December 2022 4-H Newsletter
4-H Happenings
A monthly newsletter for Hancock County 4-H Members
Table of Contents
Upcoming Dates| County News | Club News | State News | Leaders Meeting Minutes
Upcoming Dates to Remember
December 13 – Extension Office Closed (Maintenance Work)
December 18 – 1:00 pm Aquatic Tankers Meeting
December 18 – National 4-H Youth Summit Application Due
December 26 – Extension Office Closed
December 31 – State Deadline for Re-enrollment – No Exceptions
January 2 – Extension Office Closed
January 5 – Intent to Sell at Fryeburg Forms Due
January 10 – 6:30 pm Leader’s Meeting (Hybrid)
County News
Re-enrollment 2022-2023 Final Reminder – Another 4-H year has begun! If you have not submitted your re-enrollment – the state deadline is December 31. Absolutely no exceptions will be allowed after that date.
- If you were enrolled for the 2021-2022 year, you can simply visit: https://4h.zsuite.org/ – click “Forgot Password?” and complete the prompts using the email address you receive your 4-H communications at.
Project Records – Congratulations to Courtney H, Natalie J, Sherry F, and Dani S for all their hard work putting together project record reports! These hard-working girls all deserve a round of applause for the time and effort they dedicated to sharing the ins and outs of their projects with us. Great job girls!
In addition, we are pleased to announce that the project records template has been reimagined via a statewide effort to make them more accessible! You can request these new templates by calling the Extension office at 207.667.8212 or emailing andrea.mahoney@maine.edu.
Aquatic Tankers – 
Our newest SPIN Club is off to a great start! Our young tankers spent the November meeting creating a mason jar aquarium craft. If you missed last month’s sign-up, be sure not to make the same mistake for the December meeting! Kristin and Tom will be venturing out to Bucksport with the youth to visit Vance’s Tropical Fish and Exotic Pets for a Q&A session with Vance himself!
National 4-H Youth Summit – The National 4-H Youth Summit is a nationwide youth development trip hosted in Washington DC. At the Summit, high school-aged youth are immersed in an agenda focused on agriscience, healthy living, or STEM. Sessions will be offered within these respective tracks to demonstrate why and how these topics are important and how young people can become changemakers. Check out our state news section below to learn more! If you are interested in attending, please complete the scholarship application by December 18.
Intent to Sell Forms – I know it seems like fair season has just ended, but the due date for Intent to Sell forms, January 5, is right around the corner! As a reminder, youth MUST be enrolled by December 31, 2022, in order to sell at the Fryeburg Fair. Once re-enrolled, families can contact the office for Intent to Sell forms or submit an online form for beef or sheep at our state website.
Hancock County Interests – It has been quite the year for Hancock County. Between new staff, new clubs/events, and emerging from a pandemic, we want to know what interests our community! Please take a few minutes to fill out this survey to help us better serve you. All who participate will be entered to win 1 of 5 prizes we have put together, but remember to include your name and email at the end to be entered!
Club News
Jolly Juniors – 
The Jolly Juniors 4-H club celebrated with a banquet and awards for the end of the ’21-’22 year. We had a great turnout and lots of delicious food!! We awarded a ten-year pin to Olivia J and five-year pins to the following: Samantha B, Cassidee C, Abby D, Jaxson H, Olivia D, Kaden K, & Addison C. We are so excited about our 91st year!!
About the Farm – The About the Farm kids got together for November to make holiday wreaths. What a great activity to get in the holiday spirit!
Aquatic Tankers – Aquatic Tankers rang in their first meeting by connecting in fun ways and exploring the basics of keeping a healthy, thriving aquarium! After a fun round of ice breakers, we toured the five in-house tanks here at Lone Spruce Farm, including freshwater, marine, and aquaponic systems! We fed fish and invertebrates in each tank and shared our questions and 
ideas about what makes each tank successful. Afterward, we discussed the importance of healthy water chemistry, and everyone participated in testing the nitrite levels in the aquaponics system! After that, it was time to make our own tanks to take home- in a mason jar of course! Once every plant and fish were in the right spot, the tanks were topped off with water, and we wrapped up our time together by coloring some beautiful aquarium coloring pages! Youth also brought home spider plants grown in the aquaponics system. Tankers will meet again in December and have the awesome opportunity to tour Bucksport’s own Vance’s Tropical Fish Shop!
State News
- Public Speaking In-Person Workshop
The Maine 4-H Communication Science Team invites all enrolled 4-H members to an in-person workshop on January 21st from 2 – 4 pm. The meeting will be held at the Penobscot County Extension Office in Bangor. Participants will learn how to prepare for county/regional public speaking contests for both Demonstrations and Illustrated Talks. Please contact sheila.norman@maine.edu for more information or to register.
- 4-H Youth Summit Applications are Now Open!
Ignite by 4-H – the 2023 National 4-H Youth Summit to be held in the Washington, DC area, March 9-12, 2023. Applications for the 4-H Youth Summit are now open. The link is here! Applications are due by December 18th. This year there is ONLY ONE LARGE 4-H Summit. It will combine tracks in Agri-science, Healthy living, and STEM. The Maine 4-H Foundation has once again helped us to fund teams of youth for both Agri-Science and Healthy Living by providing scholarship funds for youth who are selected.
High school-aged youth are immersed in an agenda focused on agriscience, healthy living, or STEM. Sessions will be offered within these respective tracks to demonstrate why and how these topics are important and how young people can become changemakers. Find general conference information at https://4-h.org/parents/national-youth-summits/.
If you have any questions please contact Tara Marble at tara.marble@maine.edu, 207.778.4650.
- 2022-2023 Re-Enrollment Process
There is a new option available for families for the new 4-H Year. Starting October 1st, families will have the ability to log into their accounts and complete their re-enrollment, as well as all required forms, online. If you were enrolled for the 2021-2022 year, you can simply visit: https://4h.zsuite.org/ – click “Forgot Password?” and complete the prompts using the email address you receive your 4-H communications to. There is a help menu that offers step-by-step instructions in the system, as well as live chat for questions. You are also welcome to reach out to your county staff or to the State Office at 4-H@maine.edu. If you would prefer to continue to complete paper forms, they can be found online at: https://extension.umaine.edu/4h/volunteers/forms/ or by reaching out to your county office.
- Independent Member Clubs!
This fall county offices are piloting a new club specifically for independent 4-H members. This is a space for youth to come together and build relationships with their peers. We will share interests, projects, goals, and plans for the year and then reflect on our learning throughout and at the end of the year. This is also a great place to start if you are a new or recently enrolled independent member. We will meet 3 times throughout the year as a group with county staff. This will be a space for youth to foster friendships with peers and possibly come together to work on projects of similar interests. We are even hoping to get the group to brainstorm common interests and work together on a community service project! Somerset and Aroostook counties are both holding meetings in December.
Register here! Meetings can be attended either in person or virtually and will be open to all ages. Dates are based on county/region.
- 2022/2023 4-H Volunteer Training Opportunities
As we get ready for the new 4-H year, we are looking forward to offering a variety of learning experiences (both in-person and virtual) for our 4-H volunteers. Sessions are free of charge but require registration. Some sessions have limited space. Visit the 4-H Volunteer Calendar of Training Opportunities to learn more and register!
- Androscoggin/Sagadahoc 4-H Monthly Workshops – Open to All Maine 4-Hers!
Come join the Androscoggin and Sagadahoc counties 4-H program at their monthly workshops – the Third Friday of every month (unless otherwise noted) from 6:00 – 7:30 pm at the Lisbon Extension Office at 24 Main Street. Anyone interested can contact Cathy Gray to find out more information. Currently Scheduled Topics:
– December 16, 2022 – Game Night
– January 20, 2023 – “Getting the Word Out” Digital Marketing
– February 17, 2023 – Short Film Making
– March 10, 2023 – Spa & Relaxation Science
– April 21, 2023 – Movie Premier Night
– May 19, 2023 – Wool Spinning Workshop
- EFNEP Recipes: Welcome to Winter
December is here and winter has begun! With it, there are plenty of celebrations and festivities as we say goodbye to another year. Sharing food with family and friends is a big part of this time of year, and many of us have traditions that include special recipes and treats. While many often think of special holiday foods, how many of us think of special holiday drinks? Our friends at Michigan State Extension have shared these great Healthy Hot Drink Recipes, and curling up with a nice warm drink and a cookie (try our Oatmeal Raisin Cookie, Gingerbread Cookie, and Carrot Cookie recipes!) is a great way to spend part of a December day. We wish you all the happiness of the season!
For more delicious recipes, check out our UMaine EFNEP Mainely Dish Video Series. By Debbie Barnett (EFNEP CEA in Kennebec, Knox, Lincoln, and Waldo counties – deborah.barnett@maine.edu).
Expanded Food & Nutrition Education Program (EFNEP) offers FREE nutrition education classes to income-eligible adults with children, or young adults 19-25 years old, and if you are eligible for programs such as SNAP, WIC, or Head Start. Find out more online.
Leaders’ Meeting Minutes
There was no meeting in November 2022. The next scheduled meeting: January 10, 2023.