Local 4-H'ers get Capitol civics lesson

Archive for Thursday, February 25, 2010

February 25, 2010

Members of the Johnson County Horse Club and the De Soto Legacy 4-H Club traveled Friday to Topeka to act as senatorial pages at the Capitol. The members were sponsored by Sen. Julia Lynn, R-Olathe.

The trip was part of the citizenship and communications 4-H projects, which focus on teaching 4-H members to serve their communities while emphasizing excellence in public speaking. The Johnson County based 4-H groups engage in exercises and trips throughout the year to further education and opportunity for service.

Early Friday morning, the 4-H members arrived at the capitol for instruction then were sworn in as pages by the Senate chair. The 4-H members were given a tour of the Capitol and were photographed with Senator Lynn and the lieutenant governor.

As Pages, the 4-H members delivered documents, ran errands and responded to requests for assistance from the senators on the floor. While on the Senate floor, the 4-H members were able to observe heated debate regarding two Kansas bills of interest: the repeal of the death penalty and the use of text messaging while operating a motor vehicle.

“We were part of history today,” Colleen Freeman stated, “That is an amazing feeling.”

Sen. Lynn met with the 4-H members personally during the session to explain the debate process and to answer questions. At the end of the day, the pages were honored with a certificates of service and a Kansas state seal pins for their assistance to the senators.