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LinkedInPosts Tagged: National 4-H
NATIONAL 4-H WEEK: Local clubs prepare to celebrate
Mariposa Weekly Gazette, September 29, 2011
www.mariposagazette.com/news/2011-09-29/Local_News/NATIONAL_4H_WEEK.html
Across the country, 4-H will celebrate National 4-H Week 2011 Sunday, Oct. 2 through Saturday, Oct. 8. National 4-H week, celebrated annually, provides recognition to youth and leaders involved in 4-H programs.
With an expansive network reaching every corner of the country, 4-H is the nation’s largest youth development organization. More than 6 million 4-H youth in urban neighborhoods, suburban schoolyards, military bases, and rural farming communities stand out among their peers: building revolutionary opportunities and implementing community-wide change at an early age.
In the state of California there are more than 20,000 4-H volunteer leaders, and the organization serves over 120,000 youth. This past year in Mariposa County there were over 180 members and 66 4-H volunteer leaders.
In Mariposa County the 4-H members from our four clubs: Bootjack 49ers, Cathey’s Valley, Triangle and the Don Pedro Rattlers 4-H will be wearing their uniforms to school, church, doing presentations at schools & clubs, and inviting their friends, young and old, to join this wonderful Youth Development Program.
From self-defense to sheep to small engines, local
The California 4-H mission statement is: “The University of California 4-H Youth Development Program engages youth in reaching their fullest potential while advancing the field of youth development.” The 4-H YDP is an educational program to assist youth in their development by providing learn-by-doing educational projects, developing skills, leadership, citizenship, and partnerships for programming and funding which will benefit youth throughout life.
It also strengthens families and the local community by working together as a team. 4-H is not just animals; the Mariposa 4-H YDP is adding new projects each year to expand our youth’s knowledge. For this upcoming year, some local projects are Hi 4-H (for seventh through 12th graders), Junior Master Gardeners, self-defense, Cloverbuds (for kindergarten through third grades), livestock, leadership, photography, theater arts, and more.
4-H also offers youth and adult conferences and workshops, leadership and officer trainings, camps for leaders and members, and outreach programs. This past program year, Yosemite Bank along with Mariposa 4-H Club Council sponsored “Camp Tweety.” This camp is offered to 4-H members and non-members in fourth through eighth grades. This overnight camp was held at Lions Camp Pacifica in Ahwahnee. Plans are already in the making for Camp Tweety in June 2012.
Along with 4-H clubs and projects, the youth program offers the School Enrichment Program, “Ag in the Classroom” which is sponsored by the Mariposa County Farm Bureau and County of Mariposa.
During this past year, over 16 teachers were able to check out incubators and curriculum to study Embryology, Ladybugs, Butterfly Gardens, Root- View Gardens, Honey-bee Life Cycle, and Cotton’s Journey curricula. Over 1,400 students at the county schools, homeschool and pre-schools had ‘hands-on’ experience with this program.
For youth joining 4-H to attend 2012 fairs with their 4-H projects, re-enrollment for current 4-H members must take place by Oct. 1 and new members’ enrollment must take place by Nov. 1. Enrollment fees are $20 for youth and $10 for volunteer leaders.
Volunteer leaders need to go through a new leader orientation and be fingerprinted before having project meetings with the youth. To complete a project, a minimum of six project meetings with ten hours of instruction is required for the leaders and members.
Anyone who would like to join 4-H as a member or project leader or have use of the “Ag in the Classroom” materials, contact the UCCE office at 966- 4829 or drop by the office at 5009 Fairgrounds Road.
Agriculture Secretary Vilsack Asks Gathering of 4-H Youth to Commit to Public Service, Reach Out to At-Risk Peers
“I pledge my Head to clearer thinking, my Heart to greater loyalty, my Hands to larger service and my Health to better living, for my club, my community, my country, and my world.” This is the pledge that 300 4-H youth and volunteers gave on Monday when the 2011 National 4-H Conference kicked off in Bethesda, Md. Youth and adults from 47 states and territories, as well a delegation from Canada, took part in an event that has happened in the Washington area since the 1920s, when 4-Hers slept in tents on the Washington Mall in front of the USDA headquarters. USDA’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture, or NIFA, is the parent organization to 4-H National Headquarters. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack and Education Secretary Arne Duncan spoke to 4-Hers about community service, valuing education, and embracing positive health and nutrition habits.
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| U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Secretary Tom Vilsack spoke with approximately 300 youth from 47 states or territories and Canada at the National 4-H Conference on Tuesday, April 5, 2011 in Washington, DC. The conference is the premier youth development opportunity of the USDA. Aged between 15-19 years old the attendees were selected by various means by their states to be delegates to the conference. The Secretaries then took questions from the audience. Secretary Vilsack received questions on topics such as land grants, what is an average day for him, and both talked of their goals to have 1,000 new farmers and 1,000 new educators. USDA photo by Lance Cheung. |
In one of the most moving parts of this remarks, Secretary Vilsack asked 4-H youth to reach out to their friends, family and peers in their communities if they are at risk of dropping out of school. He shared his personal story about when he answered the call to public service. It was the 1980s, he said, and he was working to help raise funds to build an athletic complex in his small Iowa town. The experience led him to join the city council, which led to his eventual election as mayor, Iowa State Senator, Governor of Iowa and, eventually, his appointment by President Obama to U.S. Secretary of Agriculture.
The Secretary asked the 4-Hers to use their pledge of head, heart, hands, and health to help guide them to success. The heart, said Vilsack, represents a commitment to the voice of youth, and he encouraged kids to hold a youth roundtable – register here – about issues that are important to them and their communities. Health, he said, represents a commitment to healthier living. 4-Hers are already taking steps towards better health through programs like the Presidential Active Lifestyle Award challenge. The Presidential Active Lifestyle Award recognizes those who log their recommended physical activity for six consecutive weeks, five days a week (60 minutes for kids, 30 minutes for adults).
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| Jessica Mullin (standing) asked U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Secretary Tom Vilsack during the National 4-H Conference on Tuesday, April 5, 2011 in Washington, DC. Her question was how America will keep up with future demands. The conference is the premier youth development opportunity of the USDA. Aged between 15-19 years old the attendees were selected by various means by their states to be delegates to the conference. USDA photo by Lance Cheung. |
4-H initially committed to this goal during the November 29, 2010, roll-out of the Let’s Move! Faith and Communities Initiative led by First Lady Michelle Obama. Let’s Move! is the First Lady’s initiative to solve the challenge of childhood obesity within a generation. Let’s Move! Faith and Communities is designed to support local efforts and highlight accomplishments in communities across the country. The program looks to work with community leaders, learn from what they are doing in neighborhoods, and share those efforts as broadly as possible.
While at the conference, 4-H youth leaders will learn about mobilizing social change for issues that affect them, from bullying to environmental conservation, and will visit with federal officials where they will make presentations on these issues.
'4-H is a good program that keeps children engaged'
For more information about 4-H clubs, call 865-1107 or visit the 4-H Advisors Office at 821 E. South St., Orland.
It is National 4-H Week. Glenn County supervisors got into the spirit of the event Tuesday by proclaiming Oct. 3-9 as National 4-H Week in Glenn County.
They were addressed by County 4-H all-stars Natalie Massa and Kassidi Buttermore, who read the proclamation to the board.
Massa is involved with Clover 4-H Club in Willows and is a sophomore at Willows High, while Buttermore belongs to Orland 4-H Club and is a freshman at Orland High School.
The girls noted 4-H is one of the largest youth organizations in California and the largest in the nation with 6 million young people. They said 130,000 4-Hers are in clubs across California and there are 20,000 adult volunteers in the state.
In Glenn County, 4-H is a big deal because the program numbers 4,034 members and has 159 adult volunteers, officials said.
It is part of the University of California, Davis, Cooperative Extension system and is a program where children and teens can learn through hands-on experiences with science, engineering, technology and more.
Raising livestock for county fairs, having horse projects and doing other agricultural activities are strong components of the organization, but officials note there are many opportunities for participation.
Members have the choice of 50 projects from college-bound activities to quilting and sewing.
Nutrition and foods, archery, arts and crafts, swine and sheep were some of the most popular projects this past year in Glenn County, 4-H officials said.
Enrollment is open to youth from 5 to 19. Glenn County's 4-H program began in 1913, and the first Glenn County club was organized in 1914. It was the second club in California at that time.
Supervisor Leigh McDaniel told Massa and Buttermore he had some "fun" math facts for them.
He said his quick calculation indicates close to 3 percent of California's 4-H members live in Glenn County, which is a big number considering its population.
"I believe as do the other supervisors, 4-H is a good program that keeps children engaged," McDaniel said.
Orland resident Byron Denton fondly recalled his days as a 4-H member.
"That was a 100 years ago," he joked, since Denton is in his 80s.
He added it's been around a long time and kept him out of trouble while he cared for his calves. "I cried every time they hit the scales."
Original article: www.willows-journal.com/news/county-5475-glenn-california.html.
Lake County 4-H Celebrates National 4-H Week
| Written by Editor | |
| Thursday, 07 October 2010 |
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| LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – On Tuesday, Oct. 5, Lake County 4-H received a proclamation from the Lake County Board of Supervisors designating the week of Oct. 3 to 9 as National 4-H Week in Lake County.
Seven million young people across the United States participate in 4-H, learning leadership, citizenship and life skills. In California 4-H claims 130,000 youth members and more than 20,000 adult volunteers, while in Lake County’s 4-H programs numbers more than 361 members and 134 adult volunteers in its 12 clubs. The Lake County Board of Supervisors recognized 4-H as an official program of the University of California Cooperative Extension on June 6, 1925. As part of the University of California Cooperative Extension, 4-H is a program where youth learn through opportunities that provide them hands-on experience in 4-H’s mission mandates of science, engineering and technology; healthy living and citizenship. For more information on the Lake County 4-H Program or to join please contact the UC Cooperative Extension Office at 707-263-6838. Original post: lakeconews.com/content/view/16309/926 |
