4-H bicyclists in Avoyelles Parish ride to their next stop during a recent event sponsored by ConAgra Food Foundation to promote fitness and safety. (Photo by Bruce Schultz, LSU AgCenter)

4-H’ers in Avoyelles Parish ride bicycles to their next stop during a fitness and safety event sponsored by ConAgra Food Foundation. (Photo by Bruce Schultz, LSU AgCenter)

Avoyelles Parish 4-H Club members answer questions about the benefits of exercise and eating properly during an event that included a 5-mile bike ride from Marksville to Mansura. (Photo by Bruce Schultz, LSU AgCenter)

News Release Distributed 12/22/15 

MANSURA, La. – 4-H Club members in a bicycle caravan rolled down the highway Dec. 18 to learn about the benefits of eating properly, exercising and making safety a habit.

The 5-mile trek included six locations where the 27 4-H’ers and six parents participated in several activities and learned about a wide variety of subjects.

Eighth-grader Cameron Nicholas said the ride was his longest ever on a bike, and he learned a few things as well. “I learned how to be safe on a bike.”

Sixth-grader Joseph Hayes said the event got him out of the house during the school break for the holidays. Otherwise, he said, he would have been “sitting at home playing video games.”

He also said he’d never ridden that far on a bike, and he was surprised he worked up a sweat on the 45-degree morning.

The Mansura Police Department provided safety escort vehicles to accompany the group, and Boy Scout Troop 94 assisted at some of the stops.

At the first stop, Riviere de Soleil nursing home in Marksville, they sang carols for the residents, then proceeded to Tractor Supply where they practiced casting with fishing rods and answered questions about food and fitness.

At the next stop, the Avoyelles Parish 911 Center, they made first aid kits and found out how emergency calls are handled.

At the Kerotest Manufacturing valve plant they learned about safety on the job. And they made silk screen T-shirts at Jenny Claire Creates to commemorate the ride.

The final stop was the LSU AgCenter extension office where they participated in different question-and-answer sessions about food and fitness.

Esther Boe, LSU AgCenter county agent, said a grant from the ConAgra Food Foundation made the event possible.

“ConAgra has been good for us because they focus on the community,” Boe said.

The grant also funded other events during the past year, including a food and fitness camp and a cooking clinic.

Ally Mill, a ninth-grader and a 4-H junior leader, said working on the grant taught her about eating in moderation. “We learned a lot about nutrition and portion size.”

“You’re not supposed to eat more than your body needs,” added Morgan Mayeux, also a junior leader.

But she admitted that sometimes she eats more than she should. “See that granola? I probably ate most of it,” Mayeux said.

High school sophomore Hannah Brown said she learned to make different sauces for pasta. “I like pasta, but too much is bad for you.”

High school sophomore Anessa Sauseda said she learned about making healthy desserts.

Bruce Schultz