Free Republic

Third-graders fire scaled-down shotguns at moving clay targets. Middle school students fire arrows from bows in a back yard. And high school students unload handgun clips at boards. Despite skepticism about a 4-H program that teaches youngsters how to use handguns, bows and rifles, the county’s shooting-sport program is continuing to grow four years after it was started. “At the time it started, it was pretty controversial,” said Kyle Wheat, 16, a club member and Whiteland Community High School student. “A lot of people didn’t think it would happen. But look where we are now.” The Johnson County 4-H Shooting...

For education and discussion only. Not for commercial use.WESTFORD -- Sheep will be sheared, horses will be mounted, and local youths will display prowess honed with a multitude of other beasts and crafts when the 48th annual Middlesex County 4-H Fair opens tomorrow. But the fair and the 4-H Youth and Family Development Program may be an endangered species. "4-H is very much in limbo-land right now," says Mary McBrady, executive director of the Massachusetts 4-H Foundation, a non-profit organization that holds fund-raisers to support 4-H training and after-school programs statewide. 4-H is funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture,...