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Most of us grew up playing sports or doing something that required movement. A number of today’s high school athletes train either in the morning, the afternoon, or both. For college athletes, the intensity and length of their training is even more demanding. Athletes typically train for three or more hours a day.

From Beyonce and Jimmy Carter to Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis and Willie Nelson, 4-H and Future Farmers of America (FFA) have been helping young people across the nation build leadership skills for the last century.For two Gilroy families, the Beyers and the Funkes, these organizations have not only taught about animal husbandry and showmanship at county fairs, like this week’s Santa Clara County Fair, but they’ve helped foster community and cultivate a personal sense of accomplishment for the kids involved.The older of the two organizations, 4-H had its official start in 1902. It began as an extracurricular youth organization for young people ages 5-21 as a way to teach leadership, encourage citizenship and responsibility, and develop life skills. The group was later formalized with the 1914 passage of the Smith-Lever Act, which created the Cooperative Extension Service, a partnership between the USDA and land-grant universities to extend the agricultural research efforts of these universities.Similarly, the FFA began around the same time as part of the Smith-Hughes Act (1917), which expanded upon the Smith-Lever act to allow for vocational agricultural training. Eventually, the development of a high school curriculum gave way to the FFA in 1928 when 33 students from 18 states officially formed the organization.Cheryl Beyer, 48, enrollment chair and a leader for the Adams 4-H chapter in Gilroy, one of four chapters in South Santa Clara County, started in 4-H more than 10 years ago when her oldest child, Jasmine, was six. As a homeschooled family, Cheryl wanted to provide additional social outlets for her four children and she sought out 4-H as an extracurricular opportunity.“Everyone thinks that your kids are going to turn out weird when you homeschool them because they think that they are sheltered,” says Cheryl, but she says her kids, like their peers, are active in their church group and in sports and dance programs.“When they got involved in 4-H the first two projects that they took on were garden and rabbits. So for years we raised rabbits and then we added chicken and then we added swine.”Farm to tableWith the popularization of the farm to table movement, families like the Beyers and the Funkes are walking the talk. While not large scale farmers, they are raising and processing their own animals. Processing is the term used for slaughter, and Cheryl Beyer admits it’s a euphemism used by the meat packing industry.“I think it’s a shame that we use the word ‘process’ because it divorces people from what actually happens with their food,” she says, adding that because of 4-H, her kids are very cognizant of waste.“When we cook a chicken that they have raised, if there is anything left over, they will say ‘let’s wrap the leftovers up.’ They know what it took to get that chicken from the little chick all the way to the table because they had to do it.“When they saw Food, Inc. they said, ‘We want to raise meat chickens because we don't want to eat the chickens that come from the store.’ So first we raised turkeys and then we raised meat chickens.”For people like the Funkes, who raise larger animals, there is a company that comes and slaughters them.Kathy Funke, 51, who is an agriculture instructor at the Charter School of Morgan Hill, has roots in both FFA and 4-H, where she was a participant and leader for many years and where she met her husband, Dave.“I taught high school agriculture over in Soquel, then when I had kids I stayed home with them and then I went back to teaching at the charter school—K-8,” says Kathy. “We have a farm at the school with goats and chickens and pigs.”The Funkes own property in Gilroy, where they raise goats, meat birds, hens, swine, horses and, until this week’s county fair in San Jose, a steer.Kathy’s daughter, Beth Funke, 18, says the farm to table movement is “good for us.”“When we first moved here, our dream was to grow everything we eat,” says Kathy. Because only one animal can be sold at auction, as a market project, Kathy says her kids were raising multiple animals and selling them outside of auction. They would hold their own farm to table events after the fair, inviting the people who had purchased animals from them, and serve food they had grown on their farm.Beth’s Supervised Agricultural Experience project this year is a steer, where she’ll take the skills she learned in her agricultural class through FFA and apply them outside of class in at fair.“I’ve never shown a steer before,” says Beth, “so this is all very new to me. I’ve been working really hard with him and I want to sell him at the fair. My end goal is to get a good price, so $3.50 a pound.”According to her mom, “Most of her animal projects have been market projects because we’re big into entrepreneurship here. She’s made a lot of money here.”More than animalsBut not all projects go to market. This year, in addition to showing meat hens, Joshua Beyer, 16, is showing a blown glass bowl at the fair in the “still” barn.“That’s basically anything that’s not alive and moving,” says Jasmine Beyer, 17. “One of the coolest things about the fair is that everyone thinks that it’s animal-focused, but it’s not. You just have to go into the still barn.”Stills could be anything, including baked goods, art, flower arranging, or photography. Jessica Beyer, 14, has previously won a blue ribbon for baking. “That was really fun!” she says. “It felt really nice to accomplish something.”Emerging LeadersCheryl Beyer shares that even though a lot of the projects are agricultural, they teach young people more than animal husbandry. “It’s to teach them responsibility. It’s to teach them leadership skills.” In addition to meeting for individual project groups, 4-H clubs have a general monthly meeting, where the club gets together and discusses different projects.“They will get up and talk about what they learned in their projects, so that’s teaching them public speaking skills,” says Cheryl.“I still have trouble with public speaking,” says Jessica Beyer. “And because we have presentations in 4-H, I feel like it’s really helped me a lot in overcoming that fear.”Other practices that encourage leadership are preparation for 4-H camp, where Jasmine Beyer worked as a youth leader this summer. Over a six-month period, she planned this year’s week-long summer camp with two other students and three adult advisors.“So the project is just kind of ‘a spy in disguise’ if you will. It's the vehicle for teaching responsibility, public speaking, money management—because that feed starts getting expensive after a while—just all of these different life skills that they can take beyond 4-H,” she says.

You can find the Body and Soul Apothecary booth by its gentle scent alone. Follow that enigmatic smell and you’ll quickly stumble upon one of the more eclectic companies present at Morgan Hill’s farmers market.

After receiving a complaint from a resident about the “confusing” title of a July 27 Morgan Hill City Council agenda item, city officials agreed to take steps to make this and future agendas more transparent.

The judge in the ongoing Sierra LaMar case denied a motion by attorneys for the missing teen’s accused killer to delay the jury trial, which is now expected to begin in September.Antolin Garcia Torres, 24 of Morgan Hill, appeared in a Hall of Justice courtroom in San Jose for a hearing on the motion to delay the trial Aug. 1. Superior Court Judge Vanessa Zecher denied the motion, which Garcia Torres’ defense attorneys filed more than four years after Sierra went missing from her north Morgan Hill home at the age of 15.The court and attorneys still have to resolve other pre-trial motions filed on Garcia Torres’ behalf before jury selection can begin, according to Santa Clara County Deputy District Attorney David Boyd, the state’s lead prosecutor in the case. These include a motion to suppress evidence and another to change the trial venue to another county.“Defendant is unable to show a reasonable likelihood that he cannot receive a fair and impartial in Santa Clara County,” based on the large population of Santa Clara County from which to draw jurors and other factors, reads Boyd’s motion opposing the request to change the trial venue.This argument and Garcia Torres’ motion to suppress evidence—which claims investigators’ collection of the suspect’s DNA samples violated the Fourth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution—will be heard at the Hall of Justice in late August or early September, Boyd said.During a 2014 grand jury hearing, investigators revealed they found Garcia Torres’ DNA on Sierra’s belongings, which were found on the roadside in her former neighborhood on Palm Avenue. They also say they found Sierra’s DNA inside Garcia Torres’ Volkswagen Jetta after the teen was reported missing.Sierra was last seen walking to her school bus stop near Palm and Dougherty avenues March 16, 2012. Investigators think Garcia Torres kidnapped and killed her, though her remains have not been found.Sierra was a sophomore at Sobrato High School at the time of her disappearance.Garcia Torres has been in custody at Santa Clara County Jail since his arrest May 2012. He is charged with murder in the Sierra LaMar case.In an unrelated case, Garcia Torres is also charged with three 2009 attempted carjackings of female customers in the parking lots of two Safeway grocery stores in Morgan Hill.The DA is seeking the death penalty for Garcia Torres in relation to the murder charge.Jury selection for the murder trial could begin by Sept. 19, Boyd said.On July 28, Zecher signed an order prohibiting cameras in the courtroom to cover the trial proceedings.

Local and federal police are looking for at least two suspects who used handguns to commit an armed robbery of a downtown Morgan Hill bank Saturday, according to authorities.About 9:15 a.m. July 30, employees at Chase Bank, 17599 Monterey Road, called police to report there had been a robbery, reads a press release from MHPD. When officers arrived, employees told them that two armed men walked into the bank and demanded the teller give them all the money in the register.The two men displayed handguns and were carrying duffel bags, police said. The suspects were wearing hooded sweatshirts and masks that covered their entire faces.Based on photographs and witness descriptions, the suspects are described as two men about 6-feet to 6-feet-3-inches tall with slim builds, police said. One suspect was wearing a gray hoodie with dark pants and white shoes. The second suspect wore a black sweatshirt with blue jeans and red/white/black Nike shoes.The suspects were last seen fleeing the bank in a blue Ford Focus, which drove westbound on West Main Avenue as it left the scene, authorities said.No injuries were reported during the robbery, police said.Investigators from MHPD and the FBI are investigating all leads in the case.Anyone who has information about the July 30 robbery can contact MHPD Cpl. Purvis at (669) 253-4912.

Two juveniles were arrested after police found a revolver in their possession July 28, according to Morgan Hill police.Officers responded to a report of suspicious activity in the area of 15855 Monterey Road. When officers arrived, they contacted two suspicious juvenile males subjects who matched the descriptions provided by witnesses in the south parking lot of 500 Vineyard Town Center, according to police.One of the juveniles immediately ran, but an officer quickly caught up to him, police said. A search of the subject revealed he was in possession of a revolver cylinder. Police searched the area and found a .38 revolver frame that matched the cylinder.The juveniles were identified, and police determined they were from San Jose and Gilroy respectively, police said. They were on active juvenile probation with gang, curfew and alcohol clauses. MHPD officers arrested then on suspicion of possession of unlawful weapons, resisting arrest and probation violations. Both were transported to Santa Clara County Juvenile Hall.Authorities did not release the suspects’ names because they are juveniles.Police do not think the young men were involved in the July 16 downtown shooting, in which two vehicles were damaged by gunfire but no injuries were reported.Anyone with information about this case can contact MHPD Cpl. Scott Purvis at (408) 779-2101 or the anonymous tip line at (408) 947-7867.

A dejected Morgan Hill City Council declined to place a local revenue measure on the November ballot at Wednesday’s meeting, and warned residents they will have to accept degrading city streets until up to $5.8 million per year can be found to make repairs and upgrades.The council’s decision July 27 followed a report from public opinion research consultants The Lew Edwards Group and Godbe Research, which presented survey results that indicate the voters would not support numerous ballot revenue measure options.Guided by previous council discussions about the possible revenue measure, the survey gauged likely voters’ response to a variety of potential sales tax and bond measures. The results showed the highest support—59 percent of 398 respondents—for a three-quarter-cent sales tax measure, with the favorability rate declining with subsequent options that included sales taxes of smaller value and bond issue measures, according to Charles Hester of Godbe Research.Hester said as an experienced pollster he would like to see the support percentage in the “low to mid-60s” before recommending placing anything on the ballot. He advised the council not to place a measure on the ballot this year based on these results.“There is simply no support for additional taxes in Morgan Hill,” said Councilman Larry Carr, who pulled papers last week to run for re-election in November.A voter-approved bond, which requires a two-thirds-plus-one majority to pass, would be repaid with higher property taxes.Councilman Gordon Siebert cast a symbolic vote against Mayor Pro Temp Rich Constantine’s motion to decline to place a measure on the November ballot. Siebert has been sounding the alarm for a new source of local revenue, reminding audiences frequently that Morgan Hill collects less per capita revenue from taxes—$550 per resident—than almost every other city in Santa Clara County.City staff have said that they need another $5.8 million per year to get caught up on road and street repairs, maintenance and upgrades, and improve the overall pavement quality. Siebert said without a new source of revenue, the issue of street repairs and maintenance is going to be the “most significant issue we have to face in the next couple of years.”At the July 20 council meeting, the body approved a “resolution of necessity” for $38 million in general obligation bonds for capital improvements to streets, parks and public facilities. That approval was a precursor to the failed effort to place a bond measure on the November ballot.“I’m distraught,” Siebert said. “I’ve been pushing this issue ever since I got on the council.”Constantine added that Morgan Hill is the only city in the county that does not impose a local tax on its citizens.He cautioned that the city is currently paying for park maintenance—another possible use of a hypothetical new sales tax—with fees paid by the developers of new residential units. That’s not a sustainable revenue model, Siebert added.“In some ways I feel like we have failed,” Siebert said of the council, suggesting they collectively haven’t done enough to convince residents of the need for more revenue.Councilwoman Marilyn Librers, who also pulled papers to run for re-election last week, was the only elected official July 27 to state overtly that she has opposed a new revenue measure since the council started talking about it more than two years ago.Still, Librers agreed the city doesn’t have nearly enough money to repair and upgrade the streets. She insisted the funds are nowhere to be found in two-year city budget which was approved by the council in June.“Our budget is lean and mean, and well-managed, but we still have a problem,” Librers said.She wasn’t the only council member who indirectly refuted the suggestion—voiced by resident Armando Benavides in public comments at the July 27 meeting—that if the city managed its funds better they would be able to pay for all the necessary street repairs.“If there’s anyone who can find money in our budget for a $5.8 million shortfall, please step forward,” Constantine said.He added that he supports a new tax on residents, including himself, because he is “willing to pay for a higher quality of life.”The “good news” contained in the survey results, according to Hester, is that 66.2 percent of likely voters think the city is doing a “good or excellent” job of providing services. That number is up from 57.9 percent in a 2015 survey of likely Morgan Hill voters.But with declining quality of streets and parks, for example, this overall favorability might not hold up.“Things are not going to stay ‘looking pretty good’ if we continue to spend the way we’re spending now because we don’t have the revenue we need” to make adequate street and related infrastructure repairs, Siebert continued. “It’s going to be a public safety issue when people start hitting potholes, and going out of control, and 20 percent of the (streetlights) are going out because we can’t afford to repair them, and the traffic signals are going dark.”Mayor Steve Tate—who also plans to run for re-election in November—added he and his colleagues should continue to inform residents of the city’s per capita tax rate in comparison to nearby cities.“Now is not the time to put anything on the ballot,” Tate concluded.The results of the Godbe survey presented to the council July 27 are the culmination of an outreach campaign in which city officials have sought to determine residents’ and likely voters’ priorities when it comes to city services, and to determine the support for a revenue measure on the ballot. The effort also included online informational surveys, pamphlets and other literature to solicit input and provide information about city services.