Rewarded by growth

The lives touched are measured in generations.

Ron Zimmerman has been a volunteer for Jay County 4-H for more than a quarter of a century, and he’s not about to stop now.

“If I give it up, I’ll miss the kids,” he says.

Zimmerman, whose wife LouAnn has been involved in 4-H leadership even longer than her husband, has headed up the 4-H shooting sports program for 22 years.

“I’ve been in 4-H 26 years as far as a volunteer,” he says. That includes service on the 4-H Council, serving as superintendent of dairy beef projects and working on the buildings and grounds committee.

For years, the Zimmerman family would head out to the fairgrounds the week before the Jay County Fair to make sure 4-H facilities were ready to go.

“Whatever needs to be done,” says Zimmerman.

But it’s the shooting sports program that is his passion.

4-H members as young as third grade receive instruction is firing pistols, rifles, shotguns and muzzle loaders in addition to instruction in archery.

The program draws 50 to 75 children each year, with many of them continuing to participate throughout their 4-H years.

“We’ve got some kids this is the only program they take,” he says. “They go through everything here.”

Over a six-week period, each participant gets instruction in each discipline, and discipline is a word Zimmerman emphasizes.

“It’s not a game,” he reminds people. “We are teaching the kids discipline, safety, perseverance. Everything is combined.”

Zimmerman, who farms in southwestern Jay County, is coordinator of the program, but he relies on a team of instructors to work with kids, keep them focused and provide for a safe environment.

Terry Rigby and Brian Bailey have been involved as instructors for more than 20 years each.

“We’ve got some of the best (instructors) in the state,” says Zimmerman. “They’re super with kids and super with safety. … My instructors are what makes this program. … We’ve got quite a few instructors that have stayed with it.”

As coordinator, Zimmerman is required to be re-certified every five years, taking online instruction and an examination.

The program, which has had three different names over the years, started on a shoestring. Guns were borrowed, and the cost of ammunition came out of the instructors’ pockets.

But that’s changed over the years.

“With 4-H, our shooting sports is pretty much self-sufficient,” says Zimmerman. “This is the best (4-H) project of all. Number one, there’s no money involved. And you have to learn it yourself.”

While a livestock project might depend upon the bloodlines of the animal and could involve assistances from parents or family, shooting sports requires complete self-reliance. It all comes down to the individual and what they’re willing to put into it.

“Parents, you can watch. But you can’t participate,” he says.

The reward for Zimmerman and his team of volunteer instructors is seeing that self-reliance, responsibility and self-confidence grow.

“I’ve had two or three kids that have been 10-year members,” he says.

And when you’re involved as a volunteer for as long as Zimmerman has been, you find yourself dealing with generations of the same family. You find yourself invited to graduations and weddings, and you find yourself teaching the children of those you taught years before.

“That’s the best reward you could ask for,” says Zimmerman, “to be remembered.”