Every first Monday of the month, for the last 50 years, it’s easy to find Corine Miller. A leader of the 80-member Victory Workers 4-H Club in Pittsfield, you can find Corine mentoring and motivating her community’s youth. As a former 10-year 4-H member, she says to “Make the Best Better” has been the standard for her life, career and her work with the over 3,000 youth she has touched as a New Hampshire 4-H volunteer.

Corine truly exemplifies all the qualities of an outstanding, engaged 4-H volunteer connected at the local, county and state levels, and because of her dedication and service to 4-H, she was named as the 2008 National 4-H Hall of Fame Laureate. Corine and members of her family, along with 4-H Youth Development Program Leader Wendy Brock, traveled to Washington, D.C., last Friday for the awards ceremony at the National 4-H Center. Corine was only one of 17 nation-wide who received the honor this year. In the photo to the right, Betty Wingerter, left, president of National Association of Extension 4-H Agents, presented the award to Corine, along with Dan Kugler, interim deputy administrator, Families, 4-H, and Nutrition, USDA, and on the right, Donald Floyd, president and CEO, National 4-H Council.

Involved in many aspects of the club, from teaching heritage basket weaving, 4-H records, clothing and textiles, public speaking, and photography, to organizing community service projects, Corine also engages other volunteers to help provide the expertise in other areas that interest the youth. Under her leadership, annual fundraisers provide scholarships for about 60 members to attend UNH 4-H Camp.

At the county level, Corine has served as past treasurer and secretary of the Merrimack County Leaders Association and is a member of the County 4-H Advisory Council. At the state level, she has served on many 4-H curriculum committees in the areas of family and consumer science. She has worked to establish the Ruth Kimball Endowment of over $80,000 for the 4-H Foundation of New Hampshire, and supports the statewide golf tournament.

Corine says she has had the opportunity to see youth grow up into “good citizens.” She added, “It’s when they return to the 4-H program as a teacher or with their own children; that is when you know it made a difference.” Corine’s mother, Ruth Kimball was inducted into the first class of the National 4-H Hall of Laureates in 2002.