Ella Wheeler
I’m Ella Wheeler I have have been a beekeeper for the last six years. I was one of the participants in this year’s and last year’s Indiana Young Beekeeper Award. It was such a fun and learning experience the last two years and I highly suggest it to any young beekeeper. Thank you so much for this opportunity and I look forward to applying for the senior division in a few years.
Marina Villarias
My experience with Indiana Beekeepers Youth Award was a fun experience. When I was notified that I was a finalist, I was excited. During the interview, I was able to tell about my love for beekeeping and share my knowledge. I was able to experience a great atmosphere and had fun at the hotel. During the conference, I was able to learn many more things about beekeeping. The award of money and a new hive will help further my beekeeping interests. Thank you to Mr. Anthony Gaudin for his hard work as the contact person for the award and Mr. Kevin Mercer and Mr. Terry Plank as my 4H Beekeeping Mentors for Hendricks County 4H.
Elisabeth Mains
I began my journey in beekeeping due to a science fair project in elementary school that got me interested in bee behavior. From that science fair project, I chose to do the beekeeping project in 4-H to learn even more. After 2 years of creating posters, I wanted to try keeping my own hive. My first hive was lost to theft and my next hive experienced colony collapse due to moisture. It was very discouraging to invest 2 years into managing a hive and not experience a harvest. I decided to apply for the Young Beekeepers Award because the beekeeper that I was working with to replace those losses recommended it. Applying for the award would give me the opportunity to learn more about beekeeping and also the chance to win a new hive. Finding out I was a finalist was really exciting! When we arrived at the conference I was able to spend time asking vendors and beekeepers about their products and colonies. Doing the in-person interview allowed me to build confidence in what I have experienced. I liked answering the judges questions and getting to get feedback from them. It will help me be better prepared in the future. I was a bit nervous when they called my name to receive my award but I was also really happy and proud that I had accomplished this and that I would be able to expand my production with the gift of the new hive. I really appreciated this opportunity and am looking forward to colonizing my hive! Many thanks to the people and businesses that helped me along the way and made this possible.
