Pictured from left to right, front row, Tanya Giroir, State Office; Nydia Cooper, St. James Parish; Tyler Hayes, Allen Parish; Nicholas LeBlanc, Vermilion Parish; Alexandra Herpin, Vermilion Parish; Emma Broussard, Vermilion Parish.2nd row: Anna Wright, St. Martin Parish; Eulalie Cormier, Acadia Parish; Reed Bearden, Bossier Parish; Ashton Gaspard, Vermilion Parish; Emily Lanie, Lafayette Parish; Ethan Coker, Claiborne Parish;3rd row: Claire Usé, Terrebonne Parish; Sarah Hammonds, Bossier Parish; Luke Seguin, Livingston Parish; Joel Thompson, Lafayette Parish; Caroline, Dupree, Bossier Parish; Lily Gisclair, Beauregard Parish; Avia Laborde, Avoyelles Parish and Jeff Bush, Louisiana 4-H Foundation. (Photo by Johnny Morgan)

BATON ROUGE, La. – Winners of the Louisiana 4-H educational awards look forward each year to the tour of New Orleans and Baton Rouge, said LSU AgCenter youth development instructor Tanya Giroir.

“In addition to receiving awards, the winners tour several landmarks in New Orleans and Baton Rouge, with the highlight of their tours being the photo they take at Tiger Stadium,” she said.

This year the seventh- and eighth-grade Achievement Award winners who attended the trip were Emma Broussard, Ashton Gaspard, Alexandra Herpin and Nicholas LeBlanc, Vermilion Parish; Reed Bearden, Caroline Dupree and Sarah Hammonds, Bossier Parish; Ethan Coker, Claiborne Parish; Nydia Cooper, St. James Parish; Eulalie Cormier, Acadia Parish; Lily Gisclair, Beauregard Parish; Tyler Hayes, Allen Parish; Avia Laborde, Avoyelles Parish; Emily Lanie and Joel Thompson, Lafayette Parish; Brittney Lea, Bienville Parish; Madison Pleasant, Natchitoches Parish; Luke Seguin, Livingston Parish; Claire Usé, Terrebonne Parish, and Anna Wright, St. Martin Parish.

Giroir said the trip would not have been possible without the help of LSU AgCenter agents Joe Bairnsfather, Concordia Parish; Molly Usrey, DeSoto Parish; Katie Strecker, East Baton Rouge Parish, and Jonas Augustine, program assistant, St. Charles Parish.

“The portfolios submitted by our winners were judged on leadership, volunteer work, service projects and their subject matter project records work,” Giroir said.

Again this year, Entergy New Orleans Corporation sponsored the group’s lunch at Café Reconcile, a restaurant that provides a program for at-risk youth.

“The 4-H’ers saw at-risk youth training in jobs that will help them enter the hospitality and restaurant industries,” she said.

As part of the trip, the 4-H’ers toured the Mercedes-Benz Superdome and Smoothie King Arena.

There is always lots of excitement about visiting the National World War II Museum. One of the highlights is the Tom Hanks production of “Beyond All Boundaries.”

In Baton Rouge, the 4-H’ers were treated to a jambalaya Sunday dinner by DEMCO, toured the LSU Rural Life Museum and visited LSU Tiger Stadium, Giroir said.

The trip concluded with an awards luncheon at The Club at LSU Square on the Baton Rouge campus.

Trip sponsors included the LSU AgCenter, LSU Rural Life Museum, DEMCO Dixie Electric Membership Corp., Entergy New Orleans, LSU Athletic Department, the Louisiana 4‑H Foundation and the 4‑H State Office.