Choosing to Lead

Changing the status quo in young people’s lives

Meet Jeff and Karen Pugh, 4-H Shooting Sports volunteer leaders in Newton County!

Q&A with Michaela Parker | Photos by Michaela Parker, Kevin Hudson, and submitted

Karen and Jeff Pugh are longtime Mississippi 4-H Shooting Sports volunteer leaders in Newton County, but their work has taken them all over the state. Like so many locals involved in the program, they first started because they wanted to support their daughter, Audrey. However, once they got involved, they were hooked!

Karen is a certified instructor in rifle, Jeff is a certified instructor in both rifle and pistol, and the couple are both certified instructors in slingshot. While Jeff’s favorite is .22 pistol, Karen’s is slingshot.

To them, making a difference in young people’s lives—teaching discipline, patience, and attention to detail—is a reward and privilege that keeps on giving.

In your opinion, what skills do youth gain through shooting sports?

Our participants learn so, so many skills. They learn self-discipline, reasoning skills, and listening to and following directions. They learn the value of practice and the value of participation; they learn that persistence pays off. They learn to work with others and they make lasting friendships. And of course, they learn firearm safety and responsibility!

What do you hope to pass down to the 4-H’ers as volunteers and mentors?

Safety is always first in Shooting Sports, of course. With our Second Amendment rights comes a responsibility to be knowledgeable, competent citizens who can exercise those rights safely and legally. We want to teach all the participants firearm safety and responsibility.

Why do you think it’s important for a child to get involved in 4-H?

There are so many outstanding programs in 4-H, so many opportunities. Shooting sports is one that’s good for those who like to compete—even if it’s just against their own best score—but may not enjoy traditional school or team sports. We’ve seen so many kids find their tribe in Shooting Sports. We always have such a good group of kids; they’re helpful and welcoming to newcomers, and there is always lots of encouragement and camaraderie.

Why should someone start volunteering with 4-H?

Without volunteers, Shooting Sports and other 4-H programs wouldn’t exist. Time spent in these programs is an invaluable investment in the kids and the community. They learn so much, and so do we! It’s a great feeling to see the things they accomplish and the friendships they make—and that’s only possible because of those who are willing to volunteer their time and share their knowledge.

What are some of the most rewarding moments you’ve experienced as volunteers?

It has been a privilege through the years to have been able to help with matches, from multicounty all the way through state. We’ve been so thankful to the agents and counties that were willing to do all the hard work of hosting multicounty matches because without those, the kids wouldn’t have a competition in which to qualify for district matches.

We’ve always tried to do our part to make those happen, and it’s been such a pleasure watching the shooters come through every year. We’ve been doing it long enough now that we’ve been able to watch some of them start as Junior I’s, go all the way through the program, and age out. It’s wonderful to see them again each year at the matches and watch them grow and progress.

It has been rewarding in the past couple of years working with Jim McAdory, the agent from Winston County, to introduce the Slingshot discipline in Shooting Sports. He had the idea and wrote a curriculum, a group of our Newton County shooters helped us “4-H test” it to iron out the wrinkles, and we started training instructors. Within a year, we had dozens of certified instructors, several counties had hosted matches, and we even had a State competition last fall! This is the first 4-H slingshot program in the nation, so we have really enjoyed being part of all the inaugural events.