By Kristie Popa
Do you enjoy the outdoors? Have you ever gone hunting, fishing or target shooting? National Hunting and Fishing Day takes place on October 26th. This day serves as the perfect opportunity to celebrate the traditions of these outdoor activities throughout the United States. During the month of September, we have focused on self-improvement. On this specific day, I encourage you to take a moment and think about how you can celebrate the outdoors and learn a little bit about conservation, fish and wildlife management and how to maintain a healthy environment not only for ourselves but for the animals around us.
Thinking about those topics, 4-H Offers many outdoor related projects including shooting sports and sport fishing. These projects teach youth skills related to the specific project as well as life skills which will assist them in all parts of their life.
If you have an interest in shooting sports, the 4-H Shooting Sports program offers youth an opportunity to learn how to safely and ethically shoot a bow and arrow, air rifle, shotgun or rifle. Through the program, youth learn firearm safety, correct handling and more. For those interested in sports fishing, topics include tackle types, how to catch a fish, caring for a rod and reel, fish id and the ecology of aquatic and marine environments.
All 4-H environmental programs offer youth the chance to develop self-confidence, self-discipline, responsibility and sportsmanship as well as an appreciation of natural resources. All in all, youth can gain project-based skills as well as life skills which both contribute to self-improvement as well as improvement of the environment.
I encourage you to take some time on October 26th to look into the 4-H Environmental Science programs, learn a little more about the environment or spend some time serving the community by cleaning up outside or educating others about hunting, fishing, target shooting, conservation and/or the environment.
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