Recently, a group of 4-H members had the opportunity to try their hand at preparing a traditional Mennonite meal, constructing birdhouses, and touring the grounds of the Pembina Threshermen’s Museum in a 4-H rally.
The excursion, which involved young people from Winkler, Morden, and Roland, was organized by former 4-H Leader Carrie Hennan.
“4-H had a rally in Brandon, and that's a long way to go for Pembina Valley kids, so I thought, ‘Why don't we do something over here?’” she says. “I applied for a grant from Southern Health-Santé Sud, and they gave us money to run this program.”
Hennan says the group of members who participated were 12 in number, and 4-H leaders were also in attendance.
A special guest
Morden-Winkler MLA Carrie Hiebert joined in the old-fashioned merriment as well.
“It was so much fun to help kids in the 4-H program in our region,” she says. “We were in the kitchen, and we made cinnamon buns.”
Hiebert says that because she used to make cinnamon buns at King’s Deli in Winkler, it was “a real treat” to get back to creating in the kitchen.
“Kids, cinnamon buns, how much better can it get? It was awesome,” she says.
A word from participants
Tirzah Veenendaal, a 10-year-old who is participating in the 4-H club for her second year, enjoyed making cinnamon buns with the Valley Harvest Maids (a non-profit group of volunteer cooks at the Pembina Threshermen’s Museum) just as much.
“They tasted really good,” she says.
Dallas Veenendaal, Tirzah’s younger brother, enjoyed the birdhouse-building portion of the day.
“We glued all the wood together and then we got to paint them,” he says, adding that he also liked the traditional Mennonite lunch of soup, buns, cheese, vegetables, and fruit.
'It was very well organized'
The Veenendaals’ mother, Charlene, who is also a 4-H leader, says it was an enriching experience for the children.
“The ladies there did an amazing job, especially in the kitchen. They included all the kids. They had tasks for them. It was very well organized,” she says. “The kids really enjoyed being a part of preparing the lunch.”
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Beyond the shared tasks, the day at the Pembina Threshermen’s Museum also saw connections between generations form.
“[The kids] interacted with the older generation. They were sharing things that were real to them,” says Veenendaal. “Our kids were blown away.”
For Heenan, who hopes the 4-H rally grows into an annual occurrence, it was a “wonderful” experience to which all the participants responded well.
“They had so much fun,” she says.
