Attorney Genera, conservationists, 4-H members Centennial in Florida

Apr 14, 2009 2 min read

Attorney General Bill McCollum today celebrated 100

years of 4-H in Florida with over 100 4-H members from around the state,

as well as representatives from 1000 Friends of Florida, the Florida

Conservation Campaign, Audubon Society, Florida Wildlife Federation, Trust

for Public Land and The Nature Conservancy. During a tree planting

ceremony at the Capitol, the Attorney General spoke about the importance

of 4-H’s commitment to teach young people to be leaders in their

communities and good stewards of their environment.

“I am excited to join Florida’s environmental community to champion an

effort to make our planet a little greener,” said Attorney General

McCollum. “It is imperative the young people of this state understand the

gravity of their responsibility to lead their peers and protect the

precious resources with which they have been entrusted.”

Florida 4-H is a strong youth development program which has touched the

lives of over 263,000 youth and nearly 12,000 volunteers. Nationally, 4-H

has over 6 million members who participate in hands-on learning activities

geared at helping youth become contributing, productive, self-directed

members of society.

“We are excited that Attorney General Bill McCollum is honoring our legacy

by planting this tree in the Rose Garden at the Florida Capitol,” said

Marilyn Norman, Ph.D., associate professor and associate dean over the

state’s 4-H program. We feel the growth of this tree represents the

thousands of Florida 4-H volunteers, parents, and professionals over the

last 100 years who created quality learning environments in which positive

youth development occurs.”

The tree planting was part of 4-H’s “Million Tree Project,” which is

working toward the goal of planting 1 million trees across the continent

to help lower greenhouse emissions, reduce runoff, and promote a better

state of environmental consciousness. The tree, a crepe myrtle, was chosen

because of its ability to thrive in Florida’s environment with little

water once established.

“We salute the Attorney General for his land conservation leadership and

stewardship,” said Lester Abberger, Chairman of the Florida Conservation

Campaign. “We are pleased and proud to join him in his support of 4-H and

its Million Tree project.”

Conservation and preservation have long been priorities of Attorney

General McCollum. As a U.S. Congressman, he led the effort to designate

the Wekiva River as part of the National Wild & Scenic Rivers System. Last

year, the Attorney General was instrumental in helping the Florida

Department of Environmental Protection and Weeki Wachee Springs enter into a proposed agreement which will preserve the attraction by converting

Weeki Wachee Springs into a state park.

Source: Attorney General’s office