PORT MARIA, St Mary — Nickelia Ramdon has racked up a list of prizes since becoming a member of the 4H Club in primary school. Now the 16-year-old can add top girl to that list. She has been named 2023 4H Girl of the Year for the parish of St Mary.

She views the win as a return on all the hard work she has put into 4H activities over the years. She has won many prizes such as seed identification in 2013, second place in trash for cash, and first place in table setting this year.

The St Mary High student is president of her school’s 4H Club and often encourages her peers to join.

“4H teaches you a lot of things: discipline, food and agriculture security, and even art and craft. To me I have grown holistically through 4H,” the 11th-grader told the Jamaica Observer.

Ramdon is studying the sciences, her sights firmly set on successfully completing exams for eight subjects, and she hopes to become a radiographer. But she has not ruled out a career in agriculture. Whatever the future holds, she stressed, the 4H pledge will remain with her and she will continue her contributions to the association, playing her part in growing smart and eating smart to boost food security.