Montana 4-H taught Leslie the skills to lead for a lifetime.
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I started sewing in elementary school (in Cut Bank, Montana), first making doll clothes, then on to placemats, and then making clothes for myself through my 4-H club. In high school (CM Russell High School, Great Falls, Montana), I started designing clothing patterns. As a senior in high school I expanded my interest in clothing construction and pattern making through a 5-month apprenticeship with a family friend (Cele Forzley) who had taught clothing courses at the University of Wisconsin-Stout. She taught me advanced sewing and tailoring techniques (what I later learned were “couture” techniques). With this background, I tailored a suit for my father and a wool coat ensemble for myself as my culminating 4-H projects. I won the Montana State 4-H Dress Revue (now called Fashion Revue) with the coat ensemble and attended National 4-H Congress (then held in Chicago) in Dress Revue in 1974. Throughout my years in 4-H I also served as a camp counselor at county and state level camps, served as a junior leader, and participated in 4-H demonstrations. My first demonstration was on how to make a cheese ball. My final 4-H demonstration was a “performance” with my cousin (Mary Ann Ceynar Mayernik) on “How to Give A Demonstration”; she was the “How to” and I was the “How Not to” give a demonstration on making baking powder biscuits. I can still remember the judges laughing so hard they were crying. Little did I know at the time that fashion, education, and public speaking would play such important roles in my career!
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