A Quesnel woman who won 4-H Canada’s National Volunteer Leader of the Year said the leaders she works with should be recognized with her.
“I’m very honoured by this [award] … but there are so many other good leaders in this community that should be honoured just as much as myself,” said Erin Rossmann, who has been leading the Kersley 4-H Club for the last 10 years. “I have such a great team of people that I work with that help make it so that we can do the best we can for everybody in 4-H.”
Rossmann has lived on a Quesnel farm for over 20 years with her husband and three children. Once her children were old enough, they followed suit with their dad and joined 4-H as well.
“It was kind of a natural fit for our family in continuing in on doing 4-H.”
Ten years ago, the Kersley 4-H Club underwent some changes, and a vacant spot to lead the club opened. Not wanting the club to shut down — a club that’s been active for over 40 years — Rossmann stepped into the position.
Along with leading the Kersley club, she’s also the vice president of the district, which contains five 4-H clubs in total.
”I love what the program offers,” said Rossmann. “It provides such great leadership and confidence building. It can bring everyone together, whether you live in the city or out in the country.”
Rossmann said it also helps kids with public speaking, critical thinking skills and guidance on running meetings.
“It’s so important within daily life.”
The Kersley club has kids of all abilities and adapts to those with struggles so they can succeed and move forward, Rossmann explained. Along with her volunteer work, she’s spent her career at Evans Consulting as a behavioural interventionist, helping children who are neurodivergent.
“It’s amazing watching these kids grow and their confidence grow and what their abilities are throughout the years. It’s phenomenal. I absolutely love it.”
Rossmann was shocked to receive the call from 4-H Canada stating she won National Volunteer Leader of the Year, recognizing volunteers for their leadership and impact on 4-H youth. Volunteer Leader of the Year awards are given to individuals within each province, with one volunteer receiving the national award. She doesn’t know who nominated her and said a special thanks goes out to whoever nominated her.
Still, she said she was embarrassed to take all the credit, once again stating the club’s success to the work and commitment of all the volunteers she works with.
As part of the award package she received, Rossmann will attend a national leadership conference in Vancouver in April, stating that the conference will provide education on how they can expand and make the club even better for the kids.