Thurston County 4-H News
March 2016
Nebraska Extension - Thurston County
Stacey Keys, 4-H Assistant, stacey.keys@unl.edu
Email: thurston-county@unl.edu
Website: thurston.unl.edu
Location: 415 Main Street, P.O. Box 665, Pender, NE 68787
Phone: 402-385-6041
Facebook: facebook.com/UNLExtensionThurston/
Twitter: @UNLThurstonCty
Upcoming Dates
Mar 4 - General 4-H Scholarship Applications DUE
Mar 7 - Butter Braid Sales Orders DUE @ Extension Office
Mar 12 - Horse Stampede @ UNL-East Campus
Mar 14 - Thurston County 4-H Council Meeting
Mar 22 - Butter Braids pick up @ Extension Office (5:00 pm)
Mar 28 - Speech/Music Contest Registration DUE
Mar 31 - Speech/Music Contest @ Pender (7:00 pm)
Apr 1-3 - Siouxland Garden Show @ Sioux City
Apr 10-16 - National Volunteer Week
Apr 11 - Joint 4-H Council Meeting @ Pender (7:00 pm)
Apr 15 - Nebraska 4-H Camp Early Bird Registration DUE
Apr 29 - Office Closed - Arbor Day
May 2 - Drop/Add 4-H Project DUE
May 2 - Favorite Foods & Presentation Contest Registration DUE
May 4 - Favorite Foods & Presentation Contest @ Dakota City (7:00 pm)
May 9 - Thurston County 4-H Council Meeting
May 12 - Northeast Regional 4-H Speech Contest Registration DUE
May 13 - Horse: County ID DUE & District & State Entries DUE
May 26 - Northeast Regional 4-H Speech Contest @ Norfolk (2:00 pm)
May 30 - Office Closed - Memorial Day
Need To Know
Out of the Office
Jennifer and Stacey will be out of the office March 15-16 for a conference. If you need something, leave a message or email, we will be checking periodically. The office will be staffed again on Thursday, March 17th.
Communicating With You
The Extension staff in Thurston County would like to welcome you to the 2016 4-H program. Our 4-H newsletter serves as one of our means of providing information to you. We can also be found on Facebook at UNLExtensionThurston, on Twitter at @UNLThurstonCty, on Instagram at @thurston_county4h, on Pinterest at Nebraska Extension in Thurston County, and online at thurston.unl.edu. Check out these sites for the latest information on upcoming 4-H events, deadlines, and activities.
State Fair Book Updates & Changes
The 2016 4-H State Fair book is available online. The animal exhibits at this link: http://go.unl.edu/nsd2 and the static exhibits at: http://go.unl.edu/ey74. The Dakota~Thurston County Fair book very closely follows the state fair book so as you begin thinking about your fair exhibits please feel free to check out the State Fair book. Our county Fair book will be available in hopefully March.
4HOnline Browser Reminder - Internet Explorer
Beginning Monday, February 15, 4HOnline will no longer support Internet Explorer 10 and older due to security concerns. So if this in the source you typically use considering using Chrome, FireFox, or Safari to gain access to your 4HOnline account.
Butter Braid Sales
Butter Braids are available in a variety of flavors. Thurston County 4-Hers will be taking orders from January 31 to March 7. Orders will be delivered to the 4-Hers on March 22 at 5:00 p.m. at the Thurston County Extension Office. Proceeds from this fundraiser help fund 4-H activities throughout the year.
Sales Incentive
The Thurston County 4-H Council voted to again provide you with an incentive to sell butter braids. We will have a drawing for two $50 gift cards to Target. To be eligible for the gift certificates, an individual/family must sell a minimum of 18 Butter Braids®, for every additional 5 sold they will have another entry in the drawing. Please understand there will only be two gift cards given out, so if you do it as a family you will share.
If your family chooses not to sell Butter Braids®, which is the only fundraiser we have for our 4-H program, we ask that you pay $50.00 per child. They will not be eligible for the gift card drawing. Remember this is just an incentive to encourage our 4-H’es to sell more Butter Braids. Selling any number of Butter Braids®, will benefit the Thurston County 4-H program.
Dakota-Thurston County Fair Theme 2016
Member Information
Speech and Music Contest
The state theme for the 2016 Public Service Announcement (PSA) is: “4-H Grows Confidence” All PSAs must promote 4– H and be general enough to e used anywhere in Nebraska All PSA” must include the following tag line within the last 10 seconds of the PSA: “Learn more about the Nebraska Extension 4-H Youth Development Program at 4h.unl.edu” All PSAs are 60 seconds in length.
Speech Contest Workshop
Interview Judging Contest
You are invited to Northeast Nebraska in May for an special area Interview Contest competition. All the same rules and requirements will remain in place.
We will conduct the area Interview Contest at the Norfolk Life Long Learning Center. We will be sending out more information as the event date nears but for now…
- Reserve the Date: May 26th
- Interview Contest resumes and Cover letters will be due: May 12 to Mary Jarvi at the Norfolk District office.
- Ribbons and Trophies will be awarded.
- Intermediate and Sr. Division eligible.
Please direct your questions to : Kim Bearnes kbearnes1@unl.edu
Workshop Vouchers
Clover Kid Division: Carter Bonneau
Junior Division: Haeden Paeper
Intermediate Divison: Jake Bruns
Ideas for Clover Colleges
Nebraska 4-H Club of the Month
This month we would like to congratulate The Peppy Peppers 4-H Club for being awarded the Nebraska 4-H Club of the Month for February 2016. This 4-H Club from Wisner, NE in Cuming County has truly made a difference in their community. The club is very dedicated to building strong citizenship and teamwork through various community service activities. And they're just in the neighboring county. You can do it too!
2016 4-H Photography Nebraska Exhibit Theme
Family & Consumer Sciences
Omaha Fashion Week 4-H Collection
March is Bake & Take Month
March is Bake & Take month, a time when wheat organizations encourage others to bake a wheat good and share it with family, friends, neighbors, co-workers and shut-ins. In honor of the month, the Nebraska Wheat Board (NWB) is again sponsoring recipe cards and stickers for any 4-H groups or other organizations that wish to participate. This year’s recipes include low-cal, fat free brownies and fudge cookie bars. Those interested in participating or who have questions can contact the NWB office at (402) 471-2358 or wheat.board@nebraska.gov. There is no cost for the supplies, and no limit on the number that can be requested.
Those wishing to preview the recipes before requesting materials can find them listed on our website homepage.
2016 Nebraska State Fair 4-H Culinary Challenge Contest
Camps
4-H Summer Camps
Attention youth! Are you ready for a fun adventure this summer? Consider joining youth around the state for an awesome adventure. The 4-H camps are open to everyone between the ages of 5-18 (do not have to be a 4-H member). There are over 40 day and night camping programs and trips offered for youth to enjoy at the three locations (Halsey, Gretna, and different destinations). Please contact the extension office for a camp brochure or visit the Nebraska 4-H Youth Development website at http://4h.unl.edu/4hcamps/4hcamphome. Register by April 15 and receive a 10% discount. Come make memories this summer at Nebraska 4-H Camps!!
Big Red Summer Academic Camps
Big Red Summer Academic Camps are residential camps: ALL housing and food will be provided for all participants throughout the duration of the camp. Campers will explore careers in computing, culinary arts & food science, engineering, filmmaking, outdoor Nebraska, Unicameral Youth Legislature, veterinary science, and weather & climate science. After spending several fun-filled days explore a specific topic, the families will be invited to join the youth for a special “capstone event” where their work is showcased. For more information please contact the Extension Office or visit www.4h.unl.edu/4hcamps/bigredcamps. Registration - April 15 (Early Bird) or May 1 (Regular).
Plant Science
2016 Siouxland Garden Show
Winter is in the air and we are wishing for warmer temperatures with gardening activities. Save the dates of April 1, 2, and 3, to attend the Siouxland Garden Show at the Sioux City Convention Center. The event includes regionally known experts teaching garden related topics. Commercial exhibitors will be promoting and selling flower, lawn and garden products. Master Gardeners will be available to answer garden questions. For more information, go to http://www.siouxlandgardenshow.org/.
Youth Horticulture ID Contest
The Northeast Nebraska Master Gardeners will be hosting a Youth Horticulture ID Contest at their annual Plant Fair & Market. All youth ages 8-18 are encouraged to participate. Participation is free but all participants must preregister by April 22 by contacting the Nebraska Extension office in Madison County 402-370-4040. Prizes will be given for 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place finishers in each of the age brackets. Contestants will be required to sight ID horticultural plants to the accepted common name. The list of possible plants and study guides are available at
http://madison.unl.edu/theplantfair
Contest Details
Date: Friday, April 29, 2016
Time: Competition begins 7:00 PM, Awards Presented 8:30 PM
Location: Chuck Pohlman Ag Complex, Northeast Community College, Norfolk
Prizes:
1st Place - $25 cash AND $25 gift certificate for the Master Gardener Plant Booths
2nd Place - $10 cash AND $15 gift certificate for the Master Gardener Plant Booths
3rd Place - $10 gift certificate for the Master Gardener Plant Booths
The ages for brackets are broken down as follows:
Junior – 8-11 years old
Intermediate – 12-14 years old
Senior – 15-18 years old
Youth Volunteer Opportunity
The Northeast Nebraska Master Gardeners could use your help. They hold an annual Plant Fair & Market at the Northeast Community College Chuck Pohlman Ag Complex in Norfolk and need volunteers to help with getting the patron’s items out to their vehicles. Wagons will be available. The plant fair is Friday, April 29, 6:00-8:00 pm and Saturday, April 30, 9:00 am – 3:00 pm. Call the Nebraska Extension office in Wayne County at 402-375-3310 by April 22 to sign up for a time that would work for you.
Fifth Annual Innovative Youth Corn Challenge
Nebraska Extension and the Nebraska Corn Board are offering the fifth Innovative Youth Corn Challenge contest. This contest, open to 4-H members (age 10 & older as of Jan. 1st) or FFA members (in-school members), guides participants through all aspects of corn production, as well as agricultural careers related to corn production.
As a team, youth will be challenged to implement a production practice different than normal to determine if they increased their yield. Economics and sustainability of the practice will also be considered. Yields, cropping history, and production information will be collected in the Corn Yield Challenge management summary.
Cash prizes and plaques will be given to the first, second, and third place teams. First place will receive $1,000, second place will receive $500, and third place will receive $250. Sustainability, crop scouting and “extra mile” awards will also be given, each worth $200.
To participate in 2016, youth must complete and return an entry form by March 15th to the Fillmore County Extension Office in Geneva, NE. Forms can be downloaded at cropwatch.unl.edu/youth/activities. For more information, contact Brandy VanDeWalle atbrandy.vandewalle@unl.edu, Aaron Nygren at anygren2@unl.edu or Amy Timmerman atatimmerman2@unl.edu.
Animal Science News
State Fair Blow and Go Show Announcement
In a joint decision made by State Fair, FFA and 4-H, with regard to fitting of livestock at the fair, 2016 shows will be Blow and Go, which primarily affects the way exhibitors prepare their beef animals.
We certainly understand and respect those folks who are passionate about fitting their animals, the added level of competition it presents and the added level of skill and learning required to fit an animal successfully. But here is some context as to why this decision was made.
As many of you know, the beef barn is always a challenge for space and safety, particularly having enough space for blocking chutes and fitting. We are physically maxed out on space. Ultimately, we came down to two options in terms of how to better manage the available space. We either substantially reduce entry limits and exhibitors' opportunities to participate in the beef show, or we limit the equipment exhibitors bring to the fair. We decided to go with the second option and therefore a no fit show.
As you can imagine, we heard feedback on both sides of the issue as we looked at the options. However, a few other positives that we hope can be gleaned from this change include a reduction in the cost of supplies and products spent on preparing the animals to show. It will also help speed up the loading and unloading process. After discussing with show officials from other state fairs who have gone this way, they believe the quality of the livestock exhibited at their shows has increased because they can no longer fit the flaws out of their animals.
This is not a plan to eliminate blocking chutes for beef altogether. The number of chute tags given out will be more limited than in past years, but the need for the chutes will also be less than in past years. Some families, chapters or counties may choose not bring blocking chutes, but for safety reasons, we do want that tool to be available.
Poultry is BACK!
As of January 1, 2016, the Nebraska Department of Agriculture (NDA) has officially lifted the ban on poultry shows, fairs and exhibitions that was put in place to prevent the spread of highly pathogenic H5N2 avian influenza (HP AI) last year.
This is very exciting news for many of you and we will all be happy to see the poultry back in the barns this year. 2015 was also a very good educational tool on learning more about biosecurity measures with poultry and other livestock.
Quality Assurance
This year all 4-H and FFA members showing livestock of any variety (except horses) will need to go to the Quality Assurance website to update their certification. There will be NO Quality Assurance trainings in your 4-H clubs this year.
Members showing: beef, sheep, goats, swine, rabbit, or poultry, will need to complete and pass 3 lessons in the appropriate age category. Be sure to complete the 3 lessons before the June 1st deadline so the livestock ID sheets can be forwarded on stating you completed the QA training requirements and are able to show. Nebraska youth can go to the course at http://campus.extensnion.org. If they have not registered for the course before, they can search for Nebraska Livestock Quality Assurance and register using the enrollment key “Nebraska”, however, if they are already registered, the course will appear in their course list. Questions concerning registration can be e-mailed to lga@unl.edu. In order to keep the quality at the highest level and streamline the services offered, a $5 annual fee for all participants is being implemented.
4-H Horse Stampede
4-H Horse Stampede is being held the same date, March 12, 2016 at the Animal Science Complex on UNL’s East Campus. Entries are due to county offices on Feb. 12th. Contests include:
· Demonstrations (individual and team)
· Public speaking
· Quiz bowl
· Photography and art contests
More information available at: http://animalscience.unl.edu/horse-4-h-and-youth#tab32
Companion Animal Challenge
The second 4-H Companion Animal Challenge will be held on March 12, 2016 at the Animal Science Complex on UNL’s East Campus. It provides youth a chance to participate in a variety of contests that do not require animals, but allow youth to learn more about their dog or other companion animals. Entries are due Feb. 19th. Contests include:
· Demonstrations (a presentation where youth demonstrate how to complete a task or related to the care of their companion animal)
· Photography and art contests (open to all companion animal projects)
· Dog Skill-a-thon
· Dog quiz bowl
The youth who participated in the event last year said that it was fun and they learned a lot. Youth do not need to be experts to participate in the event.
More information available at: http://go.unl.edu/4hcac
Paws On 4-H Dog Workshop
A one day dog workshop held at the Greater Lincoln Obedience Club in Lincoln, NE on April 2 from 9AM – 3PM. This is a hands on workshop where youth can learn about training their dog and improve their dog knowledge. The flyer/registration form can be found here: http://animalscience.unl.edu/Extension/Companion/PawsOn%20Day%20RegistrationFlyer2016.pdf
Seward Calf Classic
Check-in - 9:00-9:30 a.m., Show - 11:30 a.m.
Cash pay backs and other awards.
- Champion & Reserve Champion Market Animal
- Breed Champions
- Supreme & Reserve Champion Breeding Heifer
- Showmanship: Junior-Intermediate-Senior
Pre-entries-$30/head, Show Day-$40/head
For more information contact: Bev Hain @ 402-643-5101 or Shelby Blecha @ 402-641-4889
Pre-Registration is due by April 7.
Canine Companions for Life 4-H Dog Expo
This event will be held at the Adams County Fairgrounds in Hastings, NE on Friday April 22 and Saturday April 23. Friday night includes a quiz bowl and fun activities related to dogs. Saturday youth will practice obedience, showmanship and agility in the show ring and have the opportunity to work with 4-H judges and leaders to improve their training and showing skills with their dog. Additional educational workshops will be offered throughout the day. For more information: http://animalscience.unl.edu/canine-companions-life-4-h-expo
2016 Nebraska District 4-H Horse Shows
- June 13 - Kearney
- June 14 - Chadron
- June 15 - McCook
- June 16 - Leigh
- June 17 - Bloomfield
- June 21 - Lincoln
All entries are due to the county office by May 13, 2016. All Level testing required for participation in the 2016 District 4-H Horse Show MUST be completed by May 13, 2016.
All entries fro the State Horse Show much be mailed by May 13, 2016. These include Showmanship, Halter, All Cattle Classes, Hunter Hack, Dressage, Advanced Hunter Under Saddle, Hunt Seat Equitation, Western Pleasure and Horsemanship, Trail, 2 year old and 3 year old Western Pleasure and Working Ranch.
2016 Fonner Park State 4-H Horse Show July 10-14, 2016!
Shooting Sports News
Shooting Sports Leader Certification - Arlington
Make plans to attend the upcoming Nebraska 4-H Shooting Sports Leader Certification Workshop. The workshop will be held at the Washington County Fairgrounds in Arlington, Nebraska on April 16 and 17. The workshop is a great opportunity to network with other 4-H volunteer shooting sports instructors from across Nebraska. Participants will share and learn techniques and knowledge which will develop your ability to effectively lead a local shooting sports program; learn to use shooting sports to develop youth of strong character who possess effective skills for living; gain certification in one of the following disciplines: Shotgun, Hunting Skills, Rifle, or Archery; and learn under expert instruction and learn to develop your skills as an instructor.
Registration deadline is APRIL 5 and must be done online by going to: https://goo.gl/qWPfSJ. Registration fees are $100 for first-time certification and $90 to add a discipline for previously certified instructors. A paid registration guarantees participant a spot. Fee includes program materials and three meals; lunch on Saturday and Sunday, and dinner on Saturday. Participants must make their own lodging arrangements. Registration on Saturday runs from 8:00 a.m. to 8:45 a.m.
For more workshop information and registration link, go to the Nebraska 4-H Shooting Sports Instructor Calendar at http://4h.unl.edu/nebraskashootingsportsinstructorcalendar, contact the Nebraska Extension in Washington County Office at 402-426-9455, or contact Extension Educator, Steve Pritchard at 402-395-2158 or 308-536-2691.
Scholarships
Nebraska 4-H Foundation Scholarship 2016
NACEB Scholarship
- One $1000 scholarship at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources (CASNR) or in the College of Education and Human Studies (CEHS) for an income student (freshmen or transfer student).
- One $500 scholarship for a current student (sophomore or higher) enrolled in CASNR or CEHS.
All applications are due March 15, 2016. For more information, go tohttps://sites.google.com/site/nebraskassocntyextbds/home/organization/awards-and-scholarships.