By DOUG GRAVES
Ohio Correspondent

SPRINGFIELD, Ohio — A.B. Graham founded the 4-H program in 1902 in Springfield in the basement of the Clark County Courthouse. Representing the four Hs at that time were “heart, head, hands and hustle.” One year later, though, hustle was changed to “health.”

Patty House, 4-H youth development educator for Ohio State University extension in Clark County, wanted to do something special to celebrate the 100th year of 4-H at this year’s Clark County Fair. She decided to emphasize health in this year’s theme.

What House came up with was an eight-stop Happy Hoofing trail that educated participants about the importance of being healthy. Visitors began this one-mile informative trek at the fair’s Youth Building, using a small map and following special tracks on the ground that led from one stop to another. The trail took participants to each barn and exhibit at the fair.

“We originally had 16 locations but trimmed it down,” House said. “It takes a lot of time to get these things together. In the end we covered some basic concepts, including nutrition as well as some physical activity pieces. We wanted to stress the importance of good health for parents and their children, as well.”

Children were certainly intrigued by the walk. Diana Testerman and her Girl Scout troop from Enon, Ohio, made the excursion in roughly an hour.
“It was the first thin
g the girls wanted to do when we got here,” Testerman said. “Long before heading to any exhibit or any rides, they wanted to try the Happy Hoofing trail.

“They enjoyed the question-and-answer portion the most and they thought it was fun looking for the painted trail on the pavement. It was a real learning experience and it took them to every venue on the grounds.”

Proper exercise, the importance of water, factoids about muscles and proper eating were among those items stressed on this walk. “Fair food is okay, but we want people to make healthy food choices and get exercise, and that’s the reason we went with this theme,” House said.

Painted animal footprints on the pavement helped lead the participants from stop to stop.

“We plan on holding this again next year and hopefully we’ll add a few new stops,” House said. “We also hope to share the signage and messages with other fairs.”

From the Youth Building walkers headed to the Annex and learned about the benefits of fruits and vegetables. The second stop addressed the importance of water in our diets.

The third stop (this one at the horse arena) questioned walkers about the importance of muscles, comparing those of a human to a horse’s. From there it was on to the Champions Center, where the topic was all about comparing calories found in fast food with natural fruits and vegetables.

At the sheep barn participants learned about the need for walking and strides needed to walk a mile. The importance of sweating was addressed at the rabbit barn. Two more stops were required before participants headed back to the Youth Building.

At most stops there were interactive messages and quizzes for participants, testing the health knowledge of everyone. “The signs are interactive, as there’s a ‘catch you’ and ‘did you know’ message in each one,” House said.

Participants received a free “Happy Hoofing” wristband and earned a chance to win a T-shirt, backpack, water bottle, Frisbee and other prizes.