Brent Miller is teaching students to give back to their community; his life is their living example of that lesson.

Brent, his wife Holly, and their three children live in Ullin. For the past 11 years, Brent has served as a 4-H leader for the Ridge Runners 4-H Club. Since he is also the ag teacher at Century, he has combined the FFA and 4-H together by making a 4-H SPIN (SPecial INterest) club called the Century Ag Shack Traditions 4-H Club.

The club has provided petting zoos at community events to promote agriculture, collected tab tops for Ronald McDonald house, hosted consecutive pink outs for breast cancer which featured a portable pink toilet to "flush out" breast cancer, provided bird feeders for an assisted living building and donated drug training boxes to the Illinois State Police K-9 Unit in Southern Illinois. T

his year, the members constructed barn quilts for a barn quilt tour which will promote Southern Illinois tourism and our rich agricultural heritage. The 4-H members also held a senior citizen prom. Read more about the Governor Service program.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Judy Mae Bingman, University of Illinois Extension Marketing and Communications Manager

Judy uses powerful words and photography to tell the Extension story. She is a skilled communication strategist and storyteller with demonstrated success in building teams and creating strong organizational brand identities that deepen Extension’s impact among key audiences, build brand loyalty, strengthen employee talent, and expand public engagement. She is a frequent conference presenter at the National Association of Extension 4-H Agents Conference and helps Extension staff across the nation tell compelling stories.