Van Buren Teen Wins Regional First Place In Leadership At 4-H Congress

A Van Buren County teen won the regional first-place award for his Leadership Portfolio at the recent state 4-H Congress.

16-year-old Cade Simmons said the annual congress brings 4-H members together to learn about citizenship, leadership, government, and other similar topics. He said the leadership contest works as an interview process where individuals talk about leadership experiences during their time in 4-H.

“I also compete in public speaking so a lot of those skills tie hand in hand,” Simmons said. “So a lot of my experiences are usually about getting some sort of word out or using my speaking ability to help out those in my community in any way I can.”

Simmons said going to Congress is always a fun experience. He said there are typically around 300 students who attend. Simmons said this year’s Congress surpassed that number.

Simmons said his biggest piece of advice to students who wish to attend Congress is to talk to as many people as possible. He said the more you engage with the content, the more interested you are in the experiences of others, the more enjoyable Congress will be.

“Meet as many people as you can,” Simmons said. “Because if you continue doing anything with Tennessee 4-H you’re going to have a lot more experiences just like that. And it will be great to get to know all of the awesome people who do Tennessee 4-H.”