Oklahoma 4-H Hall of Fame

Pittsburg County 4-H member Serena Woodard’s early 4-H career was centered around her love for dancing. She gave presentations and talks about dance. When she was in sixth grade, Serena and her sister began teaching Woodard’s Workshops. At the time, the workshops were mostly craft-based.

About a year after her first Woodard’s Workshop, she came home and told her mother she wanted a goat. With this new-found love of agriculture, she decided to switch things up and focus more on agriculture in Woodard’s Workshops. Since the switch, she has reached nearly 40,000 students through her workshops.

In 2018, Woodard was named the Agriculture Pillar Winner of the 4-H Youth in Action Awards. She served a term as a national spokesperson for 4-H agriculture programming. Her expertise was shared throughout countless speaking appearances, including Bayer’s Farm Progress Show, 4-H Agri-Science Summit and 4-H Ideas Forum. Her passion for 4-H was also shared in Teen Vogue Magazine, and she was a key player in National 4-H Council’s marketing efforts.

Adding to her impressive list of leadership experiences, Woodard served as Pittsburg County 4-H president, a State 4-H Ambassador and a Southeast District representative for the State 4-H Leadership Council.

Woodard is the essence of a passionate and dedicated leader in Oklahoma 4-H.

As a young girl, Madison Stephens said she couldn’t wait until she was old enough to join the Custer County 4-H Horse Club. As she learned more about the Oklahoma 4-H organization, her love for 4-H quickly grew beyond the horse project.

Passionate for performing arts, Stephens founded the Custer County 4-H Performing Arts Club. Through the club, she hosts tea parties for small children featuring Performing Arts Club members dressed as princesses.

She has raised more than $4,000 for the Oklahoma Children’s Hospital Foundation through her Princess Parties, and has hosted tea parties at the Oklahoma Children’s Hospital and the Ronald McDonald House.

Additionally, Stephens combined her interest in Oklahoma’s history with her performing arts project. After applying for multiple grants and researching and writing a play about the Oklahoma Land Run, Stephens recruited members of her county’s 4-H Horse Club and Performing Arts Club to teach Oklahoma history to more than 600 students through a play, Land Run reenactments and hands-on workshops.

“4-H has taught me that if I put my head, heart, hands and health together, there’s no telling how far I can go,” Stephens said. “4-H has taken me to unexpected places and given me experiences that no other youth organization could do.”

Stephens truly represents what it means to be a well-rounded 4-H member, and her accomplishments in 4-H are one of a kind.

As part of its mission, the Oklahoma 4-H Foundation provides financial support to 4-H members in the form of travel scholarships. These scholarships give members opportunities to attend national 4-H trips to places such as Denver, Atlanta and Washington D.C.

Adding to the list of travel opportunities sponsored by the 4-H Foundation, board members Terry Stowers and Rodd Moesel had an idea for a once-in-a-lifetime experience for 4-H’ers.

“The Foundation has always supported youth who attend Citizenship Washington Focus, but we also wanted to find a way to include 4-H members in the Presidential Inauguration experience,” Moesel said.

The duo met to discuss possible partners for this new scholarship opportunity. Moesel said they wanted to partner with an individual who has been involved heavily in both public policy and the 4-H organization, and Sen. Ron Justice was the first person who came to their minds.

Sen. Justice is no stranger to 4-H and Oklahoma State University Extension. He spent 33 years working closely with 4-H youth as an Extension educator before beginning a career as a state senator. During his time in the state senate, he learned the value of sparking political interest in young adults.

“We thought it would be a great opportunity to honor Sen. Justice by creating a scholarship in his name,” Stowers said.

Appropriately, the Ron Justice Presidential Inauguration Scholarship was created, and selected 4-H’ers will benefit from the scholarship for the 2021 Presidential Inauguration trip.

“It’s important to get youth involved in the political process,” Sen. Justice said. “I hope to inspire them to be contributing members of their communities and experience all Washington D.C. has to offer.”

For Blayne Arthur, Oklahoma Secretary of Agriculture, Sen. Justice’s unwavering support comes as no surprise, she said.

“From being an Extension educator to his time in the legislature, you always see Sen. Justice as a champion for the Oklahoma 4-H program and the Oklahoma 4-H Foundation,” Arthur said. “Ron Justice has driven a lot of support for both Extension and the work of the 4-H Foundation.”

With generous support from Enel Green Power, a renewable energy corporation, Oklahoma 4-H members are learning about career opportunities in science through the Oklahoma 4-H STEMist program.

“Through the STEMist program, college students are hired each summer to travel the state and teach STEM workshops at 4-H camps, cub meetings and other events,” said Jeff Sallee, associate professor and Extension specialist in the State 4-H office.

Innovative workshops offered through the STEMist program range from drone technology and wind energy to rocketry and water science. The college students are trained thoroughly to present these workshops in fun, hands-on lessons.

Sallee said staff at Enel Green Power expressed interest in the STEMist program and wanted to assist in getting youth excited about career possibilities in STEM. This interest has blossomed into a invaluable partnership with the Oklahoma 4-H Foundation.

“We’re in this for our future,” said Trish Williams, Oklahoma field coordinator for Enel Green Power. “We want to get involved as quickly as we can because we need these 4-H members coming up in our industry.”

The STEMist program completed its third term in summer 2019. Sallee said the growing success of the program would not be possible without the support of Enel Green Power.

“Because of their funding and support, we have been able to reach thousands of youth across the state with STEM programs and teach them STEM skills,” Sallee said.

A product of Oklahoma 4-H, Becky Walker has devoted much of her life’s work to the youth development organization, beginning as a young 4-H member in Payne County.

Growing up in 4-H, Walker was involved in the sheep and food and nutrition project areas. She said she credits 4-H for instilling within her a drive to “Make the Best Better.”

Equipped with skills and knowledge learned in 4-H, Walker completed her bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Oklahoma State University and made the decision to pursue a lifelong career within Oklahoma State University Extension.

Walker has served the 4-H program as an Extension educator in Cleveland and Pontotoc counties. For more than 20 years, she has worked closely with youth, parents and volunteers across the state, making a lasting impact on everyone she encounters.

Walker knows what it takes to develop successful 4-H’ers due to her previous experiences as a successful 4-H member herself.

“She makes our county 4-H program what it is — a place where we all work together to be the best,” said Nelda Burrows, Pontotoc County 4-H volunteer. “Becky is the best of the best when it comes to 4-H.”

In addition to her recognition as the Oklahoma 4-H Foundation’s Outstanding 4-H Alumna, Walker also was a recipient of OSU Extension’s Distinguished Educator Award in 2019.

“I truly have been a 4-H member for life, and my family members have been lifelong users of OSU Extension,” Walker said. “My goal has always been to ensure all the clientele I serve have the same positive experiences with this organization that I have had.”