4-H Connections
A Newsletter for 4-H Volunteers and Families November/December 2004

YORK COUNTY 4-H NEWS

4-H Youth Celebrate Accomplishments at Annual Fallfest

Nearly 100 York County youth celebrated their accomplishments November 20 at the annual 4-H Fallfest and Recognition in Sanford.

Fallfest is an annual event at which 4-H members and other youth spend a fall afternoon taking a variety of classes and workshops that highlight "heads, hearts, hands and health".  It also is a time of celebration for the past 4-H year ending September 30. Parents, leaders, members and staff participate in a dinner celebration and awards ceremony.

Some highlights of this year's awards ceremony:

·         Hazel Goodwin was honored for her 50 years of serving as a 4-H leader in the Four Leaf Clovers!

·            Crystal Stack, of Little Farmers 4-H Club, received the annual York County 4-H Community Service Award presented each year to recognize a 4-H youth who contributed to the community through volunteer service during the previous year.

·         The Llama Brigade 4-H Club received the annual York County 4-H Community Service Award presented each year to recognize a 4-H Club that contributed to the community through volunteer service during the previous year.

2004 Fallfest was a terrific success and saw nearly 100 4-H youth participating in afternoon workshops including:

Folded Paper Decorated Cards
Rocket Gliders
Drop Spindle
Scrapbooking
Rocks And Gems
Pet Rocks
Belly Dancing
Cheerleading
4-H Olympics
Horse Care And Fun
Alpaca Care And Fun

4H Enrollments Deadline and Animal Approval Guidelines Changes

December 31 is the deadline for 4-H member enrollment for 2005 to be eligible to show animals in Maine fairs.  Also, there are some guidelines changes underway for market steers and market lambs.  We will be letting enrolled 4-H members know of these changes as soon as they are finalized.  Stay tuned!

4-H Leaders Celebration February 9

Let’s celebrate our York County 4-H leaders!  There will be a potluck dessert social the evening of February 9 (February 10 snow date).  Save the date and watch for more details next month!

Leaders Association Meetings February 9 and March 9

Attend our Leaders Association meetings!  They’re informative, fun, and a great place to network and learn from one another. 

February 9 will be taken up with the Leaders Social celebration, though we will have a brief business meeting as needed.  There will be a regular leaders meeting March 9.

Hope to see you there!

STATE AND NATIONAL NEWS

4-H Shooting Sports Training

A State wide 4-H Shooting Sports Training will be offered May 20, 21, 22 at the Blue Hill Rifle and Pistol Club, Blue Hill, ME. The training will start at 6:00 pm on Friday, May 20 with registration and supper. Possible disciplines offered will be basic rifle, shotgun, archery, and wildlife. There will be a limited number of slots available, 12 to 15. The estimated cost for the weekend is $30. For those interested contact the Hancock County Extension Office at 1-800-287-1479. Please leave your name and address. Further information will be mailed to those interested after the first of the new year

Maine 4-H History

A new "Maine 4-H History" has been added to the Maine 4-H website. The website address is http://www.maine4h.umaine.edu/4HHistory.htm.

Citizenship Washington Focus - Half Price in 2005!

If you have always wanted to attend Citizenship Washington Focus and you are between the ages of 15 and 19, there is a special opportunity for you in 2004.  This year, thanks to the generous support of the Pine Tree State 4-H Foundation, the cost to attend the week-long program will be no more than $300.  This is less than half of the traditional fee.

CWF is a week-long program, held at the National 4-H Conference Center in Chevy Chase, Maryland, just outside of Washington, DC.  The program is sponsored by the National 4H Council and includes workshops and activities that let you experience the processes of U.S. government, visit your congressional delegation on Capitol Hill and see many of Washington’s most famous sites. 

The Maine 4H delegation will be attending CWF July 9-16, 2005.  Registration materials and information will be coming our way soon, so be sure to read upcoming newsletters for updates and registration information.  There are a limited number of slots for this trip, so if you want to go, please let Jon Prichard know as soon as possible.

Have You Checked Your Smoke Detector?

Now that Daylight Savings Time has officially ended, did you remember to check your home smoke detectors? Smoke detectors require maintenance.  Here are some tips to help keep smoke detectors functioning properly:

• Test detectors once a month.

• Replace batteries twice a year.

• Detectors will chirp when the battery grows weak – replace batteries immediately.

• Clean detectors occasionally – vacuum to remove dust.

• Replace detectors that are 10 years or older.  Caution: even with fresh batteries, old detectors may not function properly.

• Practice family escape plans through nighttime drills – press the smoke detector alarm to familiarize family members to the detector’s sound.

• You can keep your family and home a safe place to live by maintaining your smoke detectors.  And a good    way to remember to check smoke detectors is “when you change your clock, check your smoke detectors.”

 Have a safe winter season!

Cooking with the Kids 

Gingerbread House (This is a non-edible house)                                                

Ingredients

·   Box of graham crackers

·   Thick frosting

·   Decorating tubes for frosting

·   Hot glue (note: if you use frosting INSTEAD OF hot glue, the house will be edible)

·   Gumdrops, chocolate sandwich cookies, hard candies, raisins, craisins, peppermint sticks….

·   Small cardboard box

Instructions

Use hot glue (or frosting) to glue the graham crackers onto the box and make a roof.  From there you can make windows with chocolate sandwich cookies or Ritz crackers, decorating them with frosting.  Line all the edges and seams with the frosting. 

Use frosting or hot glue to attach gumdrops and other candy.  Make a front porch using a graham cracker for the floor.  Use peppermint sticks for the posts to hold up a graham cracker roof.

Happy Birthday to…

Special wishes to the following 4-H'ers who celebrated birthdays in October.

STATE AND NATIONAL NEWS

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