July 2023 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
July 4 – Independence Day, Office Closed
July 11 – 6:30 pm Leaders’ Meeting via Zoom
July 18 – 10:30 am Ellsworth Library Story Hour
July 21 through 22 – Maine 4-H Days at Windsor Fairgrounds
July 23 – Open Farm Day, 4-H Programs
August 28 – Steer Tickets Due in Office
August 29 – Blue Hill Fair Exhibits Due
August 31 through September 4 – Blue Hill Fair
County News
Open Farm Day/4-H Open House
Save the date! This July 23, Hancock County 4-H is partnering with Lone Spruce Farm to take part in Maine Open Farm Day. We’ll have the amazing opportunity to share the 4-H workshops we know and love.
Workshops will be open from 10:00 – 3:00 pm for 4-Hers and the public. We’ll have the infamous seaweed lava lamps, a tick ID and tracking activity, flower printing, a 4-H obstacle course, and so much more. A full list of workshops is soon to come and will be posted on our website!
In Memory
On June 7, we were privileged to honor one of our long-time Extension Volunteers. Dwight Sargent was a 4-H Volunteer for about 45 years and a
member of our Hancock County Extension Association for 30+ years. Staff, our Extension Association, and our 4-H Leader’s Association presented Dwight’s family with this Granite Bench which will sit in the gardens at the Hancock County Extension Office for years to come.
Photo Contest Scavenger Hunt!
From now on, monthly photo scavenger hunts will be posted in our newsletters. We encourage all 4-Hers to take inspiration from our hunt and snap the perfect pictures. Then, you can submit your photos on the photo contest webpage for a chance to be featured in the following month’s newsletter!
July Scavenger Hunt Themes
– Lights in the sky
– What’s better than BBQ?
– Bugs that jump, fly, or crawl
– On the road again
For any questions, please reach out to leah.mccluskey@maine.edu or call 207.667.8212.
Ellsworth Library Story Hour
Join Leah for family story hour at the Ellsworth Public Library for a reading on July 18 at 10:30. Following the story, Leah will lead a short activity connected to the book!
Ellsworth Library After School
We had our final after school program at the Ellsworth public library where Leah lead a flower printing workshop. Using recycled fabrics and flowers from the Extension office gardens, youth hammered their hearts away and created beautiful flower printed banners to hang up at home. If this activity sounds like fun to you, you’re in luck because we’ll be offering it at our Open Farm Day event. See the above entry for more details.
Steer Tickets Have Arrived!
The Steer Ticket fundraiser is the premier fundraiser for the Hancock County 4-H Leaders’ Association. Tickets are $2 each; 30 cents go directly to the 4-H Club that sells the tickets, and $1.70 will go to the Leaders’ Association to support 4-H programming, scholarships, county events, and more. The Steer Ticket Raffle winner will receive a cut-to-order, freezer-ready Beef Steer raised by a Hancock County 4-H’er, OR $650 cash. The drawing is at 5 pm on Labor Day at the Blue Hill Fair. The 4-H Club AND the 4-H’er who sells the most tickets will receive an award at Cloverfest. Tickets are now available for pick up by 4-H’ers at the Extension Office. Steer ticket money must be returned to the Extension Office by August 28th or the thirty-cent club money per ticket will be forfeited! Steer tickets are not to be brought to the Blue Hill Fair. Also, remember that we cannot sell raffle tickets to people under 16 years old, and youth under 18 should not be handling money. Adults should not put youth’s names on the tickets.
Volunteers needed for 4-H Food Booth and Steer Ticket Table – Calling all 4-H families!
The 4-H Food Booth and Steer Ticket Raffle are the two largest fundraisers for the Hancock County 4-H Leaders’ Association. The funds raised are used to support the 4-H programs you love all year long – Cloverfest, June Jamboree, Public Speaking, Style Revue, Leaders Banquet, and so much more! We rely on our strong 4-H community to deliver quality youth programs in Hancock County, and we are asking 4-H Clubs, Groups, Independents, and Parents/Guardians to volunteer their time during the Blue Hill Fair (August 31 – September 4). We need:
- Youth AND Adult Volunteers for the 4-H Food Booth: “Front” of the booth (taking orders, distributing food), and “Back” of the booth (cooking burgers, hot dogs, etc)
- Youth AND Adult Volunteers for the Steer Ticket Table: selling Steer Tickets to fairgoers. Adults needed to handle the money.
- Volunteering here is a requirement to win the Razor Crosman Award.
If you haven’t volunteered at the fair before, please consider contributing to this important cause this year! Contact the Extension Office or fill out the form on the webpage to sign up for a shift at the Food Booth and/or the Steer Ticket Table.
Club News
Kids Can Grow: The youth have been gardening hard this summer and have braced the elements to do so! With rain constantly on our forecast, these kids deserve a round of applause for getting their crops in the ground and planning out their beautiful square foot garden raised beds.
Horse of Course: The Horse of Course had another new member prospect come to our meeting on Friday, June 16th. Essie is five years old and her mother Tabby was a member of our club when she was growing up. We worked on more pages of our community service scrapbook for the Blue Hill Fair and talked about our upcoming food fundraising table on the night of July 4th at the Stonington Pier. The club watched a 10-minute video of the horses that reside at Cottontail Cottage Farm Sanctuary in Cherryfield.
Lock Stock & Barrel: The Lock Stock and Barrel 4-H Club had a busy year. In the fall, the basic rifle course was held. Three new members and two teen members, Kaedyn C and Joseph H, who had already completed the discipline, took part. Our new members, Case D, Leland K, and Ryder B completed the course. Kaedyn Cland Joseph H, participated and assisted leaders.
After Christmas break, the youth participated in Postal League, a competitive shoot, with other clubs throughout the state. Though their club didn’t win their division, they enjoyed the experience of meeting every Wednesday night, being together, and shooting.
In the early spring, the youth participated in basic archery. The new members, Harmony B, Case D, Thelan B, and Noah D completed basic archery. The teens, Kaedyn and Joseph who had already completed the course, took part.
The last disciplines the youth participated in were shotgun and wildlife. Youth must have taken Basic rifle to participate in any of the firearms disciplines, so Harmony and Thelan learned about wildlife while Case, Leland, Kaedyn, and Joseph did shotgun. Case D, Kaedyn C, and Joseph H completed the shotgun course. There was not enough time for completion of the wildlife course.
On June tenth, a community service setup and clean-up day, was held at the YMCA camp on Webb Pond in Waltham. Joseph H, Harmony B, and Case D participated along with 4-H Leaders Norwood and Becky Ames, Frank Butler, Chris Kravitts, and parents.
Lock Stock and Barrel 4-H Club does not meet in the summer. The club will start back up in September, on Wednesday, September 13th at 6 pm at the Blue Hill Rifle and Pistol Club on the Range Rd in Blue Hill. There will be an informational meeting on how to sign up and an ice cream social.
State News
Maine 4-H Days is Back!
Maine 4-H Days is back in 2023! You are invited to join Maine 4-H for a fun filled day of workshops on Saturday July 22nd! We will kick off the weekend with evening activites on Friday July 21st and have camping available for those who wish to stay overnight! Workshop space is limited, so register soon to secure your spot. For a complete schedule or to register for the event please visit extension.umaine.edu/4h/maine-4h-days/.
To request a reasonable accommodation please contact the Kennebec County Cooperative Extension office at 207.622.7546 or email alisha.r.targonski@maine.edu.
Registration is Open Through July 31st for New 4-H Teen Leadership Program: YOUth Have a Voice!
YOUth have a Voice!: Youth in Governance and Civic Engagement is a nine-month program open to teens and recent high school graduates who are interested in taking a more active role in serving their local communities, the state, or the country. Youth will learn leadership skills and ways to participate in civic action by completing a service project in a topic of their interest. Youth projects will be in one of three categories:
1.) Youth Board Member: Join a board or advisory council as a youth representative
2.) Policy Leader: Provide input to a policy or rule being developed
3.) Public Service Leader: Carry out a community service project.
Teens will be mentored by adults to assist their learning of civic processes and ways to meet their project goals. The program will be from late August 2023 to May 2024 and the total time commitment may vary from 30 to 80 hours depending on the type of project.
The program will be open for teens ages 14+ years old or entering high school in the fall of 2023. Interested teens will need the following items to register for the program:
- Fill out the application form.
- Two letters of recommendation from adults who are not related to the applicant
- Briefly describing (100 to 500 words) why you are interested in this program
- A signed Program Requirement Summary Form
Registration is open through July 31, 2023. The program will be limited to 16 youth.
To register or learn more, visit our website. Individuals with questions or who need to request an accommodation, please contact Andrew Hudacs, andrew.hudacs@maine.edu, (207) 581-8204
Leaders’ Meeting Minutes
Hancock County 4-H Leaders Meeting of June 13, 2023 via Zoom
Present- Lisa Carney, Elaine Gokey, Terry Swazey, Lisa Reilich, Lee Sargent, Sarah Swazey, Leah McCluskey, and Carla Scocchi (6)
Secretary’s Report for May- motion to accept as written in the newsletter, seconded and approved.
Treasurer’s Report for May- motion to accept as read by Terry, seconded and approved.
Club reports:
- Horse of Course will meet this Friday. They will have new members! Work on scrapbooking. On the 4th of July on the Stonington Pier, they will be selling hotdogs and water to raise money for charity. Will go to Open Farm Day at Lone Spruce.
- Rails n Trails has not met recently, but are hoping to help at a shelter soon.
- Kristin’s new club, the Wellness Warriors has 6 youth. They meet at her farm.
- Jolly Juniors tried making the stepping stones, but the concrete was problematic and they need to try again.
Old Business:
- Open Farm Day: July 23rd at Lone Spruce Farm
- Workshop Brainstorm– so far we have Seaweed Lava Lamps, Plant Printing, Obstacle Course, Tick Trackers, CDC Zoonotic Diseases, Garden Stones, Stream Sampling (?). Might have a gardening/cooking workshop, sell steer tickets, healthy bake sale, raffle a tie blanket, quiz bowl machine with trivia. Maybe have Chubs (Lee’s horse).
- Steer tickets: are ready! They can now be picked up at the office.
- Dwight’s Memorial Bench: dedicated at the office. It’s on the patio, stop by when you have a chance!
- Tick Project Check In: 1500 kids across Maine are participating!
- Photo Contest Check In: going quite well, there have been nine submissions so far! The current idea is to have it end in October so that we can give awards at Cloverfest, and the categories have been changed in the fairbook.
New Business:
- Blue Hill Fair
- Food Booth Schedule: Andrea will be heading this up this summer. We usually open Thursday afternoon, maybe the office can help staff with that shift. Lisa C will have a crew for Saturday night.
- Handout of information re: All things 4-H and Fair – Carla? There will be no BHF Fairbook this year, it will be online. The Extension Office will be publishing a 4H only handbook.
- There might be rabbits at the fair again.
- We could have another door added to the Exhibit hall. Maybe a small door on the side? Would have to buy a new door and find a contractor, or relocate the current sliding doors. Eric from the BHF said that there would be contractors on the grounds all summer that we could probably use. Maybe ask Hammond Lumber if they would give us a door at cost? Or we could make another barn door and slider. Tractor supply may donate slider hardware.
- The BHF wants ideas for filling the time slot formerly held by the cake contest. Pet parade, farmyard Olympics (kids skillet toss?), Could probably be held a little earlier as the beef and dairy shows end early.
- Tickets will not be handed out, we will walk people in from the food booth. Need a walkie-talkie since cell phones don’t work. Maybe print out a 4H Volunteer Pass in the office?
Office Business:
- If any youth are showing at 4-H shows they should contact the office to get approval forms in. The forms are due June 30th.
- Leah is doing youth workshops at the Library all summer and would be happy to have other presenters. Let her know if you would like to give a workshop.
- Leah has now been with us for a whole year!
- The summer learning series will be happening again this year, registration is now open!
Motion to adjourn at 7:46
Respectfully submitted by Lisa Carney, Secretary
Next meeting is Tuesday, July 11th – let’s do an in-person and have a potluck at 6 PM! Meeting will start at 6:30