On Sunday May 19th Nassau County 4-H lost a beloved leader, Kristen Poppell.

Kristen was an accomplished and beloved Agent and her loss will forever be a hole in our hearts.

Kristen has worked for the University of Florida’s 4-H Extension program since November 2015. Although it was only a brief period with us, she was quickly recognized as a rising star. She was particularly dedicated to her citizenship/leadership programs like County Council, summer camp counselors, and the Youth Leadership Nassau Program. There are few photos of her in action because she always wanted the recognition to be about the youth. She loved her 4-H’ers. She genuinely cared about their success and would do everything in her power to help them. She was constantly thinking of new ways to make 4-H better for them. Many late nights and fundraisers meant she could provide opportunities and support for so many youth.

She had received numerous awards including the prestigious Outstanding Young Professional for Florida 4-H in 2018, the Greg Yost Memorial Youth in Leadership Award and the Search for Program of Excellence in Teen Programming Award in 2019. She was also awarded the 2019 Achievement in Service Award out of all the 4-H Agents in the State. This is only a small percentage of her recognition. She was honest and humble. She was devoted to her work and gave each task 100%…always willing to step up and help out. She was a fabulous teacher and mentor for both youth and agents. She provided a vision, structure, and a foundation that will ensure Nassau County 4-H’s success for a lifetime. More than anything she could always light up a room with her smile.

After her untimely passing there was an incredible outcry of love, demonstrating just how many lives she touched.

Kristen’s world included her faith, the outdoors, quick wit and sarcasm, her fur-children Ace and Arrow, a devoted husband Chase, her loving Parents Gloria and Dwayne, countless friends, Gator Football, being barefoot, country music, and traveling. She was close with her family and took every opportunity to make memories with them. She was finally able to visit Europe during the summer of 2018 and never missed an opportunity to laugh. She was environmentally conscious and her family asks to honor her memory with trees, not flowers. Her favorite tree was an Acer rubrum (or Red Maple). We will plant one at the Callahan Extension in her memory.

Kristen leaves behind a legacy and a higher benchmark for all of us.

Your life was a blessing

Your memory a treasure

You are loved beyond words

and missed beyond measure

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