Kaitlyn Eckles of Manorville, a student at Eastport South Manor Junior-Senior High School, garnered seven agricultural awards at the recent Great New York State Fair in Syracuse and at the Long Island State Fair in Old Bethpage.
She was among the winning competitors representing the 4-H Youth Program of Cornell Cooperative Extension of Suffolk County (CCE Suffolk). Under this program, local youth spent the summer preparing their project animals and honing their agricultural skills to compete against their peers both statewide and across Long Island.
Ms. Eckles won four first-place awards at the state fair, including High Individual Honors for Junior Goat Bowl, the Junior Kimber Hamm Goat Rancher Award, the Avian Bowl and in Poultry Judging. She was also awarded second-place honors in the Junior Product ID competition. And her chicken’s Colonel Sanders costume earned her the Funniest Duo designation. At the Long Island fair, Ms. Eckles won second place in the Junior Meat Goat competition.
“Suffolk County ranks fourth among the state’s 62 counties in terms of the size of our agricultural economy,” said Vanessa Lockel, director of Cornell Cooperative Extension of Suffolk County. “Through their achievements, our outstanding 4-H participants are playing an important role in upholding our county’s farming heritage.”
CCE of Suffolk County’s 4-H Youth Program works to deepen young people’s understanding and appreciation of the environment and their own health through a range of fun-filled, research-based programs. Its diverse learning sites allow students to explore Long Island's agricultural resources, marine issues, and environment. Suffolk County 4-H youth programming is available in schools, afterschool programs, day and residential camps, and local 4-H Clubs. Its youth development programs encourage Suffolk youth to disconnect from screens and engage actively in their communities.
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Kaitlyn Eckles of Manorville, a student at Eastport South Manor JuniorSenior High School, won
multiple agricultural awards at the recent Great New York State Fair in Syracuse and at the Long Island State Fair in Old Bethpage. Among other accolades, her chicken’s Colonel Sanders costume earned her the Funniest Duo designation at the state event. Ms. Eckles competed as a representative of the 4-H Youth Program of Cornell Cooperative Extension of Suffolk County. File Photo
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Established in 1917, Cornell Cooperative Extension of Suffolk County (CCE Suffolk) is a non-profit community education agency that works to preserve the county’s agricultural resources and marine life, protect regional eco-systems, support families, provide community service opportunities for youth, and advance research-based education in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM).
Affiliated with Cornell University as part of the national land grant university system, CCE Suffolk’s staff consists of educators, researchers, specialists, and support personnel who are dedicated to making Suffolk County a desirable place to live and work.
CCE Suffolk is a subordinate governmental agency with an educational mission that operates under an organizational model approved by Cornell University as agent for the State of New York.
More information is available at http://ccesuffolk.org/.