Volume 18, Number 1, Fall 2007

Allegan County Home to a Unique 4-H Club

Jan Brinn

The Allegan County Junior Mounted Division 4-H Club has been working for four years on forming a new type of 4-H horse club. We are proud to say that Allegan County is one of the first counties in the state of Michigan to develop a Junior Mounted Division program. Administrative leader Jamie Commissaries matches her Junior 4-H members with members of the Allegan County Sheriff’s Mounted Division as mentors. The youth continue working on their horsemanship skills and equine knowledge while adding a large community service component and future job opportunity in law enforcement. With a high demand and special skills needed, the youth have an application process they have to go through before being accepted into the group. Once accepted, they learn search and rescue procedures, first aid and CPR, self-defense tactics, horsemanship, leadership and public relations skills. Instead of showing at the county fair and winning ribbons, these youth show off their horsemanship in parades and while assisting in security at the fairgrounds during the fair. One of the inaugural Junior members has now become a Mounted Division member and assistant 4-H leader and mentor.