Choosing to Lead

Supporting Mississippi youth learning by doing

Meet Maila Rogers, 4-H Shooting Sports volunteer leader in DeSoto County!

Q&A with Michaela Parker | Photos by Michaela Parker and submitted

Maila Rogers experienced firsthand the impact Mississippi 4-H can have on a young person’s life. As a former Tallahatchie County 4-H’er, she overcame bullying at school, made real friends in 4-H, and found community and support as she learned by doing in 4-H. 

She got involved in 4-H Shooting Sports, and she went on to become a 4-H Shooting Sports Ambassador and a member of the 4-H Leadership Team (now the 4-H Ambassador Team). Rogers also served as 4-H Northwest District Vice President. Now, she leads by example and gives back to the program that gave so much to her. Rogers is a shooting sports volunteer leader in DeSoto County where she feels fulfilled by investing in her 4-H’ers. 

What impact did being involved in the 4-H program have on you? 

Being involved in 4-H and having an outlet outside of home, outside of school, where I wasn’t picked on and fit in and where there weren’t any cliques—it saved my life. It was an amazing experience. The volunteers I had are still in my life today. They mean more to me than they will ever know. I found my people and my place in 4-H.

Why is the shooting sports program important for young kids to be involved in?

Shooting sports is a multifaceted program, so there’s a lot that a child can get involved with and learn. It’s extremely important because it teaches youth safety principles. It also teaches them how to respect firearms and marksmanship. They get to have fun with that but also learn how to utilize a firearm in a safe and appropriate manner. It teaches kids about discipline through routine, helping others, and respect for others. It teaches them life skills they may not learn anywhere else.  

What do you hope to pass down to 4-H’ers? 

I hope to be a place they can come to and feel confident talking about things, even if it’s not about 4-H. I want to be someone they can confide in and they can trust. It’s my hope that in doing so, they enjoy that relationship and it inspires them to do the same for others. One act of kindness can spark 100 others. 

Honestly, my hope is they see how important the program is, how much they have learned in it, and that it shapes them into the young leaders they’re growing up to be. I hope that one day, when they’re old enough, they’ll want to come back and give back, too.

What shooting sports disciplines do you volunteer with? Which is your favorite?

Air pistol, air rifle, archery, .22 pistol, .22 rifle, shotgun, and Western Heritage.  I really like the pistol disciplines, mainly because that was what I competed in. 

Western Heritage is quickly becoming one of my favorites because you mesh rifle, pistol, and shotgun instruction with living history. You get to dress up and have a fun time with it. 4-H’ers get to create a persona, and we get to watch the kids role-play what it was like to live during that time. They come up with some crazy stories! What’s funny is I didn’t even want to get certified in it at first. I’m not crazy about history, but the living history approach definitely reignited my love for learning new things.