Ten years ago, a shy and soft spoken young lady attended 4-H Camp and entered the magical world of 4-H.  Being raised by a grandmother of limited resources, 4-H sponsored her way to 4-H Camp.  She stated, "I want to be a 4-H Camp Counselors because I want to be able to provide kids with a great summer experience for most kids this is the only vacation they get during the summer."  From there she served as the president of her 4-H Clubs for four years and completed successful projects that were exhibited at the Kentucky State Fair. She was elected to be the vice-president of the District One 4-H Teen Council shortly before the Pandemic-19 hit.  Kiersten taught art workshops during 4-H Project Camp and was featured in a video showing others how to paint, which was posted on You-Tube.

      Kiersten Dotson participated in 4-H Teen Summit and in the local 4-H Teen Council.  Once in high school, she won two 4-H State Fair Championships.  Being creative, she designed our county tee-shirt and won in the viewer’s choice category.  She represented our Commonwealth during two National Contests in Louisville, during the National 4-H Poultry & Egg Conference. 

     She continued to complete projects and applied and was appointed to the 4-HState Teen Council.  Kiersten furthered her leadership skills by attending the Southern Leadership Conference in Tennessee and participated in the 2019 4-H Leader Forum.  She competed in the 4-H Achievement Program, achieved the Gold Award and represented our state during 4-H Club Congress.  During the 2021 4-H Teen Conference, Kiersten was introduced as the Kentucky 4-H State Treasurer. 

    She stated, “Through my 4-H experiences, I have grown not only as a leader but as a person as well. Starting out as a young 4-Her I never expected to earn as many achievements and accomplishments as I have today. Throughout all of my hard work and determination I earned the Gold Achievement Award and got to attend National 4-H Club Congress in Atlanta, Georgia. I was also just elected as the 2021-2022 Kentucky 4-H State Treasurer without beginning 4-H at a young age and growing into the leader I am today, none of this would’ve been possible. 4-has truly shaped me into the person that I am today.” 

    Kiersten is entering her freshmen year of college locally and will transfer to U.K. in her junior year pursuing a degree in medicine.  4-H has helped to make the best better through this young leader and prepared her for the future.