Every year 4-H sponsors a contest called Youth Against Prejudice that is meant help young people develop a better understanding of people from different faiths, cultures and traditions.

Cody Wyant, 16, of Austin, was well on his way to doing so when he entered the contest this year.

Wyant had already started Fusion, the diversity club at Austin High School and became part of Austin's Human Rights Commission when he submitted his entry in March.

Wyant also is a part of many faith backgrounds. His mother is Catholic and Jewish. His father is Lutheran.

"What really interested me (in the program) was I really grew up in a diverse family, religiously," Wyant said. "My two sisters and I learned about all religions and celebrated them."

He had heard about the contest because his oldest sister, Carissa, 22, had entered and won when she was 16.

"(Carissa) really encouraged me to do the program," Wyant said. "It shaped her whole life."

Youth Against Prejudice has been in existence since in 1950s. It is a partnership between 4-H and the Jewish Community Relations Council of Minnesota and the Dakotas. It began as a radio speaking contest and evolved into a contest with four categories: public speaking, photojournalism, interpretive reading and creative writing.

Winners in different regions of Minnesota are selected to go to St. Louis Park to spend the weekend with a Jewish host family and to learn more about Jewish culture through various activities. On the last day of the weekend, one winner in each of the categories are picked and those students win a trip to Israel.

This year the trip was changed to New York City and Washington D.C. because of the current Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Wyant entered the public speaking category and spoke about how people can learn from the Holocaust. He won in this area and joined 40 other student winners in the Twin Cities the weekend of June 14.

Wyant spent the weekend with a Jewish host family, celebrated the Sabbath with them, attended a bat mitzvah and looked at Judaic art at the Art Institute of Minneapolis. He learned more about Jewish culture, which is a part of his own heritage.

Like his sister, Wyant's experience has played a role in shaping his future. He wants to go to school on the east coast for Jewish studies and is considering becoming a professor.

The contest certainly has influenced Carissa's life.

She won the trip to Israel when she participated in the program and is interested in working in the Middle East someday.

This fall she will be attending Divinity School at Yale to study monotheistic religions for her masters. She also may become a professor.

"It was a wonderful experience," Carissa said. "It shaped my life in a lot of ways."

Wyant plans to enter the contest again next year, but he might enter a different category.

Wyant said he does not associate himself with one religion, but leans more toward Judaism.

"I'm open to all new perspectives," Wyant said.

Cari Quam can be reached at 434-2235 or by e-mail at cari.quam@austindailyherald.com