4-H Happenings, July 2024

July 1, 2024 4-H Happenings Newsletter, Newsletters

Contents

Important Dates: 

County News

New RockHounding Club Opportunity Starting in 2024

The Rockhounding group will be starting in the first part of July as part of the Summer Learning Series. We will also offer an in person enrichment session at Maine 4-H Days as part of the group’s activities. Space is limited. There will be continuing opportunities with this group as the year progresses. Stay tuned!

Stop Motion Animation Coming Soon

Are you interested in learning about animation? Stop motion is a special type of animation that uses real objects and photography- instead of drawings or computer-generated images- to tell a story. This spring/early summer we will be offering a virtual, after-school program for 6 weeks that will dive into this fun activity. Please reach out to karen.giles@maine.edu for more information.

Club News

Solon Pine Tree 4-H Club

Solon Pine Tree held their monthly meeting on June 15, 2024 with six members, two leaders and one visitor attending. For business, they discussed their exhibition cards for the Skowhegan Fair and when upcoming project deadlines fall. They also discussed possible Maine 4-H Days attendance. During their educational portion of the meeting they decorated canvases, either with paint or with other items. At the end of the meeting they had refreshments.

Canaan 4-H Club

Canaan 4-H Club had its second meeting in June. Members received 4-H books on their project subjects, completed a craft project, and filled out enrollment forms. More details coming soon!

New Club Starting in Cornville/Athens Area

There is a new club starting in the Cornville/Athens area and looking for members, ages 9 and up. The leader has worked with pigs, ducks, chickens, and rabbits in the past. The club will be doing arts and crafts as well as having speakers and some field trips. They plan on having a meeting very soon where they will develop a calendar of events and do a craft project. If you are interested in checking out this club, please contact Karen Giles at karen.giles@maine.edu or 207.474.9622.

Are You Interested in New Clubs?

We have some new clubs starting soon and will be looking for volunteers and members to join! Please reach out to Karen Giles karen.giles@maine.edu for more information.

  • Embden, Goat Club
  • Fairfield, Horse & Mixed Club
  • Anson, Cloverbud Afterschool SPIN club
  • Palmyra, Mixed

Please share your club news- we’d love to hear from you! Let us know what is happening with your club members. Reach out to karen.giles@maine.edu to share activities, highlights, awards, or events.

State News

Events and Opportunities

4H Clover

Maine 4-H Days: Register Now!

Where: Windsor Fairgrounds, Windsor, Maine

When: Friday evening, July 19 – Saturday, July 20. Animal Science tracks for Horse and Dairy are scheduled from Friday, July 19 – Sunday, July 21.

Registration is now open for 2024 Maine 4-H Days! There will be livestock events through the weekend, and dozens of enrichment workshops to choose from during the day on Saturday. Friday night will be a blast with a Youth Council Dance for youth ages 12 & up, and then a Move and Groove Family Movie Night for the rest! Camping space is available at no additional charge. There will be a food truck on site to provide meals to purchase, and a pop-up 4-H merchandise shop.

Visit the website to learn more about the different activities, and to register now! Registration closes Tuesday, July 2.

4-H Summer Learning Series

Registration for the 4-H Summer Learning Series is in full swing!  There are still several workshops available for youth to sign up for: Virtual Touch Tank, Fun in the Forest, and our Summertime Send-Off are still available. This year, workshops will run from July 5 – August 10, and there is something for everyone. Registration is currently open for all youth.

Summer at 4-H Camps at Tanglewood and Blueberry Cove

The UMaine 4-H Camps at Blueberry Cove and Tanglewood have summer camp openings and scholarships to support Maine youth to attend. We are excited to connect 4-Hers to our programs.

Overnight camps and Discovery Trips, ages 8-15: Week-long programs at Tanglewood and Blueberry Cove or adventures along the Appalachian Trail or Downeast Farm Camp with Painted Pepper Farm.

Teen Leadership programs, ages 14-17: Two and three-week immersion trips to build leadership skills while exploring Maine’s beautiful natural areas via canoeing and backpacking.

We have scholarships available to cover up to 75% of the tuition for these programs. Funding is also available for first-time campers from National 4-H via CAMP III funds!

Check out programs online, email emma.beaudry@maine.edu, or call 207.789.5868.

4-H Tick Project

The 4-H Tick Project is a community science project engaging K-12 youth and educators, made possible through a partnership between 4-H Youth Development, UMaine Cooperative Extension Tick Lab, Maine Forest Tick Survey, and members of the Learning Ecosystems Northeast partnership. The project provides youth an opportunity to explore ticks and tick-borne diseases, which is a connected story of climate, ecosystem change, and public health.

All educators interested in teaching about ticks in Maine are encouraged to participate in the project at no cost to you. This is a great project for 4-H clubs, SPIN clubs, homeschool groups, and more. For more information and to register, visit the 4-H Tick Project webpage.

Fairs and Shows

Skowhegan Fair is Rapidly Approaching!

The Skowhegan Fair is coming! It will run from August 8-17, 2024.

All rules and forms will be available on the fair website soon. Previous exhibitors will receive updated 4-H Exhibit Hall rules, information, and forms in the mail presently. Deadline to submit intent to exhibit forms for the 4-H Exhibit Hall is July 19.

We will be hiring a few hall monitors for the 4-H Exhibition Hall to help with set up, judging day, and the duration of the fair, August 5-17, 2024. Please reach out for an application if you are interested. Teens age 14 and up are encouraged to apply. Work permits will be required for those under 16.

Adult volunteers are needed to sit in the hall to support hall monitors for evening hours, typically between the hours of  4:00 – 8:00 p.m. 4-H volunteers, parents, and club leaders are encouraged to participate.

We are also looking for judges for Wednesday, August 7, to judge the wonderful work submitted by 4-H’ers for exhibitions and displays in the 4-H Hall.

Please reach out to Karen Giles at the Somerset County Extension office, karen.giles@maine.edu or 207-474-9622 for more information.

Maine 4-H State Dairy Show Registration is Open!

Maine 4-H invites you to participate in the 2024 Maine 4-H State Dairy Show! This year’s event will take place from July 19-21 at the Windsor Fairgrounds in conjunction with Maine 4-H Days. The contests are open to all 4-H dairy project members ages 9 and above and include a grilled cheese and milkshake cookoff, a dairy cattle fitting contest, and a dairy cattle show. For a complete schedule and registration information visit the program webpage.

For more information or to request a reasonable accommodation please contact Sadee Mehuren at 207.342.5971 or Allison Pollock at 207.781.6099.

Leaders Meeting Minutes

June 26, 2024

Attendees: Cheryl Perkins, Hailey Dellarma, Karen Giles, Eleanor Pooler, Jessica Moody

Skowhegan Fair 4-H Exhibit Hall: All leaders and independent members should have received an email with forms and updated rules attached. Printed copies are being mailed out as well. Reminder that the Intent to Exhibit form needs to be returned to Karen Giles by July 19 to reserve space in the exhibit hall. These can be dropped off or mailed to Somerset County Extension Office, 7 County Drive, Skowhegan, ME 04976 or emailed to karen.giles@maine.edu. Reach out with any questions.

Fair Grounds Cleaning Update: 

What we need to do: 

  • Touch up the green numbers on the exhibits
  • The 4-H sign needs to be fixed as it’s pulling away from the screws.
  • The fairgrounds is supposedly going to clean the  building, but we should come prepared to wash floors, etc. if necessary
  • We decided to decline the fairgrounds offer to remove the booths. They wanted to store cars in the building. We did not realize they wanted to gut the whole building. We feel this would ruin the agricultural feel. We are willing for a representative to come discuss options with us.

Volunteer Sign-ups for Exhibition Hall: Contact Karen if you are willing to help cover the 4-H building from 4-8 p.m. There should be a 4-H member to work the building, but we also like to have an adult there at night. 

Judges: Do you know any people who could judge? Lori sent a text to Janice Malek. We have several people already but could use more. Judging is on Wednesday, August 7, anytime between 8 a.m. – 8 p.m. People could sign up for the times they are available to judge. Let Karen know if you are interested.

Jessica motioned to adjourn the meeting. Lori seconded. Meeting adjourned.

Next Meeting: Exhibit Hall Clean-up July 30, 9 a.m. – 1 p.m.