A NEWSLETTER FOR 4-H VOLUNTEERS AND FAMILIES OCTOBER, 2006
YORK COUNTY 4H NEWS
Fallfest 2006, Annual Awards
We have some terrific workshops planned this year. This year’s workshops will start at 2 pm, so mark your calendars! Here are some of the offerings we have planned:
· Animal tracking
· Card making
· Woodworking
· Beading
· Drop spindle
· Holiday crafts
· Basket making
· First aid
· Dog obedience
· Cheerleading
· Picture frames Christmas craft
· And lots more!
Note that this year’s dinner is free, as it is being sponsored by the 4-H Leaders Association, which is generously preparing an American chop suey meal and dessert.
You still need to register for the workshops to be sure to get your first choice, and to receive a pre-printed paper carry-bag when you arrive on November 18.
Watch for the registration form at the end of October.
Art HOPE Offers 4-H Teens
A Creative Service Opportunity
We still have space for teens to serve as Community Angels in our Art HOPE program.
The training for youth will be held on Saturday, October 21, 6:30 pm at the Community Room of Wells Urgent Care, Rt. 109, Wells (Exit 19 of the Maine Turnpike, turn left onto Route 109, building is 1 mile on right).
Art HOPE is an opportunity for teenagers aged 13-17 to receive training to become a “Community Angel” and to join monthly Art HOPE Creativity Gatherings.
Calendar October
21 Community Angels Training (Art HOPE) October
23 4-H Leaders Meeting, 7
pm November 18
4-H Fallfest and Awards Celebration November 15 Deadline for 4-H Club Programs of Work for the New Year November
28 VOLT New Leader Training
Creativity Gatherings are facilitated monthly meetings where those affected by cancer gather to create art, support one another in
their journeys, and build a sense of community for themselves.
Community Angels:
· Receive four hours of training in:
- Visual arts
- Understanding and working with those who have or are affected by cancer
· Agree to participate in at least three Creativity Gatherings. At these gatherings you will assist with interpreting ideas and translating them into art, co-create art projects based on need and ability, and be open as much to receiving as to giving.
· Give to some incredible folks the immeasurable gift of your time, energy and heart. Receive from some incredible folks the gift of time, energy, heart – and gratitude.
Art HOPE Creativity Gatherings
will be held at Wells Urgent Care, 4-6 pm on the following dates:
October 24 February 27
November 28 March 27
December 19 April 24
January 30 May 22
Community Angels are expected to participate in at least three Creativity Gatherings, and may choose to participate in as many as eight. For more information and to register contact Jon Prichard.
Training for New Leaders
Will be Held November 28
If you know anyone who is interested in becoming a 4-H Leader, please let them know about this training. The training also is an opportunity for existing leaders and parents to have a refresher on the Maine 4-H program and York County 4-H.
The training will be held at the Extension office in Springvale from 6:30 – 8:30 pm.
Farewell to Marcia Miller
as 4-H Aide – and thanks!
Marcia served as 4-H Aide only a short time in the summer and fall of 2006, and during that time assisted in summer 4-H programs including Ossipee Valley and Acton fairs, and the county 4-H newsletter. In September Marcia began work full time as a school psychologist just over the border in New Hampshire. Marcia is still a York County club leader.
Thank you Marcia for your continued efforts and support of 4-H and the youth of York County!
Search for New 4-H Aide
To Occur in November
We will be advertising for a new 4-H Aide by the end of October or early November. If you know of anyone who would be interested in this 8 hr/wk position please have them contact Jon Prichard at the Extension office.
Happy
Birthday to… Special October birthday wishes to these
4-H'ers: Gwendolyn
Benoit Noah
Darling Jillian
Doody Leland
Goodenough Sara Kelley Kristin
Lambert Julia Leary Sage
Leblanc Bethany
Parker Ashley
Preston Michael
Roux, Jr. Autumn
Sherman James
Stevens Mark
Trabold
Apply now!!
York County 4-H
Community Service Awards
In recognition of the importance of Community service, the York County Leaders Association presents annual Community Service Awards to individual 4-H Members and to Clubs that have shown exemplary contributions to community service.
Application: This community service log will serve as your application to receive recognition and an award at the annual 4-H Fallfest and Awards Ceremony in the fall. Add additional pages as needed. Deadline: To be considered for an award you must submit this log to the Extension office by November 1.
Order 4-H Supplies Online
And Support Maine 4-H
Big news from the National 4-H Supply Service! For the past year and a half they have been piloting a program called Fair Share and they have just come out with the new and improved version. It has been simplified and expanded to benefit all 50 states and YOU and your club can help!
Beginning back in August, any purchase placed through their website, www.4-hmall.org, that is shipped to an address within the state of Maine will count as a 4-H Fair Share purchase!
That’s right! If you place an order, online, the National 4-H Supply Service will reward the Maine State 4-H program with a payment of 10% of the total merchandise value within any given month. That 10% is going to the Pine Tree State 4-H Foundation and they are going to put it toward more Creative Communities Coalition Grants (See below.) Remember, orders must be placed online in order to receive the benefits!
Creative Communities Coalition
Grants Available to 4-H Clubs
Has your club been thinking about doing a project to help your community? If so, did you know that your can get funding for your good work from the Pine Tree State 4-H Foundation? It’s called the Creative Communities Coalition Grants and the Foundation will provide up to $200 for your group to conduct a creative service project in your community (only one project per group please.)
All you need to do is write a grant proposal. Never written a grant before? Don’t worry! The 4-H Foundation will help you work out your project questions and complete the easy form if you give them a call at 581-3739.
For more information, check out their website at www.umaine.edu/4hfoundation/funding where you can download an application in either PDF or Word, and there are links to the guidelines and to the Creative Communities Coalition website. Check it out! Be sure to let us know if you are applying for a grant!
FAQ’TS About Project Records
It’s a new 4-H Year and as we review your records from last year, we thought we could make your job easier this year if we presented a few record-keeping ideas in our newsletters.
Q. Why do we do project records?
A. If you speak with adults who were once 4-H members, they will often tell you that the most important skill they learned in 4-H was record-keeping. It’s a skill that successful adults use every day.
When you leave our 4-H program, we want you to have one of the most important benefits we can give you! On a more immediate level, record keeping gives you an on-going picture of your current project and a permanent record of your previous work.
Also, before you move out on your own to support that horse or that art hobby or whatever your passion is, you will need to understand how much it costs to participate in that activity. That’s why you need to include in your project records the value of things people GIVE you, like animals, grain or hay, or cooking supplies.
And certainly not the least important your 4-H records and resume will be invaluable as you apply for college scholarships.
Q. Why are we talking about project records right now? We just got started in the new 4-H year!
A. Your record should start at the same time your project does. Starting at the beginning lets you set your goals and learning plan BEFORE you do your project. Keeping records as you do projects makes the whole process more valuable and SO MUCH EASIER than waiting until next fall.
For two days, we analyzed data that had been collected from 143 of you (mostly volunteers and youth) around the state, and we worked together to develop a common vision, to build a wider sense of the 4-H community and to offer recommendations for going forward in 4-H Youth Development over the next 5 years.
Maine 4-H Youth Development Vision
Maine youth acquire the knowledge, life skills, leadership abilities and attitudes to help them succeed now and in the future through effective collaborations, hands-on experiential education and self-directed learning.
Please join us for…
York County Extension Association’s Annual Meeting
Coastal Maine Botanical Garden
The keynote speaker for our annual meeting will be Maureen Hefferman, Executive Director of the Coastal Maine Botanical Garden (CMBG.) Maureen will share a slide show of the newly developing “world class” botanical garden right here in Boothbay in our very own State of Maine.
Maureen will share a slide show of the CMBG masterful stonework in the spectacular Rhododendron & Perennial Garden, the Shoreland Garden of Native Plants, and Hillside Garden. She will take us along groomed trails along the shore and on ledge-lined paths on CMBG’s 248-acre waterfront landscape with natural woods, wildflowers and ferns, and see outdoor sculpture displayed in perfect settings. Learn about one of Maine’s most prominent developing treasures.
When: Weds, November 8, 7-9 pm.
Where: Laudholm Farm at Wells Estuarine Research Reserve.
Cost: Free, and open to the public. Pre-registration preferred to help us plan refreshments and dessert.
Schedule:
7 pm – York County Extension Association Annual Meeting (open to the public)
7:45 – Program: Coastal Maine Botanical Garden
Acton Fair Film
Premieres in Portsmouth!
In 2005, Independent film producer, Rick Widmer, spent several months preparing a feature-length documentary of AMERICAN FAIR as exemplified by Acton Fair in York County. The experience created a buzz among the local fair community, and a great learning opportunity for all, including 4-Hers (several 4-Hers and their families are featured in the film). The film had its premiere public showing in Portsmouth on October 14, at the New Hampshire Film Expo.
Did any of you see it there?
AMERICAN FAIR is being submitted to film festivals in the USA, Europe and Asia, and seeking commercial distribution.
From the advance publicity:
“AMERICAN FAIR is a tale about a farming community in York County, Maine. This feature-length ethnographic documentary quietly reveals the agricultural heritage of the region and opens our eyes to a wholesome side of American culture: as people of the earth.”
“AMERICAN FAIR is a film about farm families and a country fair in Maine (the Acton Fair) told through intimate, behind the scenes portraits focusing on a variety of characters. It is a simple story of companionship and rivalry, and the emotional connection of people to their farmland.”
The movie is also available on DVD through the York County Agricultural Association.
Reminder: Acton Fair guidelines state:
“All York County 4-H members must be enrolled in 4-H prior to January 1, 2007, to be eligible to show livestock at Acton Fair.”
Kids in the Kitchen
Autumn is here! The leaves are changing (and falling), there’s a definite nip in the air and the harvest is almost over and the garden “fruits” have all been gathered. Now, let’s start using some of it!
Smart Veggie Pizza
You will need:
¾ cup pizza sauce
1 lg. Italian pizza shell
1 cup chopped broccoli
1 cup shredded carrots
½ cup sliced red or green bell pepper
5 to 6 oz. shredded , low-fat mozzarella or cheddar cheese
Preheat oven to 450˚
Place pizza shell on baking sheet. Spoon sauce over shell. Arrange broccoli, carrots and peppers on top of sauce. Sprinkle cheese over the top. Bake for 10 minutes. Remove from oven and let stand for 3 minutes to cool. Cut into wedges.
Sweet Potato Fries
You will need:
1 tbsp. vegetable oil
¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 tsp. dried Italian herb seasoning
1 1/3 lbs. sweet potato (about 4 med.)
Pinch of salt, optional
Preheat oven to 475˚
In large bowl, mix oil, cheese and herb seasoning. Cut potatoes into ½ inch wedges. Add potatoes to oil mixture, toss to coat. Arrange wedges in single layer on baking sheet. Bake about 30 minutes or until golden brown, turning halfway through baking time. Season with salt if desired.
These recipes (and others) may be found at http://kidsinthekitchen.ajli.org