AMES, Iowa--Iowa teenagers will be offered a “License to Succeed” by three featured speakers at the Iowa 4-H Youth Conference June 26-28, 2007, on the Iowa State University campus in Ames.
The conference is the flagship event of the Iowa 4-H Youth Council, a group of 40 high school juniors and seniors working in partnership with Iowa State University Extension 4-H Youth Development and the Iowa 4-H Foundation.
Headlining the event are speakers Charlie Wittmack, the first Iowan to reach the summit of Mt. Everest; Karen McCaa, an inspirational speaker, life coach and counselor; and Jeff Havens, part comedian, part motivational speaker and former high school English teacher.
Wittmack will share how he overcame fear and embraced adventure in order to reach his seven-year goal May 22, 2003, to scale Mt. Everest. Teens will learn what compelled Wittmack to keep going as he battled two months of terrible weather, two failed attempts, snow blindness, and three days without food or water.
McCaa, described as an animated, high-energy presenter, is a counselor at Kirkwood Community College. A former athlete, she is in her third year of presenting motivational camp workshops with selected athletes for Nike. The Indiana native said she “took a leap of faith” and moved to Iowa four years ago. Her message focuses on finding a passion, taking risks and loving others.
Havens will deliver a tongue-in-cheek spoof of motivational speeches called, “Uncrapify Your Life,” in which he looks at communication and responsibility in a light-hearted way. Havens graduated from Vanderbilt University and became a high school English teacher, until he “realized that English is far too absurd to be taken seriously.”
Conference organizers expect more than 1,000 teens to attend the three-day event that also offers workshops, mixers, picnics, dances and community service activities.
Brenda Allen, 4-H program specialist, emphasized that teens do not need to be in 4-H to attend and said, “This will be a great opportunity to gather new ideas, discover something new about yourself and make new friends.”
For more information about the 2007 conference or to register, contact the local county office of ISU Extension. Information also is available online at www.extension.iastate.edu/4H/StateConference/index.htm
-30-