Springtime in 4-H means the competitive events are in full swing. One event common to all 4-H counties is called County Events. Pinellas County 4-H divides its County Events into two events – Night of the Arts and Demonstration Day.
Night of the Arts has three contests – Share the Fun, Poster Contest, and the Photo Exhibit. Share the Fun is the talent show with an emphasis on fun. This year’s entries include piano, songs, a monologue, and dancers from ballroom to hula. Contestants are judged (except for Cloverbuds) and awarded ribbons. The top two winners in each age category advance to compete at District Events in Pasco County in May.
The Poster and Photo Exhibit Contest entries are turned in and displayed during Night of the Arts for everyone to enjoy. They are judged at a later date and the results are announced at Demonstration Day. Winning entries advance to the State competition in Gainesville.
Night of the Arts is a fun event, although it is important to remember that the entries are covered by the Communication and Expressive Arts project area. Theatre Arts, Photography, and Visual Arts are project book categories in 4-H. Some examples of these projects can be found at : http://www.florida4h.org/projects/Project_Enrollment_CAS.shtml.
Four-H members are not required to be enrolled in one of these projects to participate in any of the above contests.

The second half of County Events is Demonstration Day. Demonstration Day presentations are tied directly to the 4-H’ers project. The presentation, called a Demonstration or Illustrated Talk is an opportunity for the 4-H member to educate the audience on something interesting that was learned while working on the 4-H project. Last year the most popular project area for demonstrations was on horses.
Registration for Demonstration Day is open. All 4-H’ers who need an entry form should contact Jean Rogalsky at jrogalsk@pinellascounty.org.
All blue ribbon winners are eligible to compete at District Events. Junior and Intermediate winners from Pinellas County earn a scholarship to 4-H Camp Ocala. Senior winners are awarded a scholarship to attend 4-H State Congress.

Night of the Arts takes place March 2 at 7:00 p.m. and will be held at the Pinellas County Extension Office.
Demonstration Day takes place March 24 at 9:00 a.m. also at the Extension Office.
The public is invited to attend these events. Come and learn a little more about what the Pinellas County 4-H program is all about.

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