Aroostook 4-H Newsletter March 2019

Dates to Remember

March 16 – Aroostook County Public Speaking Tournament
March 27-April 4:  Tractor Supply Paper Clover Event
April 1:  Animal Approval Form due for ESE Horse participants
April 1:  4-H enrollment forms due for new members
April 4:  Leader’s meeting
June  1:  Animal Approval Form2019
June 28-July 3:  Northern Maine Agricultural Fair

State Events

March 2  Engineers’ Expo
April 6:  Maine 4-H Public Speaking Tournament
May 31-June 1:  4-H @ UMaine
July 19-21:  Maine 4-H Days

Happy Birthday to all 4-H members born in March

Alyssa E
Annastasia S
Baileigh M
Evan M
Gracie L
Mia C
Nicholas MReid M
Soloman F
Walker M

Club News

‘Paca Pals
Paca Pal members have been working on items for exhibit at the fairs, until its warm enough to bring out the animals. We made carnations from muffin liners at one meeting.

paper flowers made out of cupcake papers  4-H girl with her paper flowers she made out of cupcake papers

4-her and his craft proejct

One of our former members dropped by for the last meeting and helped out and encouraged everyone. (Hannah Elland)
We miss her!

Public Speaking County Tournament

On Saturday, March 16th the Aroostook County 4-H Regional Public Speaking competition will occur.  This event will take place at 10 a.m. in the Houlton Cooperative Extension board room.  If you would like more information on 4-H Public Speaking please check out all of the resources on the Maine 4-H Public Speaking page.  If you have any questions please contact mari-.glatter@maine.edu or call the Houlton office at 532-6548.  Please do rsvp, via telephone or email, if you are planning to attend on the 16th.
For more information check out the Aroostook County 4-H website or the State 4-H Public Speaking website

State Public Speaking Event
Saturday, April 6, in Orono, is the State Public Speaking Event.  The state event is a day long event with check-in at 10:00am and presentations of awards at 4:00 pm.  Box lunches will be provided, please bring snacks and a water bottle.

TSC Paper Clover Event

This runs from  March 27-April 4.  Please call your local Tractor Supply Company to sign up for a time slot.  Fundraising is allowed at this event.  You must contact the 4-H office to inform us if you are planning to fund-raise so we may give you the proper equipment.  Please also let the 4-H office know if you plan to participate 532-6548.

New 4-H Volunteer!

The 4-H staff is very pleased to announce that Jessica Smith has completed all of the training to be a 4-H Club Volunteer.  Jessica will be a wonderful asset to our Aroostook County team as she has a background in 4-H and extensive training in education and youth development.

Digital Ambassadors Program

In January I (Mari) was fortunate to travel to the National 4-H Council headquarters in Chevy Chase, Maryland as part of the lead team on a Digital Ambassadors grant from Microsoft.   This grant allows 4-H’ers and volunteers from eight of Maine’s counties to have the opportunity to gain leadership skills as they teach senior adults in their community about digital literacy. During February vacation I returned to Maryland with the two teenagers who are representing Aroostook County.  We spent three days with adults and youth from around the country working and developing our local action plan.

STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) Ambassadors

This month I (Mari) worked with Wendi Malenfant, UMPI education professor, and Greg Kranich, 4-H Science Professional, to do multiple trainings with undergraduate education majors.  These UMPI students are in their third year and as part of the science methodology course were trained as 4-H STEM Ambassadors.  Over the next 8 weeks all seven students will be teaching six 4-H science lessons in after school programs.  These is beneficial to our Aroostook program now but I also believe it will be beneficial in the future as these students are all local residents who hope to work in this greater area as teachers – and are learning and training in 4-H Positive Youth Development now.

Maine 4-H Foundation excited to be building a new program at Greenland Point Center in Princeton

The new University of Maine 4-H Camp and Learning Center at Greenland Point in Princeton, Maine, expected to open in June, will be an environmental camp and center for youth and the community, focused on outdoor education, ecology and conservation.

The Maine 4-H Foundation’s purchase of the former children’s camp, located on a peninsula in Long Lake in Washington County, was made possible with the help of numerous donations.

“We are very excited about the property and want to thank all of our wonderful donors that helped make this purchase happen,” says Carla Lafayette, Maine 4-H Foundation board president.

Donors on the project who helped raise the initial $350,000 to purchase the property include the estate of Jay Stager, the Bolger Foundation, Quimby Family Foundation, John T. Gorman Foundation, Maine Community Foundation through a donor-directed fund, the estate of Harold H. Brown, First National Bank, Machias Savings Bank, Bangor Savings Bank, USDA Rural Development funding and many individual contributors, including a generous anonymous donor.

Many other donors have come forward to assist with facility upgrades and the purchase of equipment and materials needed to run the summer camp.

The newest facility improvements and youth scholarships are available for Maine youth with the help of supporters, including Maine Timberlands Charitable Trust, Great Northern docks, Mardens, the George Ramlose Foundation, Hometown Foundation, the Agnes M. Lindsay Trust, the Baders, Morton-Kelly charitable Trust, the Simmons Foundation, the Penobscot County Conservation Association, the Harmon Foundation and many more individual donations.

Fundraising for this project is part of the University of Maine’s $200 million Vision for Tomorrow comprehensive campaign.

The new programs being offered in the summer 2019 are available online:  extension.umaine.edu/greenland-point.

The camp looks forward to welcoming youth from Aroostook County. To learn more about the Greenland Point project, contact Ryder Scott, director of 4-H Camp and Learning Centers, 207.665.2068, ryder.scott@maine.edu; or Jen Lobley, Extension professor, Washington County, 207.255.3345, jennifer.lobley@maine.edu.

Project Records

The State 4-H website has a wonderful site for project record forms.  How to Guide and which record is best for you.  Please check out this link – any questions, feel free to contact Mari, 532-6458  or mari.glatter@maine.edu

State 4-H News

March, 2019


Save the Date for 2019 Maine 4-H Days

  1. Maine 4-H Days will take place July 19 – 21 at the Windsor Fairgrounds. If you are interested in helping to plan next year’s event, please contact Jessy Brainerd at brainerd@maine.edu or 207.581.3877.
  2. Maine 4-H Days Planning Committee
    July will be here before you know it, and we are looking for a few good volunteers to join the fantastic current Maine 4-H Days Planning Committee. Joining this committee gives you the chance to help come up with ideas and plans for one of our biggest statewide events!  If you are interested in joining the Maine 4-H Days Planning Committee, or have general questions/comments/recommendations about the event, please email brainerd@maine.edu, or call 207.581.3877.
  3. Come to Orono for the 2019 4H@UMaine May 31 – June 1!
    Planning has started and the wheels are in motion thanks to the efforts of a tremendous team! We are always looking for individuals interested in helping with pre-event planning or attending the event itself! Stay tuned for details. For more information about 4-H@UMaine, contact Greg Kranich atkranich@maine.edu or 207.581.3292.
  4. Citizenship Washington Focus

Citizenship Washington Focus (CWF) Start making plans now to visit our Nation’s Capital during the week of June 29 to July 6, 2019. CWF is a leadership program conducted by the National 4-H Council for high school youth ages 14 to 18. Delegations of 4-Hers from across the country spend six days touring the city and attending leadership skill-building workshops. This summer, the Maine delegation will travel down on Saturday, June 29 and travel home Saturday July 6, 2019. You will stay at the National 4-H Conference Center just outside Washington, DC. Visiting the most popular sites in Washington, DC will be a part of the trip, including spending the 4th of July in our nation’s capital. There is a mandatory orientation for Maine delegates on April 27th, 2019.  For more information visit https://extension.umaine.edu/4h/annual-events/citizenship-washington-focus/.  Contact your county 4-H office for details about how to be a part of this experience if you don’t hear from them very shortly. All county offices have different criteria/dates to apply, so please contact them ASAP.  Websites are currently being updated.  For specific questions, please contact Heidi Palmer, State Activities Coordinator at:  heidi.thuotte@maine.edu.

  1. National Trips
    National 4-H Trip Applications Are due March 8th, 2019 (Conference and Congress) National 4-H Trips are excellent opportunities to meet 4-H members from across the nation. Participants learn about many career options, and learn through educational workshops at Congress or become a part of a team making recommendations to National 4-H Council at Conference. To learn more about these trips, visit: https://extension.umaine.edu/4h/national-trips/. Websites are currently being updated. For specific questions, please contact Heidi Palmer, State Activities Coordinator at:  thuotte@maine.edu
  2. 2019 Maine 4-H Public Speaking Tournament
    The 4-H State Public Speaking Tournament will be held Saturday, April 6, 2019at the University of Maine at Orono. 4-H Youth ages 9 to 18 who have participated in their county 4-H public speaking tournament and received the required score are invited to participate. For youth in counties which do not hold public speaking tournaments, arrangements may be made through their county’s Extension office to present their presentation to their county’s 4-H staff in order to be eligible. More information is available at: https://extension.umaine.edu/4h/event/2019-maine-4-h-state-public-speaking-tournament/

 

  1. Please provide feedback on Project Records!
    Click the following link to take the survey.     https://umaine.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_bP1iUM659wuRVrLYou are invited to participate in a statewide research project being conducted by Kristy Ouellette and Jennifer Lobley, Extension Educators at the University of Maine Cooperative Extension.  4-H volunteers and staff from all over Maine will participate in this study.Purpose of this research project:  We recognize the value of our 4-H volunteers.  As a state we have rolled out new 4-H Project Records. We want to have a better understanding of your beliefs and understandings of the function of these records. What will you be asked to do?  If you decide to participate, you will be asked to complete an on-line survey with questions pertaining to your attitudes and beliefs regarding 4-H project records in Maine.  The survey will take you approximately 20 minutes to complete. Risks: Except for your time and inconvenience, there are no foreseeable risks to you in participating in this study.  Benefits: You will be eligible to enter into a raffle for a $25.00 gift card to Hannaford.  Confidentiality:  As a participant you will be anonymous. Investigators or a student will enter data into a computer.  Data will be kept on a secured computer with only the investigators or a student having access. Data will be kept for a period of  5 years.  Voluntary:  Participation is voluntary.  If you choose to take part in this study, you may stop at any time during the study.  You may skip any questions you do not wish to answer.   Participation in the on-line survey implies consent to participate.Contact Information: If you have any questions about this study, please contact Kristy Ouellette at 207.353.5550 or kristy.ouellette@maine.edu If you have any questions about your rights as a research participant, please contact Gayle Jones, Assistant to the University of Maine’s Protection of Human Subjects Review Board, at 581.1498 (or e-mail gayle.jones@maine.edu).