When the COVID-19 pandemic shut down programming in March 2020 youth, families, and communities experienced long-term isolation and alteration of their typical lives related to in and out of school activities. Youth out-of-school time programs, such as 4-H, are essential ecological assets and their disruption during the pandemic may have a major impact on youth’s developmental pathways (Ettekal & Aganas, 2020). For many youth COVID-19 will be the defining issue of their lives and affect them in ways that will mark the course of their life-long development (Bartlett & Virette, 2020). As we emerge from the COVID-19 pandemic, it is imperative that programs, communities, and families that are involved in the lives of youth make a diligent effort to restore and rebuild opportunities that provide experiences to develop interpersonal life-skills. Hosting the Kentucky 4-H Teen Conference in June 2021 was an attempt to provide a typical cumulative experience for senior-level 4-H members. Due to COVID-19 capacity restrictions the conference was open to only those senior-level youth who participated throughout the program year in a Kentucky 4-H leadership board or the Kentucky 4-H Achievement Program.

208 youth representing 68 counties participated in the 2021 Kentucky 4-H Teen Conference. Youth reported that it was important to attend the conference this year because: 

1. This experience allowed me to recover from lost time with my peers. This event reunited 4-Hers from across the state and opened new opportunities for those who missed out due to COVID-19. 
2. This was the first, large, in-person 4-H event since March 2020. This event was much needed to gain a sense of normalcy. This event gave us hope that we will be able to return to traditional 4-H events. 
3. I was excited to attend the conference this year because virtual experiences have been hard for social butterflies like me. I needed to meet people in person. 
4. 4-H Teen Conference allowed me to have a strong finish to my active 4-H career. 
5. This conference has helped me make new friends and build on those genuine connections with 4-Hers from across the state. 
6. After hearing the word “cancelled” all too often, seeing other 4-Hers and getting to interact with others was much needed. This event gave me hope. 
7. Being back with other 4-Hers was a psychological must for me. 

Youth reported how they benefited from Kentucky 4-H Teen Conference: 

1. I got to meet people from across the state that love 4-H as much as I do. Being with your people is important and that common ground is a great thing. I was excited to meet the people that I had only got to see on a computer screen or see their name in an email. 
2. By attending this conference I was able to see how my 4-H peers remained resilient through the pandemic and this served as a great inspiration for my future. 
3. This experience allowed my 4-H experience to come full circle in the projects I have competed and learned through over my 4-H career. 
4. I got to exercise my networking skills at Teen Conference by gaining new friendships. 
5. I think that I benefited from Teen Conference in a lot of ways. I got up on stage and gave a speech, completed service projects to help others, interacted with peers, learned to better manage my time, and experienced competitive interviews for the Emerald award.

Three Boyle County youth attended their final Teen Conference.  One youth served as State 4-H President and two served on the State 4-H Teen Council.  All were tasked with specific functions to assist in the conduct of the event.  The agent conducted a Myers-Briggs leadership session with at-large delegates from across the state focusing on the impact of personality type on communications, teams, career choices, and self-improvement.