Ross Environmental Services, Inc. 
Ross Environmental Services, Inc. (RES) recently announced the winners of the 2016 Lorain County Fair 4-H Trash Barrel Painting Contest.
Three winning trash barrels were selected and the club members who created them will be awarded a prize of $100. The awards were given for first place in three age categories: 5-8 year olds, 9-12 year olds and 13-18 year olds. The theme of the barrel painting contest this year was The 4-H Pledge: “I pledge my head to clearer thinking, my heart to greater loyalty, my hands to larger service, and my health to better living, for my club, my community, my country and my world.”
Maggie Kelch, Community Relations Manager for Ross Environmental, explained that this theme was chosen because it is at the heart of the 4-H program. “We used the 4-H Pledge as the theme this year to reinforce what the 4-H program is all about: youth making a difference in the community and the world,” she said.
According to the National 4-H History Preservation Society, the theme was originally penned at the National 4-H Camp in 1927. At that time, it ended with the phrase “for my club, my community and my country.” Then, in 1973, the words “and my world” were added to the ending, resulting in the Pledge that is still used today.
This year, 12 4-H clubs entered 30 trash barrels in the competition. This year’s winners were:
- 5-8 year olds – Elyria Family of 4H’ers with advisor Barb Messaros
- 9-12 year olds – Penfield Partners with advisor Dawn Handrosh
- 13-18 year olds – Brownhelm Perfection & BB with advisor Andrea Harris
Winning trash barrels were selected for their neatness, creativity and conformance to the theme by associates of the Ross companies. Once again this year, judges were associates of the Ross Group of companies.
Congratulations to the winners and thank you to all of the participating clubs for helping to make the Lorain County Fairgrounds a brighter place!