Earlier this month, La Plata County 4-H entered a team into the First Lego League Four Corners qualifier.
First Lego League is an international competition that promotes STEM education through fun and engaging activities. Teams are challenged to solve a real-world problem, display sportsmanship and design a robot using Lego Mindstorms to perform missions on a table-top board.
The qualifier was held at Escalante Middle School. More than 20 teams from the Four Corners participated. This year’s theme was “Animal Allies.” Teams developed unique responses to interactions between animals and humans.
This was my first experience with a First Lego League tournament. Big thanks go out to event organizer Kim Harms. Kim did a fabulous job ensuring activities ran smoothly and, most importantly, participants were having a blast.
Our sponsored team was named “The True 4-H Allies,” which included members Zeb Shields, Vinny Lopez, Raymond Davis, Jordan Dence and Quentin Deluca. These young men all come from different 4-H clubs throughout the county. They have been meeting since late September preparing for the qualifier.
We didn’t come into this project with any high exceptions, except for having fun. However, at the qualifier, we were awarded a second-place trophy for our robot design and were among the top eight teams. We qualified for the regional championship in Albuquerque in February. What a great surprise.
Coach Jamie McDonald and I couldn’t be happier. It was great watching these members gain teamwork skills. We’ll keep everyone posted about how we do in February.
In other 4-H news, our County Council approved a request to participate in the 2017 Intergalactic Wipeout during Snowdown. For the fourth year, Celebrating Healthy Communities is organizing the obstacle course. 4-H members have a great time designing and managing a station each year.
This event, designed for the whole family, will take place from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Feb. 4 at Buckley Park. 4-H will be joined by other youth-serving organizations. To learn more or register an organization for a station, email Breeah Kinsella at breeah@ourheathycommunities.org.
Celebrating Healthy Communities has been doing marvelous work in our area. It provides education and resources on substance abuse prevention and develops assets for youths and adults to thrive in Southwest Colorado. La Plata County 4-H is a proud collaborator and looks forward to continued success.
The Colorado State University Extension Office would like to wish everyone a happy and safe holiday season. We look forward to serving our community in 2017.
Greg Felsen is the La Plata County 4-H youth development agent. Reach him at gregory.felsen@co.laplata.co.us or 382-6463.
Greg Felsen
