic damage in Florida’s panhandle and extreme southwestern Georgia. One of the hardest hit areas in Georgia was Decatur, Seminole and Miller counties. There was significant damage to the electrical infrastructure which caused residents of these counties to be without power for an estimated 4-6+ weeks. Without electricity, these community members and 4-H families had a critical need for water, food and hygiene supplies. The Screven County 4-H agent contacted the Decatur agent to find out what they needed. The Screven County 4-H agent reached out to surrounding counties in Southeast District for help in collecting supplies for the 4-H families in Southwest District. A truck and trailer were made available and the counties were tasked with filling it with supplies before the end of the week. In just four short days, a trailer from Screven County 4-H was packed full of supplies. A total of 11 counties across southeast and southwest Georgia participated in collecting items. The trailer of supplies contained 3,600 bottles of water, 240 rolls of paper towels, 360 rolls of toilet paper, 30 packages of paper plates, 15 large boxes of cleaning supplies, 2,200 baby diapers, 450 individual packages of baby wipes, 20 boxes of canned food items, 25 large boxes of individually wrapped food items and snacks, 13 boxes of personal hygiene products, 125 children’s books and coloring books, and 90 cans of pet food. The supplies were divided among Decatur, Seminole and Miller counties to provide relief for 4-H’ers and their families following Hurricane Michael.