Holiday Cards and Goody Packages for Our Troops November 6, 2009

The U.S. Postal Service has announced its recommended mailing dates for delivery by Christmas to our U.S. military troops serving overseas at APO/FPO addresses.  Holiday mail for our U.S. troops stationed in Iraq and Afghanistan should be sent by Dec. 4 for arrival by Christmas.

North Carolina National Guard

The NC National Guard Family Readiness Program has shared the following for holiday mailings to our troops.  Along with the holiday mailing information, they have provided 5 military personnel contacts in which the holiday cards and goody boxes can be sent.  All goody packages will be shared with everyone in the units.

CH LTC Phil Glick

HHC, HQS, 30th HBCT

FOB Falcon

APO AE 09361

CH CPT Melissa Hale

HHC, 230^TH BSB, 30^TH HBCT

FOB FALCON

APO AE 09361

CH Thomas Watson

COP Meade, HHB 1-113 FA

APO AE 09361

CH CPT Mike Allen

HHT 1/150th ARS

APO AE 09322

CH Lt. Matt Ward

HHC 12 CAB, 30th HBCT

FOB Mahmudiyah

APO AE 09322

 

North Carolina Army Reserves

Mr. Danny Hill, Family Program Director with the Army Reserves has agreed to mail holiday cards and goody boxes  from his office.  He asks that all cards and packages be sent to him no later than 1 December 2009.  This way his office can sort and package all items being sent.

Mr. Danny R. Hill

Family Program Director

Army Reserve

108th Training Command (IET)

1330 Westover Street

Charlotte, NC 28205

 

For goody box ideas, check out http://www.nc4h.org/military/index.html Then scroll down to Wish List Items for Soldier Care Packages.

Inside the Four H’s November 5, 2009

What is 4-H?

Whether you are a first year 4-H club volunteer or returning for your 50+ year to lead your 4-H club team, you will be asked questions that require you to look inside the 4-H organization. Beyond the 4-H Pledge you recite at every club meeting you will need to share how 4-H is a community of young people across America learning leadership, citizenship and life skills through fun group experiences. Look into the H’s to discover why and how to make a 4-H volunteer difference.

You may be asked by a new member’s parent to share how your club puts into action the 4-H motto “To Make the Best Better” or to explain to a local stakeholder how 4-H is “Making a Difference” in your and your members’ lives.  Here is some information to help you teach and engage your members, their families and the community in learning about the 4-H organization.

What’s inside the four “H’s”?

Head, Heart, Hands and Health serve as a friendly reminder of the 4-H Mission to create positive environments for diverse youth and adults to reach their fullest potential as capable, competent, caring and contributing citizens.

Your 4-H club serves as the primary outlet for developing the life skills and 4-H values centered within each “H”. Your knowledge of the entire 4-H organization’s structure will enable youth to access programs beyond the club and tap into a century of positive youth development experiences from NC Cooperative Extension’s 4-H Program.

What should I know about the 4-H organization?

1. Look inside the 4-H Organization’s Structure to discover your 4-H club’s connection to National 4-H Council, U.S. Department of Agriculture, North Carolina Cooperative Extension Service, and your county commissioners.

2. Understand the Mission, Vision and Values of the National and Ohio 4-H Programs in order to achieve educational and organizational goals to positive youth development.

3. Value the importance of the Eight Key Elements to Positive Youth Development in all 4-H club experiences.

4. Find out North Carolina 4-H History to share with others, whether for a club meeting, a news paper release, a local exhibit or just for personal knowledge.

5. Learn the 4-H Pledge, how to teach the pledge using appropriate hand motions and how to put the pledge to work for your club and members’ personal and team achievements.

6. Recognize the 4-H Motto, Colors, Creed and Emblem and learn how the emblem is protected and its use restricted under Federal law.

www.advisorshandbook.ohio4h.org

6 Ways to Volunteer November 4, 2009

Community Club Advisor
Advise a diverse group of 4-H members, (usually in one geographic area) enrolled in a variety of projects.

Project Club Advisor
Share your skills, talents and special interests in a single project area. For example: clothing, dogs, rabbits, horses, bicycling, computers, woodworking, photography, etc.

Cloverbud Advisor
Lead children, in grades k-2, through hands-on learning activities, as they develop social skills, learn and grow.

School Enrichment Volunteer
Teach a short-term 4-H curriculum to a class (or classes) of school children.

Short Term Volunteer
Teach a special interest program, and/or assist a 4-H group with a special project.

Teen Volunteers
Serve as a teen leader, camp counselor, and/or as a junior fair board member.

www.ohio4h.org

 

Warm Hands, Warm Heart Community Service Project November 2, 2009

On Friday, November 13, at 9:30 am we will be offering a fleece mitten sewing workshop.  Participants will make two pairs of mittens, one to keep (or give as a gift).  The second pair will be donated to First in Families of Southeastern North Carolina, an organization that supports individuals with developmental disabilities and their families. Whether you have sewing experience or not, please join us for this fun community service project.   All materials will be provided; however, if a participant wants mittens of a particular color, he or she should bring a small quantity of fleece (1/4 yard will do).   Registration cost is $3.00.  Please call the 4-H office & register by November 10^th or send an email to blair_wooten@ncsu.edu    Note:  The First Families of Southeastern North Carolina organization also gladly accepts any gently used “teenage” toys:  videos, old game systems or games, old computers. 

Brunswick County 4-Hers fair well at NC State Fair Turkey Show November 2, 2009

Grant Wallace

Turkeys are often the first thing that pops in your mind when you start talking about the Thanksgiving holiday season, and turkeys were definitely on the mind of many youth on Friday, October 23^rd.  However, they weren’t thinking about eating them, they were in the process of showing them.  Over 190 youth gathered at the North Carolina State Fair to show off their top turkey hens they raised while participating in the North Carolina Youth Market Turkey Show Program.  Brunswick County 4-H youth once again rose to the occasion and made a strong showing at the competition.  In the Gobbler division (ages under 9), Kammie Strickland placed 3^rd and Amelia Apple placed 11^th.  In the junior division (ages 9-13), Harrison Nobles placed 3rd, Kaylan Strickland placed 3rd, Elaina Nobles placed 5th, Grant Wallace placed 8th, Angelique Apple placed 12th, and Alexis Apple placed 14^th.  In the senior division (ages 14-18), Elizabeth Mintz placed 3^rd along with Sydney Nobles, whose hen topped the scales at 23.4 pound and won 2^nd place.

This event actually begins in late May when individuals receive their day-old turkey poults that the 4-H agent picks up from North Carolina State University’s poultry facility.  Over the course of 5 months, each youth is responsible for raising 1 to 4 poults.  When October rolls around, they enter their best turkey in the contest in Raleigh.  On the first Friday of the North Carolina State Fair each participant is placed in a class with 15 or less competitors.  Each youth hand shows their own bird and answers questions from the judges.  The overall weight of the turkey, the muscling in the breast and legs, and how well each participant has taken care of their bird are all evaluated. The ribbons & placement money are awarded to each class participant and first place winners in each class compete in an overall class to compete for grand champion.  Visit the state 4-H poultry program website for more information about the Youth Market Turkey show.

Sydney Nobles

Kaylan Stricklan

November Brunswick Buzz Newsletter October 29, 2009

Check out the November Edition of the Brunswick Buzz!

In it you will find information about:

Project Record Workshop

County Council

Centennial Cookbook

Volunteer ACE Training

and more!

It’s time now to submit your 2010 Enrollment and Medical Release Forms! These are due no later than January 1st!!

3rd Annual Sheep & Goat Roundup a Success October 28, 2009

Check out this article from Extension Online News about the 3rd Annual Sheep & Goat Roundup.

Upcoming Master Volunteer ACE Training October 27, 2009

 

Master Volunteer Achievement in Continuing Education (ACE) training will be offered on Saturday/Sunday, November 21-22 (same weekend as state 4-H council conference), in Raleigh.  This training will take place at the State 4-H Office at 512 Brickhaven, with participants lodging at the Ramada Inn, Blue Ridge.

 

We will be offering all core credits for all four levels of the ACE curriculum.  Individuals will be able to select among core requirements based upon their needs for completing levels of achievement.  John Stutts, 4-H volunteer from Wayne County, is helping coordinate the event which is modeled after his program design used to train the state’s largest group of ACE achievers in any county!  This weekend retreat will be an opportunity for volunteers to receive core credits, plus gain 3 contact hours for elective training to be offered during the instruction time.  We have included time on the agenda for individuals to work on completing the needed reflection pages and to leave the training with very little additional work to do in preparation for submitting portfolios for review by the December 1 deadline.

 

Cost for the training retreat is $80 per person. This includes lodging, lunch and dinner on Saturday, breakfast on Sunday, all educational materials and snacks, too!!  What a bargain!!

 

If you wish to participate in the training but will not need overnight lodging, the cost is $50, which does include all meals.

 

WE WILL MAKE THE RESERVATIONS BASED UPON INFORMATION FROM THE REGISTRATION FORMS — DO NOT CALL THE HOTEL DIRECTLY.

Note that our start/end times should coincide fairly closely to the start/end times for the State Council Conference event to make carpooling a good option.  BUT, those who will be attending the ACE training will not be able to travel back and forth between the two as our agenda is full in order to get all of the needed credits offered in this limited time.

Get Your Cookbook Entries In October 23, 2009

Don’t forget to submit your cookbook recipes by October 30th! Send them by mail, fax, or email to the 4-H Office.  Recipes can be submitted by 4-H members, parents, volunteers, and alumni.  Advertisements are also available for sale.

The Centennial Cookbooks must be ordered by late November so that they will be available by the holidays.

Thinking About Joining County Council? October 22, 2009

Now is a great time to be thinking about joining the Brunswick County 4-H Council.  County Council is open to any youth age 13-18.  As the year is ending, the Council will be wrapping up 2009 events and begin planning for 2010.  New officers will be elected during the January meeting.  By joining County Council, you can expect to enhance your leadership skills, feel accepted in a group, learn how to run a meeting, improve decision making and communication skills, and make new friends.  Meetings are held on the 2nd Tuesday of each month at the Cooperative Extension Office in Bolivia.  For more information contact Leslie Kammer, 4-H Program Assistant at 910.253.2610.