Waldo County 4-H Newsletter – May 2020

May 6, 2020 Waldo County 4-H Newsletter

4-H on the Move

A Monthly Newsletter for Waldo County 4-H Members and Volunteers

Download the PDF: 4-H on the Move Newsletter

Table of Contents

  • Upcoming Dates
  • County News
    • COVID-19 Update
    • 4-H Leaders’ Assoc.
    • Congratulations to Public Speaking Contest Participants
    • Club Updates
    • Virtual Club Meetings
    • Make Your Own Mask Activity
  • State News
    • COVID-19 Update
    • Daily Virtual 4-H Offerings
    • National 4-H Conference and Congress Deadline
    • #EmpoweringMEandYou
    • 4-H Citizen Science Club
    • Learn at Home Resources
    • 4-H “Learn at Home” BINGO
    • Camp Scholarships Available
    • National 4-H Dairy Conference
    • Maine 4-H Days Planning Committee
    • Virtual UMaine Web Page
    • Volunteer Survey

Upcoming Dates

5/05: Empowering ME and You Workshop for teens

05/15: Eastern States Dairy Approval Form Deadline

5/13 – 06/17: Citizen Science 4-H Club

05/22: National 4-H Trip Application Deadline

07/16-07/19: Maine 4-H Days

County News 

COVID-19 Update

Given the rapidly evolving COVID-19 situation in Maine, UMaine Extension is cancelling all 4-H club meetings and events until further notice (no matter what size group).

University of Maine Cooperative Extension buildings are CLOSED until May 17, 2020 in an effort to ensure the health and safety of the community, and to help stem the spread of the coronavirus. However, please note that UMaine Extension is operating and staff are working remotely from their offices. To contact the Waldo County 4-H program staff, please call 207.342.5971 or email sadee.mehuren@maine.edu.

4-H Leaders’ Association

The Waldo County 4-H Leaders’ Association is a group of 4-H volunteers who work to promote 4-H by working with the Waldo County 4-H staff to disseminate content, support county projects, and provide consideration for problems, projects, and policies related to county 4-H work. All enrolled 4-H volunteers are part of the 4-H Leaders’ Association and are welcome to attend the monthly meetings. The Waldo County 4-H Leaders’ Association meets on the first Thursday of each month at the Waldo County Cooperative Extension office at 10:00 am.

Congratulations to Public Speaking Contest Participants!

Waldo County 4-H staff would like to congratulate Zoe H. and Zia H. of the Jellie Bienz

4-H club for their participation in the Waldo County 4-H Public Speaking Contest. Both participants did a fantastic job on their demonstrations. Zoe H. received a blue ribbon for her demonstration titled “Pine Cone Owls” and Zia H. received a red ribbon for her demonstration titled “How to Make a Banana Split”.  Zoe represented Waldo County in the Maine State 4-H Public Speaking Contest on April 25th and received a blue ribbon for her virtual demonstration.

Jellie Bienz 4-H Club4-H A

Waldo County 4-H members Zoe and Zia have been working on their 4-H public service project, making masks for those in need. To read more about their efforts visit: www.penbaypilot.com/article/week-lincolnville

Photo credit PenBay Pilot

 

 

 

Resources for Virtual Club Meetings

During this time of social distancing, it is hard to not be meeting in person with our 4-H club members. The idea of setting up and hosting a virtual 4-H club meeting might feel a bit overwhelming. But virtual meetings can allow you to still meet as a group and help 4-H members in your club continue to feel a sense of belonging. Maine 4-H staff have created a series of tip sheets to help your virtual meeting be a success! This series of tip sheets is designed to help our volunteers explore and learn how to have virtual 4-H club meetings. Each tip sheet provides tangible ideas to help you navigate virtual meetings. Short how-to video clips are embedded to provide additional information. If you have additional questions about virtual 4-H club meetings please contact sadee.mehuren@maine.edu.

Make Your Own Masks

Have you seen anyone sporting a stylish cloth mask and wondered how you could get one? We have your answer! Choose any fabric you want and make your own cloth face mask. To learn how to make your own cloth mask view this video from West Virginia 4-H or these instructions from Iowa 4-H. After you have mastered this craft, you may want to use some of your extra fabric to make masks for those in need. What a great 4-H community service project for youth of all ages!

For additional 4-H activities that you can do at home, visit extension.umaine.edu/waldo/4h/activities.

State News

COVID-19 Update

Given the rapidly evolving COVID-19 situation in Maine, UMaine Extension is cancelling all 4-H club meetings and events until further notice (no matter what size group).

We will continue to keep you updated as we learn more information. Please contact your county office if you have specific questions.

Daily Virtual 4-H Offerings!

As a part of UMaine Cooperative Extension’s response to the changes in the world due to the novel coronavirus, we have created a weekly schedule of activities to keep youth engaged in learning:

National 4-H Conference and Congress has been Extended to May 22, 2020!

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 National 4-H Congress, or become a part of a team making recommendations to the National 4-H Council at Conference. To learn more about these trips, visit: http://umaine.edu/4h/home/national-4-h-trips/.

Any Maine 4-H Youth, ages 14 to 18, is eligible to apply. Applicants must be current Maine 4-H members both at the time of application and the time of the actual trip.  This year based on the ongoing Covid 19 crisis and the shelter-in-home orders, we are extending the application deadline. (Thank you to all those who have already sent in applications, we have them on file.)  Application packets must be sent to: State 4-H Office 491 College Avenue, Orono ME 04473 or emailed to jessica.brainerd@maine.edu by: May 22, 2020. They must be emailed by the end of the day, or postmarked by May 22, 2020.  You will be called or emailed directly for a convenient interview date and time.  Interviews most likely will be held via “Zoom” technology or something similar.  This schedule applies to applicants who have already sent in their applications.

If you have any questions, please contact Heidi Palmer at 207-310-4235 (cell) or heidi.thuotte@maine.edu.  2020 National 4-H Congress is still scheduled to take place on November 27-December 1, 2020 in Atlanta GA.  (The Congress trip orientation is scheduled for October 24, 2020) and 2021 National 4-H Conference is scheduled in Washington, D.C., April 10-15, 2021. (The 2021 Conference orientation will be Feb 13, 2021).

#EmpoweringMEandYou

Don’t Fall into the Thinking Trap Workshop for Teens – 05/05/2020, 6:00 – 7:00PM
The National 4-H Healthy Living Summit Team from Maine will be presenting their Don’t Fall into the Thinking Trap lesson plan developed at the 2020 Summit. Any youth ages 13 – 18 are welcome and encouraged to attend. 4-H participation is not required! This hour-long lesson was designed by and for teens to educate others about some of the common ‘Thinking Traps’ or cognitive distortions, and how to stop them before they get “stuck.” Youth will start by learning in small groups about five of the common traps and then play a game to determine if their own thinking tends to fall into traps or not. To finish out the workshop youth will learn some positive coping strategies to help themselves or others get unstuck.

If you are interested in attending this workshop please register online by Friday, May 01, 2020 to receive a reminder email and the Zoom link. For questions or information on offering this to your county or club, please email or call Sara Conant, sara.conant@maine.edu, 207-781-6099.

New 4-H Citizen Scientists Club

We have an exciting opportunity for kids in 4th through 8th grade to join a new virtual 4-H club – the 4-H Citizen Scientists!  In this club you’ll practice citizen science in your own back yard, and observe and report on the nature around you while making connections with fellow citizen scientists around the state!  The club will meet Wednesdays starting May 13, 2020 through June 17.  This club is limited to 10 members, and online registration is required.  If there is enough interest, we may consider adding additional dates. We have some great resources to learn about different Citizen Science opportunities. Register online: https://extension.umaine.edu/4h/4-h-citizen-scientists-club/.

Learn at Home: Educational Resources to Use During School Closures

With novel coronavirus closing schools across Maine for several weeks, the University of Maine Cooperative Extension has assembled this collection of helpful educational resources for parents and caregivers. From science to financial literacy, whether for toddlers or teenagers, we encourage you to take advantage of these activity books, guides, and other resources to help children remain engaged in educational experiences throughout their school closure. Find resources for every age group at: extension.umaine.edu/4h/learn-at-home

4-H “Learn at Home” BINGO

Looking for some fun family activities you can do from your own home? Maine 4-H invites you to play 4-H Learn at Home BINGO! Register online to receive your Bingo Board for the month of April: https://extension.umaine.edu/4h/learn-at-home/bingo-registration/.

Camp Scholarships Available

The Maine 4-H Foundation has camp scholarships ranging from $100-$200 available for 4-H members to any one week of 4-H camp. Try one of our University of Maine 4-H Camp and Learning Centers at Blueberry Cove, Bryant Pond, Greenland Point and Tanglewood. Call the camps to ask for a scholarship. Scholarships are based on need and first come, first serve. For more information, visit: extension.umaine.edu/4h/camps.

National 4-H Dairy Conference

The 66th National 4-H Dairy Conference will be held September 27 to September 30, 2020 in Madison, Wisconsin. It will be held in conjunction with World Dairy Expo and attendees will have the chance to visit Expo as part of the conference agenda. Additionally, the conference will offer opportunities to learn more about careers in agriculture, seminars on dairy topics, and a wealth of chances to interact with dairy 4-H members from across the country. More info about the conference can be found here (check back for updates as they happen): https://national4hdairyconference.org/2018/11/07/join-us-in-2019/

The Maine 4H Animal Science Dairy Committee would love to try and send/support a team of motivated kiddos who are involved with the Dairy Goat, or Dairy Cattle Project Areas for this very unique and meaningful opportunity.

The National 4H Dairy Conference requires that 4-H team members: have spent at least 3 years in those project areas, and be at least 15 years old but not yet older than 18 (4-H age).

We are also looking for potential VOLT Chaperones who might like to help organize and facilitate this trip. If we have an idea of how many kids are interested we can plan our fundraising efforts accordingly. Interested parties can contact Tara marble at tara.marble@maine.edu, or 207.778.4650 at the Franklin County Office.

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 jessica.brainerd@maine.edu, or call 207.581.3877.

Virtual UMaine Webpage

If you’re interested in UMaine – there is a dedicated web page for students to learn more information because Accepted Student Days and Open House Programs have been canceled for the spring.  Check it out at: https://go.umaine.edu/admitted-fyr/.

Volunteer Survey

As a valued partner in the 4-H Youth Development Program, your time, energy and expertise are greatly appreciated. The support you give youth to learn valuable life skills, broaden their horizons and develop into kind, caring and contributing members of the community. We want to demonstrate your contribution to the 4-H Program and need your help in doing so.

Maine has collaborated with 10 other states in the Northeast Region to create a 4-H Volunteer Impact Survey. It is designed to gather data on a volunteer’s impact to youth, themselves, their community and the organization. You will receive an email next week, which will give you access to the survey.

The results of this survey will be used to develop informational and marketing resources to demonstrate the value of volunteer service to the Maine 4-H program and recruit future volunteers. Maine volunteers who complete the survey may choose to have their name put into a drawing for one of two 4-H folding camp chairs, courtesy of the Maine 4-H Foundation. Thank you for your support of this effort.

If you have any questions please contact me at Jennifer.lobley@maine.edu or 1-207-255-3345.