4-H News in Washington County- September 2022

Dates to Remember

September 26: Project Records are Due in the Extension Office
September 30: National Trips (Conference and Congress) Applications Due for Senior Members
October 1: Reenrollment Begins
October 2-8:  National 4-H Week
October 5-16: Fall Paper Clover at Tractor Supply Company
October 10:  Indigenous People’s Day – Extension Office Closed
October 18: 4-H Volunteer Training: Recruiting and Retaining Youth and Families 
October 19 & 26: Start Your 4-H Volunteer Journey Volunteer Training
October 22: 4-H Unconference for Volunteers in Belfast
November 21: – County Reenrollment Deadline

 

Washington County Fair

Staff were on hand at the Washington County Fair held at the Pembroke Fairgrounds on Saturday, August 27.  A big thank you to all youth who submitted an entry to the “Come Grow with 4-H” Garden Exhibit and congratulations to Elayna V. who won Best in Show for her amazing pumpkin!  Congrats to the following participants who earned ribbons and premiums or honorariums:

Ruth B.– Blue ribbons for Garden Vegetable, Herb and Family Garden Vegetables
Samuel F.– Cloverbud Participation for Garden Vegetables
Ethan R.– Cloverbud Participation for Flower
Paul R.- Cloverbud Participation for Vegetable
Elayna V– Blue ribbons for Flower and Vegetable

Well done 4-H’ers! 

Gabby Brodek, 4-H Science Professional, offered a fun, science activity, “Build and Grow a Grass Head”.  Participants, remember to send photos of your grass heads.  You may do so by emailing them to extension.washington@maine.edu or sending them along on using our Facebook page.  It will be great to see how the grass has grown and how well you are taking care of them!

We really enjoyed connecting with you all at the Washington County Fair and can’t wait to see you next year!

New Office

Stop by our new office! You can drop off your 4-H project records, sign out a 4-H science kit or bring a friend to enroll them in 4-H!  We’d love for you to visit us at our new location located in the O’Brien House on the campus of the University of Maine at Machias.

O'Brien House, UMaine Machias

 

Project Records

All project records are due in the Extension Office on Monday, September 26th. For all instructions, please visit our webpage.

Remember October, at the start of the new 4-H year, is a great time to start a new project record!

 

4-H Enrollment 2022-2023

Be on the lookout for new information about enrolling for the 2022-2023 4-H year. We are hoping the process looks and feels much better this year as we move to a paperless system, a new database called ZSuite. The deadline this year will be Monday, November 21st.

 

Paper Clover Campaign at Tractor Supply

The Fall paper clover campaign will be held October 5-16, with the opportunity to donate to 4-H in-store and online.

 

October 4-H Volunteer Trainings

4-H volunteers are encouraged to participate in these trainings offered in October:

Recruiting and Retaining Youth and Families, Tuesday, October 18, 2022, 6:30-8:00 p.m. (virtual)
Northeast Region Volunteer Connections, Session 1
Registration Deadline: Monday, October 17, 2022

Join us for a conversation on how to invite new youth and families into the 4-H program through communication, a sense of belonging, and having fun.

4-H Volunteer Unconference, Belfast, Saturday, October 22, 2022 , (in-person)
Registration Deadline: Friday, October 14, 2022

A volunteer forum led by 4-H volunteers for 4-H volunteers. UMaine 4-H Unconference is intentionally designed to have YOU teach and learn from each other.  There is no agenda – you come with 4-H ideas and topics you want to talk about or learn more about, and we’ll guide the process to get folks into groups where YOU are the experts. Sample sessions might include: working with Cloverbuds, effective 4-H Leaders’ Associations, project records, animal science activities, ideas for including STEM, and many more – the group decides the topics at the beginning of UMaine 4-H Unconference. All experience levels are welcome and no one person has all the answers.

To register for these sessions, visit 4-H Volunteer Training Opportunities  website.

 

Start Your 4-H Your Journey Training

Do you know someone who would like to become a 4-H volunteer?  Please share information about the upcoming Start Your 4-H Journey training that will take place online on October 19&26. For more information including registration, visit 4-H Volunteer Training Opportunities  website.

 

News from the State

  1. Public Speaking Workshop
    The Maine 4-H Communication Science Team invites all enrolled 4-H members to the October 19th meeting for an open workshop.  The meeting will be held via zoom from 6 – 7 pm.  Team members will teach tips and tricks to improve your presentation skills.  Please contact cathy.gray@maine.edu for more information. To join the zoom, click : Join Zoom Meeting, or go to zoom.us, and enter the meeting id: 86067599466 and passcode: 468314.
  2. 2022 4-H National Trip (Conference and Congress) for Senior 4-H Members ages 14-18
    National 4-H Trip applications are due September 30, 2022 for National 4-H Conference and Congress. We recommend you look at the requirements ahead of preparing your materials, as most of the pieces required are something you are already doing for your yearly record sheets.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 part of a team, making recommendations to the National 4-H Council at Conference. We will be holding interviews for National trips on the week of October 10-16, 2022. These will be via Zoom. We will be interviewing for the National 4-H Congress, which will be held in Atlanta, GA on November 25 – December 1, 2022, and the National 4-H Conference, which will be held on April 14 – 19, 2023 at a conference hotel in or around Washington, DC.  The Maine website pages for both conferences have been updated.  Once your application has been received we will contact you for a convenient time for all to do the “Zoom” interviews. Hopefully, next year, we will be back to our normal “National Interview Schedule” that will be held in April/May 2023. Please feel free to email Heidi Palmer, State Activities Coordinator at:  heidi.thuotte@maine.edu for any questions.
  3. 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! 
  4. Farm Service Agency Youth Loans
    The Farm Service Agency (FSA) makes loans to youth to establish and operate agricultural income-producing projects in connection with 4-H clubs, FFA and other agricultural groups. Projects must be planned and operated with the help of the organization advisor, produce sufficient income to repay the loan and provide the youth with practical business and educational experience. The maximum loan amount is $5,000.Youth Loan Eligibility Requirements:
    – Be a citizen of the United States (which includes Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands) or a legal resident alien,
    – Be 10 years to 20 years of age,
    – Comply with FSA’s general eligibility requirements,
    – Be unable to get a loan from other sources,
    – Conduct a modest income-producing project in a supervised program of work as outlined above,
    – Demonstrate capability of planning, managing, and operating the project under guidance and assistance from a project advisor. The project supervisor must recommend the youth loan applicant, along with providing adequate supervision.For help preparing the application forms, contact your local County USDA Service Center or visit usda.gov.
  5. Save the Date for the 4-H Unconference
    UMaine 4-H Unconference will be an organized forum for 4-H volunteers, club leaders, afterschool providers, teachers, parents and teen leaders to gather. UMaine 4-H Unconference is intentionally designed to have YOU teach and learn from each other. There is no agenda; you come with 4-H ideas and topics you want to talk about or learn more about, and we’ll guide the process to get folks into groups where YOU are the experts.  Save the dates: Saturday, October 22nd and Friday, November 11th.  Come to one or both. Watch this website for more information as it becomes available.
  6. Raffle Update for Maine 4-H Teen Leadership and Program Development Survey – Ages 11+
    Hello 4-H Community! The Teen Leadership and Program Development Surveynow includes a raffle for the following seven items:- Two 4-H T-shirts
    – Three Lunch Totes
    – Two 4-H Positive Vibes T-ShirtsThe SHORT survey (about 30 questions/5 minutes) is for any 4-H participant age 11+ since 2017.  We want your voice included! The survey results will help us learn more about 4-H participant interests and improve statewide 4-H program planning.  If you are a parent of a 4-H child receiving this message, please have each child age 11+ who has participated in 4-H since 2017 complete a survey.  If you are a club leader, please pass along this information to your club members!To enter the raffle, simply add your contact information (email, phone #, etc.) to any of your typed responses in the survey or send it to me in a separate email or phone message: hudacs@maine.edu, 207-581-8204.  The drawing for the raffle will happen in early October.Link to the survey: https://umaine.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_5yXj7Bb1UdPYvqK. Lastly, please let me know if you have any questions or would like to see a summary of the survey results, please contact me at andrew.hudacs@maine.edu or (207) 581-8204.
  7. EFNEP Recipes: Time for Breakfast
    Where did the summer go? It seems as if school just let out, and here we are in back-to-school mode. The excitement of new teachers, classes, and connecting with friends. As we start to settle into our school routine, we need to remember that breakfast is a huge part of a successful school day. The word breakfast means to “break your fast”, and fasting is when you do not eat for a certain period of time. Your body needs the calories from the food you eat to help you concentrate and give you more energy. While you sleep, the body is still working, and when you wake up, it’s time to recharge with a hearty breakfast. Below are a few great breakfast choices from our Mainely Dish Video series (Baked Oatmeal, Egg Bites, and the Brunching Burrito). If you don’t have time for a full breakfast a quick grab-and-go could be an apple with peanut butter or an Oatmeal, Strawberry, Banana Smoothie. Start your day off right with a good breakfast!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 – 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