Youth to celebrate National 4-H Week October 4-10

The Nodaway News Leader is proud to publish the annual 4-H week salute and Farm Safety Week edition in this week’s NNL.

For the 77th consecutive year, millions of youth, parents, volunteers and alumni across the country will be celebrating National 4-H Week during the first full week of October. National 4-H Week showcases the incredible experiences that 4-H offers young people, and highlights the remarkable 4-H youth in the community who work each day to make a positive impact on those around them.

In Nodaway County, youth members ages 5 to 18 connect with a 4-H community club, which holds monthly club meetings. Recognized adult volunteers serving as Club Leaders organize and support the club. Club members elect youth officers, plan educational programs, and participate in community service learning.

Within the 4-H club, youth members enroll in projects, which are taught by recognized adult volunteers serving as project leaders. Youth complete six hours of instruction in each project. Projects offered include aerospace, arts and crafts, computers and programming, entomology, entrepreneurship, filmmaking, financial literacy, gardening, global education, health and fitness, horticulture, leadership, livestock projects, outdoor adventures, pets, photography, public speaking, quilting, robotics, shooting sports, small engines, theatre arts, veterinary science, woodworking, and many others.

Nodaway County 4-H currently has seven chartered 4-H community clubs, with six of them active: Burlington Jct. Lucky Shamrocks 4-H Club, Club Leader Thomas Linville; Busy Bee 4-H Club, Club Leaders Becky Swinford and Jackie Baker; Jefferson 4-H Club, Club Leaders Kara Hauber and Ashley Henggeler; Mt Tabor 4-H Club, Club Leader Kelli Wilmes and Charyti Jackson; North Nodaway 4-H Club, Club Leader Racheal Stump; Northeast Bluejays 4-H Club, Club Leaders Marcee Dougan and Tracy Smith. The seventh Nodaway County 4-H chartered 4-H Community Club is the Fire Foxes 4-H Club, of Maryville. The Fire Foxes 4-H Club is open for youth enrollment.

In addition to 4-H community clubs, youth ages 5 to 18 may participate in Nodaway County 4-H through 4-H special interest, or SPIN Clubs. Youth in grades kindergarten through 12 may participate in afterschool clubs, in-school clubs and school enrichment programs. Youth participating in these opportunities are also eligible to participate in the Nodaway County 4-H Council, to exhibit at Nodaway County 4-H Achievement Day and to participate in county-level fundraising activities.

4-H SPIN Clubs focus on specific topics led by experts in the field, and meet for a set period, such as weekly or bi-weekly, for six to eight weeks. During the 2019-2020 4-H year, Nodaway County 4-H offered 4-H SPIN Clubs in poultry and rabbits, Clover Kid Connections, Kids in the Kitchen, bee keeping, and photography. Starting October 1, 4-H SPIN Clubs for the 2020-2021 year will be announced as they are planned, beginning with a Clover Kid SPIN Club for youth ages 5 to 7, and a crafts SPIN Club for youth ages 8 to 18. Youth participating in 4-H community clubs and 4-H SPIN Clubs are also eligible to participate in regional energizers and camps, and in state-level camps and conferences.

Nodaway County Afterschool 4-H Clubs in 2019-2020 included the afterschool NEN Garden 4-H Club, the afterschool Northeast Nodaway 4-H Club, and the afterschool Nodaway-Holt 4-H Club. Nodaway County 4-H School Enrichment programs were taught to the fifth grade level at the Maryville Middle School.

Research has shown that young people in 4-H are almost four times as likely to contribute to their communities, and are twice as likely to engage in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) programs in their free time. The 2020-2021 4-H program year starts October 1. Now is the perfect time to join.

For information about local 4-H community clubs and SPIN clubs, or to inquire about afterschool or in-school programming, contact Dana Rae Auffert, youth program associate at auffertd@missouri.edu, or Annette Deering, county engagement specialist in 4-H Youth Development serving Nodaway County at deeringa@missouri.edu, or the MU Extension office in Nodaway County at 660.582.8101.