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January 2008 Clovernews
Dear 4-H Volunteer:
Happy New Year! It’s time to get prepared for the 2008 4-H year. The Extension Office staff is getting all the enrollment material ready for pick-up. Enrollment pick-up dates will be January 22-25 from 8:30 a.m. until 4:00 p.m.
As we begin the new year, let’s focus on the strengths of members and advisors in “making the best better” for 4-H in 2008. One of the ways to accomplish this is by attending a 4-H Super Clinic. There will be two of these educational and informative clinics. If you have any ideas or topics that you would like to have discussed or expanded upon, please feel free to give the Extension Office a call right away. Preparations are underway now to arrange speakers for the breakout sessions that are held in conjunction with the clinic.
Sincerely yours,
Dr. Judy Villard, Ph.D.
Extension Educator
4-H Youth Development and
County Extension Director
Prepared by: June Tilton
Administrative Secretary
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Important Dates/Activity Deadlines for JANUARY
Jan. 15 - Steer Nose Print Cards due to State Fair Livestock Office
4-H Dog Committee, Longview Center, 6 p.m.
Jan. 17 - Livestock Sale Committee, Fairgrounds, 7:30 p.m.
Jan. 21- Martin Luther King Day—OFFICE CLOSED
JL Club, Longview Center, Noon-2 p.m.
Jan. 22-25 - Enrollment Pick-up, Longview Center, 8:30 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.
Jan. 22 - Sr. Fair Board, Fairgrounds, 7 p.m.
Jan. 24 - Camp Counselor training, Longview Center, 5:30 p.m.
Jan. 26 - CARTEENS, Longview Center, 8:15 a.m.
Orientation/training following at 11 a.m.
Volunteer Certification, Longview Center, 9:30 a.m.
Jan. 28 - 4-H Town Meeting, Longview Center, 7 p.m.
Jan. 29 - Youth Safety Council, Longview Center, 8 a.m.
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Bad Weather Policy for Meetings and Activities
Knowing the snow and ice will be coming and some possible cancellations are inevitable. It is important that everyone be aware of the policy for closures and cancellations involving the Extension Office. The OSU Extension Office – Richland County will notify WMAN, WVNO, and WNCO radio stations when inclement weather will cause the cancellation of a 4-H program, activity or committee meeting. The decision to cancel will be made by 3:00 PM on the day of the evening event OR 6:30 on the .
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Enrollment Materials Ready For Pick-UP
2008 Richland County 4-H/FFA/Girl Scout enrollment materials will be available for pick-up in the Extension Office on the following dates:
Jan. 22 — (8:30 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.)
Jan. 23 — (8:30 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.)
Jan. 24 — (8:30 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.)
Jan. 25 — (8:30 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.)
The organizational advisor (or their representative) should plan to pick up enrollment materials during the above specified days. The Extension Office closes at 4:30 p.m. so please try to pick up your materials before that time so the staff does not have to stay late.
PLEASE review the 2008 4-H Family Guide with your members and parents very carefully. These guides are helpful to members in choosing their projects. Discontinued, new and revised projects are listed and it is your responsibility as advisors/volunteers to go over the guides and become familiar with the changes.
Each member must complete a form, whether it be a pre-printed form (with last years project information) or a blank enrollment form (for new members). Having complete information on each person insures members/advisors of getting fast accurate mailings. We are asking that you complete the line that asks for email address so that we can communicate with you by email when possible. Please be sure that the email address on the pre-printed form is the correct address. With postage increases and budget cuts, we will use email when and where we can.
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IN 2008- - 4-H Participation Fee!
The Richland County 4-H Committee has again decided to assess a $1 per member and advisor county participation fee per year to be paid at the time enrollment is made. This way every club has given their fair share to support the 4-H program in Richland County. NOTE: Additional donations to the 4-H Committee and/or the Richland County 4-H Endowment Fund are still encouraged. This is a separate fee and your check should be made payable to the Richland County 4-H Committee and not the Extension Office.
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4-H Town Meeting - - January 28, 2008
It is time to be thinking about activating your volunteer status for 2008. The first opportunity to do so, will be at the “4-H Town Meeting” held at the Longview Center, January 28 from 7 - 8 p.m. Attend, participate and get this part of your training out of the way early.
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2008 Ohio 4-H Volunteer Conference
March 8 will be the 2008 Ohio 4-H Volunteer Conference to be held at the Columbus Convention Center. This is open to all 4-H volunteers. The Recognition Luncheon will honor all volunteers with 5, 10, 15, 20 and 25+ years of service to the 4-H program. The conference begins at 8:00 a.m. with registration. The various workshops begin at 9:00 a.m. and continue throughout the day until 4:00 p.m. If you are interested in attending this conference and luncheon, please contact the Extension Office for registration materials ASAP. Deadline for registration is February 15. The registration fee of $30 per person covers all program costs and the recognition luncheon. The Richland County 4-H Committee will support the cost for 3-6 full or partial registrations on a first-come, first-serve basis. Therefore, if you are interested in this opportunity, please contact the Extension Office immediately for the availability of the reduced registrations.
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New 4-H Center is OPEN!
The State 4-H Office has moved into their new headquarters. The move began January 2 and will continue until the entire office has relocated. The official ribbon-cutting ceremony and building dedication of the “Nationwide & Ohio Farm Bureau 4-H Center” will be April 4. It is the hope of the Ohio State University that the center will serve as a catalyst for programmatic growth, new opportunities and partnerships, and increased validity for the work that all those involved in 4-H contributes.
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Quality Assurance Training in 2008
The State of Ohio requires that all Market Livestock and lactating dairy animal exhibitors must complete “Quality Assurance Training”. Something new in 2008 will be the Quality Assurance Test. It has been established that those exhibitors who are 16 and older can “test out”. On March 6 at 7 p.m. those eligible (16 yrs. old +) can come to the Longview Center and take a QA test, score at least 75 and this is good for three years. For those who must attend the training, 15 yrs old and under, the first QA training session will be held Tuesday, April 1 from 7-8 p.m. at the Longview Center. The second training will be Saturday, April 19 at, 9:00 a.m. with the third and FINAL training to be held Thursday, May 8, 7-8 p.m. at the Longview Center. You must have this training completed (or testing approved for older youth) or you will not be permitted to show or sell your market livestock. Again this year, the dairy exhibitors (lactating cows and lactating goats) are required to attend this Quality Assurance Training. If you have questions or concerns about this, please call the Extension Office. ALL QUALITY ASSURANCE TRAINING WILL BE CONDUCTED THROUGH THE OSU EXTENSION OFFICE (this includes 4-H & FFA) !!
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New Advisors
If your club is taking on new advisors, please have them call the Extension Office for the “New Volunteer Packet”. A letter of explanation and an application will be sent to them. Once this application is returned to the Extension Office, three reference forms will be sent to those designated as references on the application form. The mandatory fingerprinting and background check (a cost of $30 to the individual) must be complete before or by the time of the one-on-one interview. When all the paperwork is completed, a follow-up letter to the potential advisor to call the Extension Office for a one-on-one interview and the dates of the “New Volunteer Training”. An adult is not considered a “certified advisor” until all these steps are complete, background checks are clear and the volunteer is considered a good addition to the Richland County 4-H program. May 15 is the final New Volunteer Training and no one can receive active status after that date for fair passes in 2008. If you have questions about this process please give the Extension Office a call.
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Need a Dairy Feeder Calf?
The Extension Office is always getting calls from feeder calf exhibitors as to where they can buy feeders for their project. Occasionally farmers will call our office to say that they will have calves available if youth are interested. We have a dairy farmer who called just this week to say he has some dairy calves that he would be willing to sell for this year’s feeder calf project. If you need this information, please give the Extension Office a call and we will gladly forward the info to you.
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New Committee to Form
Are you interested in serving on the new dog committee? If you have interest in the dog program, from obedience to agility, please think about helping form the 4-H Dog Committee. Stephanie Bargo, a 4-H advisor who has a definite passion for the dog program in Richland County, has agreed to head up a committee to work with the dog show at the fair and also other dog activities.
If you have interest in this committee, please plan to attend the start-up meeting on January 15 in the Longview Center Conference Room beginning at 6 p.m. Come with ideas and be prepared to discuss what you want to see this committee accomplish. If you cannot attend this first meeting, please give Stephanie a call and let her know that you are interested but will be unable to attend. Stephanie’s phone number is 419-529-9845.
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Alpaca and Llama Project
In 2008 there is a project and record book entitled Llamas and Alpacas - - project #132. Malinda Worner has agreed to work with this project. The program will include hands-on with the Alpacas. There will be workout sessions and shows. Malinda has arranged for youth to have Alpacas for this project. In 2008 the project will be considered a poster project. Once the interest is established, consideration will be given to the number of youth interested as to whether we establish classes at the fair for next year. Therefore, if you have interest in this project, give Malinda a call at 419-886-2540.
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Treasury Guidelines
If your 4-H club has money in its treasury, it should be stored in a safe place. It is strongly encouraged, if your club hasn’t done so already, to open a bank account for the club’s treasury, keeping in mind the following.
1) Don’t raise money just for the sake of raising money. Your club should have a purpose to raising money, such as a trip or recognition dinner. All the money (receipts and expenses) should go through the treasurer. Try to establish a budget for the year.
2) Your treasury should have a minimum carryover from year to year. Those who raised the money should spend it.
3) The treasurer should keep accurate records and a report should be given at each meeting.
4) The one page 4-H Treasury Annual Report is required to be turned in to the Extension Office once per year (by December 31).
5) If your club’s gross receipts exceed $25,000 in the tax year, your club is obligated to file an Annual Information Return with the IRS.
Having a bank account will be a learning experience for the members of your club. It will teach them to reconcile bank statements and how to handle money responsibly. It is not a good practice to have the club bank account in a 4-H member’s name. You could have an adult as the signee with a second signature line for the youth to sign. Designate a check and balance system before the new 4-H year begins.
And as we all learned late in 2007, the State 4-H Office is requiring that all clubs obtain an EIN number. Once the EIN number is obtained, please call the Extension Office with this information. This number is then registered with the State 4-H Office who then forwards this information on to the National 4-H Council. If you have questions on this or any other financial matters, please give our office a call and we will do our best to find answers for you.
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2008 Booth Theme
The 4-H Committee has decided to go with theme emphasis on pirates and “Getting Hooked on 4-H” which goes along the same lines as the camp theme this year. If you have questions on this please feel free to give the Extension Office a call.
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Congratulations to “2008” Officers
The following people will take leadership roles as officers for 2008:
Junior Fair Board
President – Angie Floro
Vice President – Patrick Henderson
Secretary – Emily Herr
Treasurer – Andrea Miller
Livestock Sale Committee Reps –
Junior Leadership Club
President – Angie Floro
Vice President – Shelli Smith
Secretary – Elizabeth Greenslade
Treasurer – Jen Delong
Historian – Keri Boyce
Barn Raisers
President — Diane Kelley
Vice President — Paul Castelvetere
Secretary — Gwen Arbaugh
Fiscal Agent/Treasurer — Diane Castelvetere
Show Chairman — Malinda Worner
Assistant Show Chairman—Karen Reith
4-H Committee
President - Glen McLaughlin
Vice President - Adam Floro
Secretary - Kate Miller
Assistant Secretary - Mary Akers
Treasurer - Deb Brown
Livestock Sale Committee Rep - Sue Kisling
***************** Thanks to all officers and leaders and best of luck during the 2008 4-H year. ***********************
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JL Club News!
The JL (Junior Leadership) Club meets on the third Monday of the month. All older youth, ages 14 and older are eligible (also mature 13 year olds) to join the JL club. To join the group, complete and return to the Extension Office the JL card that is included in the packet of forms that organizational advisors will have when they pick up their enrollment or call the Extension Office to have a form sent to you. Various educational and social activities occur throughout the year during these meetings.
The JL Club will meet January 21 at the Longview Center from noon until 2 p.m. Wear/or bring your pj’s and bring a finger food to share. Beverages will be provided.
2008 Ohio 4-H Teen Conference - - We want YOU to Go!!
All older youth are invited to attend the 2008 Ohio 4-H Teen Conference. The Conference will be held at the Columbus Convention Center on Saturday, February 16 from 8:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. This is an educational conference with many different workshops available for youth to participate in. If you are interested in this conference, please call the Extension Office to register. There is a cost of $25 per person which includes the conference and lunch. Youth interested in attending this conference need to complete the registration form (call the Extension Office for form). Deadline to register is February 1. The Richland County 4-H Committee will sponsor “free” scholarships on a first-come, first-served basis for a limited number of participants.
Youth will come away from this conference with many skills. This is a very educational experience and would be something worthwhile for our older youth. Please encourage your teen 4-H members to consider this opportunity.
CARTEENS Instructors
All CARTEENS instructors are strongly encouraged to attend the next regularly scheduled session. The next session will be January 26, 2008 beginning at 8:15 a.m. Immediately following the regular session, we will be reviewing the activities and materials that we will be using throughout the 2008 year. Lunch will be provided, but come prepared to work diligently to finalize the program/activities for year. We will be finished by 1 p.m.
Junior Fair Board
The next Jr. Fair Board meeting will be March 31 at 6:30 p.m. at the Longview Center. With the uncertainty of the weather, it has proved to be beneficial to not schedule meetings in January and February. We will finalize rule changes and items that must go in the 2008 Jr. Fair Book.
2008 Camp Counselor
The camp counselors have been selected and are planning and preparing 4-H camps for the summer of 2008. Jr. 4-H Camp Counselors are: Sean Burdine, Scott Cooper, Jen Delong, Matt Gardner, Patrick Henderson, Kristen Matuch, Bobby Mitman, Penni Mitman, Amy Neutzling, Brittany Rietschlin, Abe Sauder, Jed Sauder, Shelli Smith and Danielle Ulmer. Beginners 4-H Camp Counselors are: Allison Brown, Angie Floro, Evan Freer, David Gerster, Falyn Gilbert, Elizabeth Greenslade, Loren Hulit, Elizabeth Metzger, Andrea Miller, Jessica Miller, Brett Neutzling, and Heather Paramore. C-I-T’s are Keri Boyce, Kara Fairchild, Jocelyn Mabee, Nicole Riedlinger, Nick Rowe, Kendal Scott, Alyse Turner, and Keith Whittenberger. The next camp counselor training is Thursday, January 24 at the Longview Center from 5:30-7:30 p.m.
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The theme in 2008 for Jr. Camp will be a pirate based “Get Hooked with 4-H” - - Beginner’s Camp theme is “A-R-R-E U Hook’d on 4-H?”
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DATES to REMEMBER
January 8 Barn Raisers, Longview Center, 7 p.m.
15 Steer Nose Print Cards due to the State Fair Livestock Office
4-H Dog Committee, Longview Center, 6 p.m.
17 Livestock Sale Committee meeting, Fairgrounds, 7:30 p.m.
21 JL Club Meeting, Longview Center, Noon-2 p.m.
Martin Luther King Day—OFFICE CLOSED!
22 Sr. Fair Board, Fairgrounds, 7 p.m.
22-25 Enrollment Pick-Up, Longview Center, 8:30 a.m.—4:00 p.m.
24 Camp Counselor Training, Longview Center, 5:30-7:30 p.m.
26 CARTEENS, Longview Center, 9 a.m. (instructors arrive at 8:15 a.m.)
Volunteer Certification, Longview Center, 9:30 a.m.
28 4-H Town Meeting, Longview Center, 7 p.m.
29 Mock Crash Coalition/Youth Safety Council, Longview Center, 8 a.m.
February 1 DEADLINE: Teen Conference registration due in Extension Office
4 4-H Committee, Longview Center, 7 p.m.
12 Volunteer Certification, Longview Center, 6 p.m.
Barn Raisers, Longview Center, 7 p.m.
14 Happy Valentine’s Day!!
New Volunteer Training, Longview Center, 6:30 - 7:45 p.m.
15 DEADLINE: Volunteer Conference registration due in Extension Office
16 Ohio Teen Leadership Conference, Columbus
18 Camp Counselor Training, Longview Center, 9:30 a.m.
JL Club, Bowling, Park Lanes, 12-2 p.m.
23 CARTEENS, Longview Center, (instructors arrive at 8:15 a.m.)
26 Mock Crash Coalition/Youth Safety Council, Longview Center, 8 a.m.
Sr. Fair Board, Fairgrounds, 7 p.m.
28 Super Clinic, Longview Center, 6:45 p.m.
29 BONUS: Early 4-H Enrollment Deadline, due into the Extension Office
March 2 Super Clinic, Longview Center, 2 p.m.
4-H Committee, Longview Center, immediately following Super Clinic
2-8 OHIO 4-H WEEK
4 Extension Advisory Committee, Longview Center, 11:30 a.m.
6 Quality Assurance Test, Longview Center, 7 p.m.
8 State 4-H Volunteer Conference, Columbus
10 Camp Counselor training, Longview Center, 5:30 - 7:30 p.m.
Awards Committee, Longview Center, 6:30 p.m.
11 Barn Raisers, Longview Center, 7 p.m.
14 Enrollment Deadline, due in the Extension Office
DEADLINE: 4-H Week Posters due in Extension Office
17 Jr. Leadership Club, Longview Center, 7 p.m.
25 Sr. Fair Board, Fairgrounds, 7 p.m.
27 Mock Crash Coalition/Youth Safety Council, Longview Center, 8 a.m.
29 CARTEENS, Longview Center, 9 a.m. (instructors arrive at 8:15 a.m.)
Jr. Leadership Spaghetti Supper, RRLC, 5-7 p.m.
31 Jr. Fair Board, Longview Center, 6:30 p.m.
APRIL 1 DEADLINE: Enrollment (for 4-H, FFA, Girl Scouts ) for fair partici
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JUDY’S CORNER
Tips for a Successful 4-H Year
1. Pick appropriate project for skill level.
2. Not too easy, not too difficult.
3. Take the appropriate number of projects.
4. Start early in the year!
5. Read requirements for project.
6. Review project book.
7. Gather items for project and keep in one location.
8. Attend club meetings.
9. Do extra activities.
10. Read the 4-H mail.
11. Check the 4-H schedule.
12. Talk to your advisor.
13. Finish your project a week in advance.
14. Don’t compare yourself and project to others.
15. Practice judging questions.
16. Parent-Child work together.
17. Try new things.
18. Make new friends.
19. Have fun!
If you have trouble accessing this page and need to request an alternate format, contact C. Whittenberger by email at whittenberger@cfaes.osu.edu
