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"He Loves Me, He Loves Me Not, He Loves Me" Emma Foster, Independent, Age 7	"Lady Slipper Lane" Katherine Jordan, Jolly Juniors, Age 11

What a hard job the judges had on the photography contest this year with 38 entries. The judges found it better to be able to judge in categories. Thanks to Don Radovich, Jennifer Osborn and Reeser Manly for taking the time from their busy schedules. Their comments were full of compliments: “To think one of those pictures was taken by a six year old!” and “There are some of those pictures I wish I could say that I had taken.” The photos will be on display at the exhibit hall at the Blue Hill Fair.

Don't miss the second-annual CYFERnet Travel Bug Race. This month, youth and adult teams can start touring the globe via their Travel Bug: a metal tag that allows contestants to follow their "hitchhiker" trinket. Visit http://www.cyfernet.org/4htech/missions.html for complete details.

Norma's Notes: I loved doing this: On behalf of the Maine Chapter of Safari Club International, Hancock County 4-H Program Aide for the University of Maine, Norma Hardison, presents a $500.00 check to Norwood and Becky Ames. Norwood and Becky are the Program Coordinators of Hancock County 4-H Shooting Sports and leaders of Lock, Stock, and Barrel 4-H club. This is the second donation made by the Safari Club and a tremendous help to purchase equipment to keep the program running. The Safari Club is happy to promote safe handling of firearms and teaching good stewardship of our natural resources.

Club Chat: Members of Horse & Rider enjoyed a week of fun and activities at their horse camp held at leader Heather Linnehan’s home. The Extension Office was delighted to be one of their stops on their mystery ride. The members wanted to make “People Treats” to enter into the Blue Hill fair - so their journey began. First stop, Extension Office to pick up their fair entry forms. Next, Falls Food Mart to purchase the ingredients, then Rooster Brothers for cookie cutters, and then onto Wal Mart for jars. They stopped at John Linnehan’s (Heather’s husband) to see an array of t-shirts designed by one of John’s workers. They all enjoyed stopping at Jordan’s Snack Bar for ice cream. They ended their mystery ride back at Heather’s to make the treats. By the excitement exhibited at the office, a good time was had by all.

Congratulations to the Mix n’ Match 4H Club for winning $250.00 at the Bangor Fair. They had the best educational displays! All of the kids should be proud of their work on the displays. Way to go!

Project Records - are due Sept. 28th. If yours is complete you may turn them in early to be judged. If any leader is willing to judge, please contact the office or Terry Swazey at 469-3564. Want to know how your project record is judged? Check out the Ruberic Judging Guidelines on our 4-H county website: http://www.umaine.edu/umext/hancock/4-H/newslettertoc.htm
4-H members are encouraged to complete and submit end of the year project record sheets to their local county extension office for 4-H county recognition. 4-H project records are important documents that are necessary for state and national opportunities, awards and future scholarship consideration. Awards will be presented at Cloverfest!

Pumpkin Daze - Mark your calendar! Pumpkin Daze will be held on Saturday, October 6th at Simon’s Farms from 10:00 am - 3:00 pm. The pumpkin drop will be at 3:00 pm this year. A rain date will be announced later. Watch your mail for more information to come.

Cloverfest 2007 - plans are being made now - a date will be announced shortly. Be sure to bring your family to help us celebrate all the wonderful accomplishments of the year. More information will be mailed out soon.

New Info RE: Be A Good Apple! Project - To the first 10 members who fill out a sheet with 50 names for the apple project, those members will receive a prize offered by MOFGA. A Common Ground Fair t-shirt. So pick up your Be a Good Apple kit and start talking to people about buying local foods. A good community service project. You must turn in your sheets when you have gotten the 50 names to qualify." Also, the Leaders’ Association is sponsoring a $50 club award for the club that collects the most names! For more details contact Lore Lipkvich at 537-5673 or email her at chowderpatch@prodigy.net

VOLT Training - Reminder - There will be a VOLT (Volunteer Ongoing Leader Training) on Saturday, September 15, 2007, 9:00 am - 3:00 pm here at the Extension office. Please encourage anyone interested in 4-H to call the office for an application. This will give a volunteer the opportunity to start a club, assist a club, chaperone, or just gain more knowledge of 4-H.

Re-enrollment 2008 - Watch the mail for your club’s re-enrollment packets. Another 4-H year will begin soon!

Blue Hill Fair Results - The winners from the Blue Hill Fair will be posted in our upcoming Special Edition. Congratulations ahead of time to all our 4-H’ers on a job well done!

4-H Shooting Sports / 4-H Lock, Stock and Barrel Club - 2007-2008 Disciplines - The Lock, Stock, and Barrel 4-H Club will hold its sign-up and potluck supper on Wednesday, September 19 at 6:00. Parental permission is required for all disciplines and parents are encouraged to attend the supper to learn more about the 4-H Shooting Sports Program. All programs are held on Wednesday evenings at the Blue Hill Rifle and Pistol Club in Blue Hill. Youths may sign up for one or more disciplines.
The disciplines offered this year will be:
· Starting Wed., Sept. 26 to Nov. 7 from 6:00 pm to 8 pm Basic Rifle.
· If there is enough interested 4-H youth, who have completed the Basic Rifle Program, an Advance Course maybe offered this fall at the same time as Basic Rifle.
· Postal League, 4-H youth must have completed Basic Rifle before joining Postal League. Practice sessions, Wed., Dec. 5, 19, Jan. 9. Starting time to be announced.
· Archery- starting Wed., March 5 - April 9.
· Spring discipline to be announced.
· If there is enough interest, Wildlife Cooking will be offered again with 3 classes, one each in the fall, winter and spring.
For more information call Norwood and Becky Ames at 567-3066

Election Time for the Leaders’ Association - Elections will be held at the next Leaders’ Meeting on September 12th, at 7:00 pm. Slate of officers:
  President: Terry Swazey
   Vice-President: Joey Wilbur
   Treasurer: Barbara Hopkins
   Secretary: Lisa Carney
   Board: Brenda Jordan and Dwight Sargent (still need one more for the board)
Ideally we would like to see at least two people per position. If you are interested, please contact Terry Swazey, Lisa and/or Bill Carney. We highly encourage everyone to come and vote and to nominate candidates from the floor. The Leaders’ Association is such an important part of 4-H. By working together the leaders earn the funds to help promote many of the   programs, they represent 4-H to the outside world, they bring in new members, and they are the glue that holds the program together. So vote for the candidates that are best suited to accomplish these goals and that will make “The Best Better.” We’re looking forward to another good year.

Jamboree Photos - If you have not received your pictures please contact the Extension Office.

Maine Family Times - is a newsletter from the University of Maine Cooperative Extension for families with children aged five through eighteen. Ask your local Extension Office for a copy or go to: http://www.umext.maine.edu/MaineFamilyTimes/mftnewsletter1.htm. There is a PDF version ready for online use as well http://www.umext.maine.edu/MaineFamilyTimes/mftnewsletter1.pdf. Our goal is to provide families with information about developing and maintaining healthy family relationships and to share ways parents can nurture themselves. The current issue includes ideas about spending time together as a family including 4-H is Family Time. The next (fall) issue will focus on communication and is in process. Look for it into the fall (late September or October.)

Double Duty - When Destiny Hesketh isn't working with her goats for 4-H, she's practicing with the Double L Stables Riding Team out of Hancock. This summer, she had the opportunity to participate in her first American Quarter Horse Show on Memorial Day weekend at the Skowhegan Fair Grounds. The whole team had a remarkable weekend. Destiny placed first in her Hunt Seat Equitation class, and took several second place ribbons in Showmanship and Western Equitation. The horse she rode is "Zippy". He's a 17 year old gelding who Destiny has been riding since last fall. She also participated in the AQHA "Firecracker" show in July. (also in Skowhegan) That weekend was filled with many surprises too. She took first in English and Western Equitation, a first in Showmanship, and ended up taking 2nd in overall points for the weekend in Showmanship. It was a great experience, giving her exposure to competing against kids from all over the country and Canada. It wasn't easy, she spent countless hours at the stables, riding, doing ground work, and helping out with all of the other chores that go along with taking care of horses. Time that is very well spent doing what she loves, being with horses. Submitted by Wendy Hesketh, 4-H Volunteer

What a Doll - Last October we reported that Horse & Rider Club made blankets for the “Linus Project” and sent them to China as their leader Heather Linnehan’s son was adopting a child from there. On August 10th, 17 pounds, 8 month old Kate Renée arrived in Ellsworth and was welcomed into the Linnehan family all the way from Guangzhou Province, Southern China. Congratulations to the proud parents, Chadd and Jen, and the rest of the Linnehan family!

Way To Go Girls - Congratulations to Lynne Hundhammer, Snapdragons and Hollyhocks, and Katherine Jordan, Jolly Juniors, who qualified to compete in the 2007 Northeast Regional YMCA League Gymnastics Championships in Glenns Falls, New York. They joined hundreds of gymnasts from seven northeastern states, performing in 4 events: balance beam, uneven parallel bars, vault and tumbling. We are proud of you girls!

If you have any “sightings” that Norma might not know about - please notify the office. Thanks!

1. 1. What does it mean to be a Cloverbud? Did you know that in some states, you can’t join 4-H until you are 9? That’s because the basic 4-H program has always been planned for youth ages 9 and older. Over the past 15 to 20 years, some states have added programs for 5-8 year olds. It wasn’t that long ago that Maine had “Pixie” members who did different activities than their older brother and sisters. About 15 years ago, the National 4-H program named the 5-8 year olds “Cloverbuds” and, using child development research from our land grant university partners, created a set of policies appropriate for children of these ages. Over the past couple of years, these policies have been defined in more detail and this definition has showed that Maine needs to make some changes in the things our 5-8 year olds do. We want to make sure that our program is as safe and age-appropriate as it can be for our youngest members. Making the program safe and within the national guidelines means less chance of injury to any child and less liability for our staff and volunteers. Participation, safety, personal development, learning, and fun in a cooperative, non-competitive setting are the priorities of the Cloverbud program.

Currently we have a committee made up of staff and volunteers who are looking at the feedback received from a survey sent out to all volunteers across the state. While we are required to follow the basic guidelines of the national policy, we asked for ideas that would help us implement the policy in the way that created the most fun for kids and the least stress for volunteers. In the next couple of weeks, we will be meeting to look at the survey results and to draft a Cloverbud policy for Maine. This will be ready as the new 4-H year begins in October. As this will be our first year under the policy, it will be a draft and will be reviewed after the year to see what might need changing.

Maine 4-H has been through changes before and there is no doubt that this change, while uncomfortable right now, will also result in a program that kids will find fun and engaging. Young children follow the lead of the adults and older kids in their lives- approach this as a positive change and they will also see it that way. In fact, let them take the lead – you may be surprised to see that they don’t mind the change at all. A positive outlook and involvement with families and kids will lead to the best way for your group to implement the policy.

The new Cloverbud policy will be available at the start of the 4-H year on October 1. Clubs that are making plans for the upcoming year and recruiting new members during September should make their volunteers, families and members aware that some parts of 4-H will look different in 2007-2008. Over the next year the Maine 4-H program will be making available curriculum resources, training, ideas and events that will help build our Cloverbud skills. We will work to design county activities including fair events that will involve our Cloverbuds in a positive way. Our goal is to give clubs the tools they need to make this transition a success.

2. Animal Science Committee Nominations The next regularly scheduled meeting of the Maine 4-H Animal Science Committee (ASC) is Saturday, November 3, 2007 in Waterville. It is time for 4-H volunteers who wish to serve on those committees to be nominated or re-nominated for a three-year term. You can visit our website at http://www.maine4h.umaine.edu/manual/attach/ascmemresp.htm to learn more about serving in this position. You can find nomination and re-nomination forms at http://www.maine4h.umaine.edu/manual/partb/b18.htm.

Membership to the Animal Science Committees is gained by a nomination and re-nomination process. Nominations can be made by any member of the committee, including the current Activity Coordinator and occurs prior to the Fall ASC meeting. Nominations must be submitted by October 15 to the committee's Staff Liaison. The Staff Liaison reviews the nomination, consults with the Extension educator or Extension professional in the county in which the volunteer is enrolled and if approved, submits it to the current members of the committee at the Fall ASC meeting.

Teenage Members: It is recommended that teenage 4-H volunteers be given seats on the Animal Sciences committees. Teen members will follow the same membership procedures as adults, except for background checks.

Wonderful Sponsorship Opportunity - As part of the sponsorship agreement between 4-H and DIC Entertainment, 4-H will receive 100 30-second 4-H commercial spots that are expected to reach 14.8 million boys and girls ages 6-11 during its year-long run on Kewlopolis, the CBS weekend morning kids programming block. We appreciate your quick response to our appeal for 4-H video footage and have incorporated it into the 4-H commercial. We hope that you will tune in to Kewlopolis September 15 to see the 4-H commercial make its national premiere!
In exchange, DIC Entertainment asks 4-H to spread the word about its educational cartoon, Horseland, throughout the 4 H community. Horseland is a show about kids and their horses experiencing adventures with themes of friendship, teamwork, acceptance, and compassion similar to the leadership, citizenship and life skills youth learn through their participation in 4-H. DIC also is featuring 4-H through a variety of additional outlets including:
• a Disney.com and Nick.com expandable banner advertisement which will reach 3.9 million impressions during its run from August 15 to September 15.
• a full-page color print ad in the fall issue of Kewl magazine out September 15 read by nearly 1.9 million girls ages 10-15.
• 12 months of banner ads on horseland.com with an expected reach of 24 million impressions for youth ages 6-11 and a Web page devoted to 4-H.
Donald T. Floyd, Jr., President and CEO, National 4-H Council

As cool weather settles in, leaves begin to turn and many of us settle back into the school routines, I am busily preparing to go on sabbatical. I will be on leave from October 1, 2007 through April 1, 2008. I am very excited about this opportunity! After being with Extension for seven years I have come to truly understand the importance of the role of the 4H volunteer. Without them, we would not have a program…THEY make the difference in the lives of the kids enrolled in the 4H program.

During my six-month sabbatical I will have uninterrupted time to work on a volunteer development project where I will get to explore web-based training opportunities for 4H volunteers. Along with trying out the on-line trainings, I will speak directly with 4H volunteers from at least three other states that have used the on-line trainings to gather their feedback. In addition, I will spend an entire week in Spokane, WA participating in an intense Volunteer Management Institute learning from three of the top Volunteer Management Specialists in the country.

Program Aides, Norma Hardison and Colleen Brown along with the support staff in the Hancock and Washington County Extension offices will be available to provide support to you during my leave, with additional support from Extension Educators Jane Haskell and Jon Prichard as needed. Please don’t hesitate to contact me in September should you have questions, concerns or need assistance from me before I leave as I will not be available during my sabbatical.

I will look forward to my return in the spring and the opportunity to share with you some of the things I learn during my time away. I wish you all well as you embark on this new 4H year that is about to begin. Thank you for all you do to make the best better!

Jen Lobley
4H Youth Development Extension Educator
Hancock and Washington Counties

Members Present (7):
· President Terry Swazey, Vice President Joey Wilbur, Treasurer Barbara Hopkins, Secretary Lisa Carney, Brenda Jordan, Norma Hardison, and Methel Wilbur.

Club Reports:
· The Jolly Juniors took 48 projects to the Bangor Fair and received all blue and red ribbons! Several members are participating in the Hancock County 4H Photo Contest.
· The Wranglers learned about horse bathing.
· Terry has been recruiting for the BHF Horse Show.

Other Issues:
· Many leaders are not happy about the new requirements for members age 5-9. Express your opinions and fill out the survey sent out by the extension office.
· Start thinking about the Leaders’ Banquet.
· Methel needs to paint the Exhibit Hall. Board members agreed to give her $100.
· The Photo contest will be more expensive than last year due to the addition of several categories that will receive premiums. Board members agreed to give Norma $200 for prize money.
· The Eckenroad Building will be a goat display again this year.
· The Hancock County Executive Committee will have their annual meeting Thursday, September 27. There will be a potluck and live music, time and location TBA.

Chunky Fruit Salad with Zesty Dressing
This salad is so refreshing!
Chill overnight in a Thermos and pack it in your lunchbox!

Ingredients for Salad:
              3 apples, chunked                          3 pears, chunked
                      1/2 honeydew, chunked                 1/2 small watermelon, chunked
                        2 oranges broken into segments, chunked
                        1 cup fresh blueberries, raspberries, or strawberries
Ingredients for Dressing:
                        1 banana 1 cup plain yogurt
                        2 tbsp brown sugar 2 tbsp honey
                        2 tbsp poppy seeds
1. Use an apple slicer to core and slice apples and pears. Then chunk fruit.
2. Chunk honeydew, watermelon, and oranges. Rinse fresh berries and mix all the fruit together in a serving bowl.
3. In a blender, combine bananas, yogurt, brown sugar, honey, and poppy seeds. Drizzle over fruit and let chill before serving.            Taken from Kids Cooking Club Let’s Do Lunch
Special thanks to Norman Jodrey, Jolly Juniors, for submitting this recipe.

Sept 12	Leaders’ Meeting - 7:00 pm - Voting Night
Sept 15	VOLT Training at Hancock County Extension Office
Sept 28	Project Records are due in the Extension Office
Oct 6	Pumpkin Daze at Simon’s Hancock Farm Stand
Oct 7– 13	National 4-H Week