Northeast Nodaway Bluejays

Northeast Nodaway 4-H Club meets at 1 pm, the first Sunday of every month, at the Ravenwood Community Building and serves the Parnell and Ravenwood communities.

Dana Auffert and Jamie Busby are co-leaders.

This club has been named the  Nodaway County Youth Service to Communities club for five years in a row and has also been named the Outstanding 4-H Club of Nodaway County.

A few of the activities club members have completed include putting flags up and removing them on Main Street in Ravenwood, adopting a family at Christmas, conducting a food drive for The Ministry Center, sending Valentines to veterans, sending cards to overseas service members and holding a mitten, scarf and hat drive.

Service isn’t the only thing NEN Bluejays do; they like to spend time together and have fun. The officer team designed sweatshirts recently that stated “More Than Just A Club, It’s A Family.” Members have family potluck dinners and attended a St. Joe Mustangs game.

The most popular projects for NEN Bluejays are shooting sports including BB, .22, shotgun and archery, arts and crafts, foods and livestock. The club is very active in the county shooting sports program in all disciplines. The club has also been in charge of designing the T-shirt for the annual Miller’s Range shoot in Ravenwood. At this event, club members run the food stand as their annual fundraiser.

Members participate in local competitions, but they also participate in camps, other county fairs and statewide events. Some even show at Ak-Sar-Ben or national shows.

If you are interested in joining the club, contact Auffert at 660.541.3923. The next meeting is at 1 pm, Sunday, October 2 at the Ravenwood Community Building. Members will choose the 2016-2017 officers, work on the October service project, Ben’s Stocking of Hope, and discuss the upcoming year.

Maryville 4-H Club

The Maryville 4-H Club begins its project year at 5 pm, Sunday, October 2 led by Terri Lager and Belinda Hess.

Club projects engage members, teaching them new hobbies and developing their minds for the future. Many members discover new interests while trying something for the first time at 4-H.

Club members have participated in many activities including visiting Shatto Dairy Farm, conducting a food drive, ice skating, making Valentine’s cookies and cards for Manna Kitchen, making May Day flower pots for nursing homes, weeding the courthouse lawn, roller skating and visiting Amaizing Acres and the Maryville Aquatic Center.

This year’s activities include woodworking, scrapbooking, shooting, livestock care, cooking, gardening and arts and crafts. New programs are added every year so members are always learning something new. This year’s new projects are entrepreneurship, horse care, welding and public speaking. 

This year’s parliament procedure leaders are Becky Hays and Tim Schafer. They will teach members the proper way to conduct a meeting. Samatha Raasch will lead the Clover Kids, ages five to seven, in recycling activities.

Activities promoted by 4-H encompass more than agriculture. Programs are varied and all youth are encouraged to join.

Mt. Tabor

Kelli Wilmes has re-instated the Mt. Tabor 4-H club which has many more Clover Kid members than regular 4-H members. The club meets on the fourth Monday of each month. Members have taken cookies to local homebound residents, participated in the Nodaway County Fair, made thank you bags for local police officers and participated in the Elmo 4th of July parade.