January/February 2017 Caroline.umd.edu Happy New Year, As we look back at the fond memories of 2016, it is a great opportunity to reflect upon newly learned skills and meeting new people. These experiences in 2016 may have shaped a different way of looking at challenges in your life or in the community. Reflecting on previous attempts and achievements provide the groundwork for setting new goals for 2017. There are numerous opportunities within this newsletter for youth and volunteers to begin their new adventures with 4-H in 2017. In 2017, I ll be continuing to visit each club and I look forward to hearing about your club goals and dreams. Send me an email or call the office to let me know potential date(s) for a visit. Dr. Welsh Time to re-enroll Meet with your club leaders Visit the Extension office University of Maryland- Caroline County 4-H Phone (410) 479.4030 Fax (410) 479.4042 DO YOU want to build or enhance the Caroline County 4-H program? Interested youth and volunteers are invited to the first 2017 meeting of the Caroline county 4-H council. It would be great to see at least one officer and volunteer from each club however all members are welcome to attend and provide thoughts on growing clubs in our county and hosting events to meet youth and volunteer needs. SEE YOU January 17th 7:00-8:00 PM Williams Building: 4-H Park 9194 Legion Road Suite #4 Denton Maryland 21629 Administrative Assistant Wendi Potter wpotter@umd.edu 4-H Extension Educator Melissa Leiden Welsh, Ph.D. drmwelsh@umd.edu
Livestock Ownership Dates The state ownership deadline is January 1, 2017 for Market Beef and Dairy Steers. Members need to take their animals to the Caroline County 4-H park on Saturday December 31st 10:00 AM to be weighed and tagged. Contact Charlotte Brown with questions at (410) 479.3334. You must own your Market swine, sheep, and goats by May 1, 2017. Breeding animals must be owned by June 1, 2017. Helpers needed for this event. Also, great way to raise money for your club. Call Karen for your clubs free space! It s time to assemble Record Books Record books are a great way to remember all the cool and Saturday, March 11, 2017 exciting lessons you learn as you grow with 4-H. The organizational and creative skills you practice by completing a record book are valuable skills for future careers. Record books will be due to the Caroline Extension office by January 18th by 4:30 pm. Remember to make arrangements to have your record book signed by your club leader before you submit it to the office books must be signed to be accepted. A record book workshop will be held at the Caroline County Extension office on Friday January 6th at 6:30 pm. Please RSVP by January 4th.
Maryland 4-H Healthy Living Summits - February 11th - Montgomery County Extension Office / February 25th - Queen Anne's County 4-H Park. This will be an update of what we did 2 years ago to train 4-H Healthy Living Ambassadors. Our goal is to highlight the Health "H" at club meetings by offering ideas for inclusion at neighborhood 4-H meetings. Come with ideas for this 4 hour work day - and with Marketing Suggestions to get more 4-H participation! National 4-H Healthy Living Summit - this is held at the National 4-H Conferencing Center in Chevy Chase - February 17-20, 2017. The state office would like to send a team -- if any of you are interested in attending or have youth delegates to suggest -- let me know. Possible scholarships by the state office for attendees. 2017 World Horse Expo 4-H Art Contest The eleventh annual Maryland 4-H Horse Art Contest will take place this year during Maryland Horse World Expo to be held January 20-22, 2017 at the Maryland State Fairgrounds in Timonium, MD. The registration flyer/entry form is attached. Entries must be received by no later than Wednesday, January 11, 2017. Entries will be judged before the first day of the expo and will be displayed throughout the expo. Please share the attached entry form with any 4-H member you think might be interested. The entry form is also posted on the Maryland 4-H website Horse Activities page (http:// extension.umd.edu/4-h/4-h-horse-art-contest-maryland-horse-world-expo) and on the Horse World Expo website. 2017 Maryland 4-H Horse Contest Dates The 2017 Maryland 4-H State Horse Judging, State Hippology and State Horse Bowl Contests have been scheduled. A Horse Judging Clinic is also being planned. Mark your calendars. More information will soon be posted on the Maryland 4-H website. Maryland 4-H Horse Bowl Contest The contest will be held Saturday, March 18th at the Dept. of Plant Science and Landscape Architecture Building at the University of Maryland in College Park. Maryland 4-H Horse Judging Clinic A 4-H Horse Judging Clinic will be held on Sunday, April 2nd, 9:00 am 1:00 pm at the Carroll County Ag Center. The clinic will offer Beginners, Advanced and Coaches sessions. Maryland 4-H Hippology and Horse Judging Contests Both contests will be held on Saturday, May 6th at the University of Maryland Campus Farm and the Dept. of Plant Science and Landscape Architecture Building. 2017 National 4-H Volunteer e-forum Next fall there will be three distinct training opportunities for county programs and volunteers to interact and get energized through a network learning opportunity across the United States. These sessions will be broadcast and presented by the design teams, but are designed to provide hands on activities at host sites. Each session could help enhance your county volunteer training with the opportunity to host the session as a region! Additional information will be forthcoming, including training and information for site hosts. Please review the list below and let the Extension office know of your interest in attending any or all of the sessions. Site registration will begin in the spring. October 5, 2017-7:00-8:30 Cultivating an Environment of Growing True Leaders This session will feature ideas and activities that help foster life skill development by focusing on strategies for more effective club interactions. Participants will learn about the Essential Elements of 4-H and the 5 C s of positive youth development, so join us to set the stage for more successful club meetings! November 2, 2017-7:00-8:30 PM STEM ming into Animal Science, Growing True Leaders Participants will gain resources to incorporate Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) leaders through traditional animal sciences project areas in communities. Volunteers will gain ideas for planning and organizing fun, educational sessions for youth. December 7, 2017-7:00-8:30 PM Helping 4-H ers Grow in Life & Work During this session volunteers will share ideas, receive resources and see a variety of successful programs that help youth focus on life-long learning, workforce readiness and career exploration. Caring adults can help all young people make decisions and create their own positive future.
CAROLINE COUNTY Club Highlights 4-H Members and volunteers of the 8-18 4-H club braved the cold evening air to share their holiday cheer and promote their club s activities in the Greensboro area. Pictured: Skyler Blunt, Jarret Keys, Rebecca Quinn, Josey Lovell, Maddie Cook & Kudos to the members of the 8-18 4-H club and the Archery club for participating in the Greensboro and Denton Parades in December! Erica Baynard Calling all club reporters /secretaries, Tell us about your club activities and upcoming events. Submit articles and pictures highlighting accomplishments by members and volunteers in your club. Deadlines to submit articles for the 2017 March/April newsletters will be Thursday, February 16st. Club Service Opportunity Does the weather have you singing the winter blues? Now imagine being overseas or away from your family for extended periods of time? Many of our military spend months and years away from their loved ones. What can your club or you do? Well, grab some paper or a card and send our troops a note. Introduce your self- but please keep your personal information limited to your first name. Write about something new you learned in school or write about your upcoming plans for the 4-H year. Uplifting messages about your pride in the service and safety our troops provide to our country are always a great addition. Enclose your letters in an envelope addressed to: Brenda Hartsell 706 East Alder Street Oakland Maryland 21550
Its time for 4-H volunteers to re-enroll too! To qualify as a UME 4-H volunteer you need to: Complete a UME volunteer application Participate in volunteer approval process Sign an annual volunteer contract Once you complete those steps you only need to renew your appointment letter each year with the county Extension office. Each 4-H Club must have at least two adult UME Volunteer leaders. The list of leaders must be on file with the club charter at the county office and must include the following information for each leader: complete first and last name, mailing address, phone number, and email address. All UME Volunteer leaders must be screened, approved, and receive appointments through the UME Volunteer Policy Screening and Appointment Process and have a signed Volunteer Appointment Agreement on file with UME. Volunteer workshops (RSVP due 3 days before class date) January 11: club charters, volunteer appointment renewals & record books (7pm) February 8:Ages & Stages of YD, Positive YD motivation, national 4-H resource(7pm) March TBD: First Aid and CPR January & February Meeting Location Extension Office Conference Room, Legion Road 4-H On-line Volunteer Orientation s have been scheduled for 2017 and are available on the State 4-H Website via the calendar or at the following link http://extension.umd.edu/events/series/4471. The dates are as follows: Tuesday, January 31 from 6:30-8:30 PM Thursday, February 9 from 6:30-8:30 PM Wednesday, March 15 from 6:30-8:30 PM Monday, April 17 from 6:30-8:30 PM Tuesday, May 30 from 6:30-8:30 PM Thursday, June 15 from 6:30-8:30 PM Wednesday, July 19 from 6:30-8:30 PM Monday, August 7 from 6:30-8:30 PM Thursday, September 21 from 6:30-8:30 PM Tuesday, October 17 from 6:30-8:30 PM Wednesday, November 29 from 6:30-8:30 PM Tuesday, December 19 from 6:30-8:30 PM
Senior Portfolios for 4-H Out-of-State Trips are due to the State 4-H Office by January 15. Senior 4-H members, planning to apply for a 2017 out-of-state trip please contact Dr. Welsh if you need help with the application process. Additionally, mark February 18th for your interview day for out of state trips. Check out the following link for more information. http://extension.umd.edu/4-h/youth-families/awards-recognition Want to earn project pins? To earn a project pin, you need to complete your project by describing in your record book that you did at least one project communication activity (talk) AND at least one project exhibit at some point during the year. You also need to list your project learning activities on your Does the thought of speaking in front of a crowd scare you? Would you like to perk up those presentation and communication skills? Dr. Welsh is hosting a communication skill building workshop on Wednesday January 18th at 6:30 PM at the Caroline Extension office. Call the Extension office to secure your spot by January 13th. County Contest Friday March 3rd 6:30 PM 4-H Park New Years eve traditions from around the world Japan: ring bells 108 times while smiling for good luck Spain: stuff 12 grapes into your mouth before midnight Thailand: throw buckets of water on friends for new start Belgium Farmers celebrate New Years with their cows Estonians eat 7 times on NY to bring good luck Denmark: break old and unused plates French: eat pancakes on New Years 4-H programs benefit from Volunteers with all levels of skills and abilities and in a variety of topic areas. DO you know an adult that would make a great volunteer or club leader? Encourage friends and family to visit the Extension office to learn more about the volunteer certification process. Perhaps there is a talented parent sitting on the sidelines of your club or civic group Let s get them involved and showcase those amazing skills and leadership talents. Call Dr. Welsh to arrange a meeting to review the steps toward a future as a formal mentor and leader within the volunteer ranks of the Maryland 4-H family.