A Milton 4-H’er has qualified to compete at a national 4-H horse event this fall for earning top honors in public speaking at the 2025 State 4-H Horse Communications contest, June 4.

Isabella Kang, a member of the Whispering Pines 4-H Club, gave a speech titled “Ride to Read.”  It was about women who traveled on horseback to isolated communities in Kentucky in the 1930s to provide books for families who had limited access to libraries or public education.

For this competition, 4-H’ers are required to deliver an original seven- to ten-minute speech about a horse-related topic without the benefit of visual aids or props. Hand-held cue cards are permitted, if used discreetly. Points are deducted for going over or under the time allowed.

Seventeen-year-old Isabella received a first-place blue rosette ribbon at the competition, which took place at the University of Vermont (UVM) Extension office in South Burlington. She will represent Vermont in public speaking at the Eastern National 4-H Round Up in Louisville, Kentucky in November.

Judges for the communications contest were UVM Extension 4-H Livestock Educator Wendy Sorrell and Mary Fay, a long-time 4-H horse volunteer from Westford.

To learn more about the Vermont horse program, contact Sorrell at wendy.sorrell@uvm.edu or (802) 656-7641.