Day 12 (6-27-2011)

Today when we woke up it was raining. We were all bright eyed and bushy tailed as we loaded the bus at 7:45am. But as the morning progressed we all started to feel the effects of our busy week. For our morning break we stopped at McDonald’s. During our break we presented the autographed sign to our bus driver. As we drove down the highway we dropped kids off in Kansas City and Topeka. While driving between Topeka and Salina all of us started singing songs to keep their minds off of saying goodbye. Singing and laughing the whole way home made the ride go by so much faster. When we arrived in Salina we were in shock because we finally realized that we had to say goodbye. Some tears were shed and lots of memories made. The friendships made on this trip will last forever.

Katie Bailey
Greeley County

Day 11 (6-26-11)

Today we had fun: playing traveling Pictionary, Josh likes word plays, had a pillow fight on the bus, Josh’s laugh is girly and hysterical, interesting experiences at gas stations, sleeping pictures of everyone (even Deb and Josh), everyone sleeping on everyone, Cale going to Bob Evans by himself (cause everyone else was afraid to get sick again), Trent and Krista wiping water on each other, and Jonny using a zebra snuggy. As you can tell it was a long and entertaining day on the bus. At reflections we talked about what we like most about this trip. Hearing everyone talk you could tell we all learned a lot, made new friends, and had a fun time. It was also sad since we will be parting ways tomorrow. It will be the worst day of all; saying goodbye.

Cherokee Shaffer
Woodson County

Day 10 (6-25-2011)

Today was our last day at the National 4-H Center. Along with all of the other delegations that participated this week in Citizenship Washington Focus. After we said all of our good buys with the other delegations, we started our long journey back to Kansas. At our last sight that we were going to see as a delegation, Monticello was a site for sore eyes. Along the way we encountered heavy traffic which set us back an hour but did not damper our spirits. When we arrived at Monticello, the delegation started our tour right away. We learned that one of Thomas Jefferson’s cook slaves name was “suck”, the dining room in his house was painted blue up until two years ago. There was testing done which figured out that the house dining room wall color was actually yellow. Now when you order that color of yellow it is called Monticello Yellow. At the age of 62 he felt that his algebra was not where it should be so he relearned it. After the tour we headed back on the bus for a four hour bus ride to Charleston, West Virginia. Once there most of our group headed to the mall for a bite to eat and some shopping. When everyone met for reflections the girls agreed that most guys look good in a teal blue shirt. The group also agreed that going through the Appalachian Mountains made our ears pop, which was annoying, and had some very beautiful and breathtaking views. As reflections wrapped up everyone went to their rooms to rest for the long day tomorrow.

Austin Marshall
Harvey County

Day 9 (6-24-2011)

I think I might possibly have the best day to write about. Delegation Day! This morning we awoke bright eyed and bushy tailed to load the bus at 7:45am. After all 39 delegates, 4 sponsors, 1 bus driver, and 1 CWF PA loaded we hit the road for a long day on the town. We started our morning at the Air Force Memorial, which over looked the point in the pentagon were the plane of 9-11-2001 struck. This memorial was one of the simplest monuments we toured but it was also breathtaking and had a lot of symbolism to it. After the Air Force Memorial we drove over to the Pentagon. We had the opportunity to look around the 9-11-2001 Memorial. We were not allowed to take any pictures at the Pentagon so if there is a lacking of pictures that is why :-). The Pentagon Memorial was a very hard thing to walk through. I was in the 3rd grade when this happened over 10 years ago. As we walked through the memorial you could see it on everyone’s face, they were all remembering that day. After we walked through the memorial we toured the Pentagon. We all got through Security ok (I am not sure what I was expecting exactly but it was nothing like the movies!) We got an awesome tour by two Navy Soldiers who were a part of the Honor Guard.

Following that we were dropped off at the National Mall with a map; told to stay in groups, not to get hurt, and be back at 4pm :-). It wasn’t that bad. We all split up into groups of four or more to tour parts of the National Mall that we had not seen! Groups went to several of the Smithsonian Museums, National Archives, Old Post office, shopping, and if you walked fast and prioritized you could maybe do all four! To say the least by the end of the day we were tired! But the night didn’t end there! We arrived back at the 4-H Center just in time for supper. After supper we had our final delegation meeting with Michelle, were we gave her our “Basket of Goodies” from back home! Following that we had an outstanding talent show were Kansas was well represented! I think the rest of the delegations were impressed with how much talent Kansas has! Kansas had four Performers: Hannah Sang, Cherokee danced, Emily played the piano, and Chad brought the house to its feet with his singing and piano playing! Showing how Kansas 4-H: “Rocks the House!” That was followed by a dance were there was lots of “Bernie Dancing” and what not. We came back to our rooms exhausted but loving our delegation even more. We are truly blessed to be from a great state with such tremendous 4-Hers!

Lindsey Bulk
Riley County

Day 8 (6-23-2011)

Congressional Session, National Cathedral, and Dinner Cruise. Today we started off with a little later of a morning. Yeah for sleeping in!! We then went to a strategy workshop in which we discussed problems with the four bills we have been working on. We then took those problems to a congressional session and had a debate. This was just like a real congressional session. After lunch, we had a little free time. We then left and went to the National Cathedral; it is ten stories tall and very beautiful! We took a guided tour there and seen several different things. It included: a stained glass that had a 4-H Clover in it, very impressive designs, and Helen Keller’s tomb. After that we went back to the 4-H Center and got ready for our cultural heritage evening. The girls were getting all dolled up so some of the guys wanted to join in! Johnny and Austin E. both got some mascara and they were looking gorgeous! The entire group was all dressed up and looking very elegant. For our evening we took a dinner cruise on the Potomac River. We ate pizza, danced, and took tons of pictures on the open top of the boat. It was extremely fun! We even had the wedding ceremony on the boat. We then rode the subway (Metro). It was a new experience for most of us. We then walked like a mile from the closet stop to DC Cupcakes! We didn’t get to eat our cupcakes until we got back to the 4-H Center, but now we can say we have all been to and eaten DC Cupcakes! We then walked all the way back to the subway and took it two more times, Stetson and Brandon followed Amelia around and sang to her all night, it was so funny! Kansas just makes things super fun! We then got to take a metro bus, after that and our boys were definitely looking out for all of us. Finally we got back to the 4-H center and ate our delicious DC cupcakes. We were late for curfew, which the security guard was not happy about. O well, it was all worth it!

Caitlyn Horton
Hamilton County

Closing Dance

Talent Show

Culture Night

Culture Night

Day 7

Today was our earliest day so far on our CWF trip. We left by 7:30am for our adventure filled day! We toured the Capitol building in our spiffy attire and some of our boys with aviators or “avatars” sunglasses were our agents for the day. LOL! After that we had a very educational and informing discussion with senators Jerry Moran and Pat Roberts. One of the questions was concerning their plans for the 2012 Farm Bill. We also asked their opinions on standardized testing and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). Both were so honest and had a lot to say about each topic. I think most would agree joking around with Pat Roberts for the day was by far the best part. The Library of Congress was on our big list of events for the day. Inside was home of the Gutenberg Bible and some of the books from Thomas Jefferson’s Library. Our day was horribly warm and humid. Definitely not cool with our professional suits on! Next we split into our House of Representative Groups and went to visit each one. Representative Huelskamp was very informative on the Farm Bill and the other topics he is working on. He also told the group that he was a former 4-Her as well. We then walked over to the Supreme Court Building to meet up with the rest of the group and see where the Justices meet. The Supreme Court Building had two big fountains out front and they looked like very tempting swimming pools! We were all drying from the heat. The other groups met with: Lynn Jenkins, Mike Pompeo, and Kevin Yoder. They all said they had similar experiences as our group; very energetic and informative interactions with them and all encouraged us to stay involved in our Kansas communities. Finally after all that walking, we went to Union Station for supper. Next we moved onward to the Kennedy Performing Arts Theater to watch Tony Ellis, a bluegrass style show. We wrapped up our evening by taking pictures at the Whitehouse and had our reflections on today’s events while on the way back to the National 4-H Center. We all agreed that it was a fun and informative day despite the weather. We all hope the weather is extremely cooler tomorrow. A personnel P.S. from the blogger! Don’t wear heels to walk in on Capitol Hill Day, trust me on this! This is Amber Williams blogger for the day, over and out.

Amber Williams
Post Rock District

Day 6

Happy Birthday Cherokee!! This morning we visited the Franklin D. Roosevelt Memorial, and Arlington National Cemetery. At the FDR Memorial our PA Michelle explained to us that the four rooms with the memorial represent his 4 terms at president. This was because He wanted a memorial that was no bigger than his desk. So his memorial was to focus on his presidency, not just on him. We all wanted to take so many pictures that we left eight minutes late, Marietta and Michelle weren’t pleased. At the Arlington National Cemetery, our amazing tour guide pointed out vast amounts of information about the cemetery. He showed us all the sections within the cemetery that were just for: the Vietnam War, World War II, Nurses, Civil War, and a section for unknown soldiers. And very detailed information on how the cemetery was formed. Every direction you looked there were tombs and markers and in the newer sections they were aligned perfectly. After that we went to see the changing of the guards at the Tomb of The Unknown Soldier. It was absolutely still and silent while we watched them, with exception of cameras clicking like crazy. I was personally awed by the dedication and commitment the guards have to their job. Next thing we visited in the cemetery was the John F Kennedy Memorial. We saw the eternal flame and the graves of the Kennedy Family. At the top of the steps at the JFK Memorial we also had a little surprise. Someone had puked and it hadn’t been cleaned up yet. YUCK!
This afternoon we had bill writing workshops, and the Derby. The Derby was when everyone went outside and we all played games and burned off some energy for an hour. We played bucket ball, ships and sailors, sharks and minnows, and queen of the courts. It was a lot of fun but it sooooooo humid so we all sweated! We also got our briefing for Capitol Hill Day tomorrow and we are all very excited :-)!

Elaina Haberer
Russell County

Derby Fun