We went to new depths to celebrate our first in person district teen event this year. Winter Fling took place at the Karen Beasley Sea Turtle Rescue and Rehabilitation Center in Surf City, NC. About 50 youth and 20 adults from 10 counties in our district traveled to Pender County for the big day.
Our officers joined forces with our SE 4-H District Volunteer Leaders Association Officers to start our day off with Ice Breakers. After a few series of some interesting stories we created as a team we jumped into our business meeting. Called to order by our District President, Kaylee Lackey from Sampson County we had introductions, roll call for our 10 counties present, and talked about our upcoming teen retreat.
After the meeting we took part in outside team building exercises so we could get a breath of fresh air. then we came back inside to enjoy some leadership workshops put together by Kaylee Lackey and her Mother Kim Lackey who is our current State 4-H Volunteer Leaders' Association President-Elect.
After our first workshop we enjoyed box lunches from Jersey Mikes and got a chance to be outside and enjoy a beautiful North Carolina Day. We also were introduced to carton water which had a neat challenge with it. I you post a photo of the water with the hash tag "better planet" the company would plant two trees in a National Forest. What an awesome way to complete a community service project. As we finished up the Sea turtle center offered a lot of opportunities for our youth. Corn Hole boards, photo opportunities, and just scenic area our teens had a chance to get to know each other face to face and make friendships that have been hard to make for the last two years.
When we came back in, we split into three groups; the green sea turtles, leatherback turtles, and loggerhead turtles. These three species actually lay their eggs on North Carolina beaches and are most tied to our state. Each group went to a different area of the center to start learning about a variety of things.
One group started in the main hall and learned different types of sea turtles, nesting habits and habitats. Our youth learned about the dangers that face the sea turtles with one of those being humans and our ecological habits. Trash, released balloons, and plastic straws sometimes mimic food for these grand creatures and cause issues and can be fatal. By switching to metal, reusable straws, not releasing balloons, and making sure trash goes into appropriate receptacles (and doing our best to recycle) makes a huge difference.
Another group started in the turtle x-ray room and then over to an exam room where they learned about measuring turtles, and overall health and wellness of these incredible creatures. They also learned what happens when one is checked in the process these volunteers go through to nurse these large creature back to health.
The 4-H members also helped out by preparing fish and veggies to feed the turtles. With all the food they prepared the staff and volunteers told them it would probably last for just over a day to feed all the patients. Winter is a busy time for the facility because of cold stunned turtles. The facility also has turtles that will take long term rehab and some that can not go back into the wild but can be adopted by educational facilities (such as a zoo or aquarium).
When our 4-H Members left Saturday they said they had a good time, had learned a great deal, were glad to see each other, and left with metal straws to start a change for the environment for sea turtles. To see more of our adventures check out our photos. To review the unapproved minutes please feel free to click this link. Way to Go SE District!
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