Registration Deadline is May 30th - must register through Dr. Fain
SOUTHEAST DAIRY YOUTH RETREAT
The Southeast Dairy Youth Retreat is a week-long camp for youth 9 to 19 years of age, along with parents and dairy youth program volunteers. Held each year in one of the seven participating states (Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia, Tennessee and Kentucky), the retreat is a fun, educational and social event that the youth look forward to attending. Contact your local County Extension Office to register for the retreat yearly. To find your County Extension Office, click here.
Focusing on a variety of dairy topics, the trip provides the youth with the opportunity to build teamwork skills, gain a broader understanding of the dairy industry and form lasting friendships with youth from different states. Workshops about dairy cattle reproduction, dairy cattle nutrition, milk marketing, dairy product processing, calf care, dairy judging, farm and equipment safety, and dairy product nutrition are taught by dairy industry professionals and university professors from the host states.
Several dairy farms graciously open their farms to the youth for visits, with the owners and managers explaining their farms’ unique features. This provides the youth with a greater understanding of the many different types of dairy farms, the advantages and disadvantages of each type, and how and why they are developed for different regions.
In addition to learning opportunities, the dairy youth are treated to water parks, amusement parks, zoos and concerts that make the trip a fun and social event. The GDYF helps defray the transportation expenses for Georgia dairy youth who participate in the Southeast Dairy Youth Retreat and helps pay for program expenses when the retreat is held in Georgia.
