Putnam County 4-H’ers Qualify for National Archery Competition

by: Melissa Henry, 4-H Agent

It takes a steady hand and an eagle eye, to get your arrow to hit the bullseye. Three 4-H members tested their skills against the best in the state in the State Archery Invitational held this fall in Columbia, TN. Earlier in the year, they received training in safety and shooting techniques. They first tested their skills in April at the state archery jamboree, because of their high placings Austin Archer, Dawsen Arms, Emily Armstrong, Cole Estes, Josiah Henderson, and Blake Shepherd got a shot to participate in the qualifier shoot. This was the largest group from Putnam County since the archery program was started 8 years ago. Youth competed in target shooting in the compound division, where they must shoot from 20 meters, 30 meters, and 40 meters.

Emily Armstrong placed 2^nd, Austin Archer placed 4^th and Blake Shepherd placed 7^th in the contest. Dawsen Arms placed 1^st in the champions division. Emily and Austin qualified for the national competition to be held next summer in Nebraska. Special thanks to volunteer leader Jimmy Arms for serving as the coach for the group.

For more information about 4-H archery, or to help sponsor the youth for nationals, contact Melissa Henry at 526-4561 or mhenry1@utk.edu. Putnam County 4-H is known statewide for a successful program and shooting sports events are an important part of the total program. 4-H is a proud part of the UT Extension and the UT Institute of Agriculture. UT Extension provides equal opportunities in programs and employment through the cooperation of county, state and federal governments.

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group: Putnam County archers anxious await the start of the competition. (L to R) Emily Armstrong, Austin Archer, Blake Shepherd, Josiah Henderson, Cole Estes, Dawsen Arms

awards: Top Ten finishers in the State 4-H Archery Invitational show off their awards. (L to R) Blake Shepherd, Emily Armstrong, Austin Archer, Dawsen Arms. Emily and Austin will represent Tennessee at the national contest in June 2019.