When he earned the third place ribbon--placed behind a pair of young women who were twin sisters--at a county hog show in the 1920's, Clarence Ropp vowed, "If I can't show the champion pig, then I'll marry someone who can." And within a few years he did indeed marry his former show ring competitor, Mabel Mohr, who was also a fellow founder and current 4-H Club leader of the "Linden Lead 'Em 4-H Club" in McLean County.
The Clarence & Mabel Mohr Ropp Family was recognized as the 2003 Illinois 4-H Family Spirit Award recipients at the 4-H Family Picnic at the Illinois State Fair. Thirteen different family members have served as 4-H Club Leaders in McLean and Livingston Counties for more than 350 cumulative years of service as volunteer leaders. Eight members of the family are still current 4 -H Club Leaders. The family remembers Clarence Ropp starting out each club meeting by asking, “How do we win?” and the club would respond “Without boasting!” Then he’d ask, “How do we lose?” and the members would say “Without whining.”
The family also has a 3-generation deep pedigree of producing delegates to the National 4-H Club Congress that was formerly held in Chicago. Mabel attended the first Congress in 1921 and attended again in 1927 as the state delegate for Clothing. Both of her sons, Gordon and Ray, attended as state winners in Dairy and Achievement in 1949 and 1964 respectively. And her grandson, Ken Ropp, was a 1989 Illinois delegate to the National 4-H Congress. Fifty years ago—back in 1953, Clarence Ropp was one of eight individuals (that included the current Governors of Colorado and Georgia) who were selected to receive the first-ever 4 -H Alumni Recognition Awards. Clarence got to attend his own National 4-H Congress then—35 years after first becoming a 4-H member.
Ray Ropp, a distinguished Jersey breeder and the 1998 McLean County 4-H Leader of the Year, participated in an IFYE exchange to India back in 1964 as a 22 year-old young man. He says, “My IFYE experience gave me an understanding of and appreciation for people of other cultures. As a result, my own family has hosted guests from more than 30 different countries in our home.”
Recognized this year for 50 years of service as a 4-H Club Leader, Gordon Ropp responds, “I’ve been able to give back to young people some of what I’m gained myself from the 4-H program.” Gordie’s fifty years of service as a 4-H leader are complemented by more than thirty years of leadership to the State of Illinois. Having served as Director of the Illinois Department of Agriculture from 1970-1974, he also served 14 years in the state legislature and worked as Assistant Director of Agriculture and as the Assistant to the Director of the Department of Transportation. Gordie was recognized as a State 4 -H Alumni winner in 1974.
Ropp Family members that have been involved in 4-H include: Clarence & Mable (both deceased); Mabel's sisters Laura & May Mohr (both deceased); Gordon Ropp of Normal and Roberta Ropp (deceased), Ray & Carol Ropp of Normal; Diana Green of Normal; Shana Smith of Hopedale; Jeff Emberton of El Prado NM; Troy Emberton of Boulder CO; Darren, Sandra and Samantha Ropp of Strawn, David Ropp of Normal, Ken & Becky (Hollis) Ropp of Normal, and Karen Ropp of Normal. While only one family member—Samantha Ropp—is a current 4 -H member, the family has several great-grandchildren waiting for their 8th birthday so they too can join the ranks of 4 -H membership.
The family shares many fond memories of the more than 150 years of cumulative 4-H membership. Among the Ropp Family’s unforgettable 4-H moments are: 4-H Softball Tournaments, state fair modeling, state fair water fights, state fair dorm food, having a Ropp Jersey Cow win the Grand Champion of both the 4 -H and Open Shows at the 1949 Illinois State Fair, and Share-The-Fun skits (especially the time where the boys dressed up in prom dresses and danced to “The Sugar Plum Fairies” in “The Nutcracker”). The Illinois 4-H Foundation created the Illinois 4-H Family Spirit Award last year to annually recognize an Illinois family who has made 4-H part of the tradition for multiple generations and have a minimum of at least 15 family members with at least 100 cumulative years of 4 -H involvement.