4-Her, Perry Grosch, Honored at Awards Luncheon July 31, 2010

Perry Grosch of Brunswick County was honored for his achievements at the annual North Carolina 4-H Scholarship and Awards Reception and Partnership Luncheon recently held in Raleigh during North Carolina 4-H Congress.  Perry, son of Gus Grosch and Jane Kulesza, was recognized at the state-level as the 2010 Forestry and Natural Resources Cumulative Record Gold Winner in the 16-18 year-old division, and awarded a $150 check sponsored by the Fred & Dot Wagoner Forestry Endowment.

Perry was also one of the seventy plus youth that were awarded a North Carolina 4-H Scholarship for 2010.  He received the Southeast District 4-H Development Fund Scholarship that is sponsored by the contributions from retired employees of the NC Cooperative Extension Service, 4-H alumni, and friends of the NC 4-H program.  The $1,000 scholarship will go towards Perry’s freshman year tuition at the College of Wooster in Ohio this fall.   His county 4-H agent, Blair Green, comments, “I am so proud of Perry and his accomplishments.   I have watched him grow tremendously during the last four years and have seen him mature into a concerned and active citizen dedicated to helping others.  Perry truly exemplifies the spirit of 4-H.”

The Scholarship and Awards Reception and Partnership Luncheon celebrates outstanding North Carolina 4-H’ers who have distinguished themselves through their long-term project work, as delegates to national 4-H events, and recognizes those youth who are awarded college scholarships.  This year 4-H honored over 137 4-H’ers and awarded over $66,000 in academic scholarships.  

In addition to celebrating the achievements of 4-H youth, the event brings those young people face-to-face with the partners who make 4-H possible.  Each 4-H’er meets and enjoys lunch with the donor who provided the funds for the scholarship or award provided that day.

“This event highlights the importance of the partnerships between youth and adults,” explained Dr. Michael Martin, Executive Director of the North Carolina 4-H Development Fund.  “It is an opportunity to recognize our outstanding youth who in turn are able to thank the people who helped to make their success possible.”

The annual North Carolina 4-H Scholarship and Awards Reception and Partnership Luncheon was held on Wednesday, July 21, 2010 at the Jane S. McKimmon Center on the NC State Campus in Raleigh.

Brunswick County Youth Honored at State 4-H Congress

A Brunswick County 4-H’er was among award-winners at the recent 2010 State 4-H Congress, held July 19-22 in Raleigh. Congress is the high point of the 4-H year, bringing young people from across the state to the North Carolina State University campus for four days of activity.  At the beginning of summer, youth gather at their 4-H District Activity Day events to give presentations on topics of their choice to a panel of judges.  Winners advance to the state level, where they gathered during the second day of Congress.  On July 20^th, hundreds of youth gathered at Athens Drive High School to give their presentations for the state competition.  4-H youth from Brunswick County that presented included: Bryan Simmons, Justin Simmons, Lydia Lewis, Mary Ellen Lewis, Alexis Apple, and Amber Yurgel.

Justin Simmons, 18, son of Cleve and Sybil Simmons of Supply, won in contests designed to test 4-H’ers’ knowledge of a variety of subjects. His presentation, “Conventional Farming Versus No-Till Farming,” won the gold medal in the age 14-18 division of the Crop Production and Utilization competition, sponsored by the N.C. Corngrowers Association, N.C. Small Grain Growers Association and Syngenta. He received a $50 award.

Justin Simmons, not only was a gold winner in the presentations competition, he competed in the State Horticulture Judging Contest held Monday at Congress, and was part of the evening entertainment on Tuesday where he played the drums and was accompanied on the keyboard by his brother, Bryan.  During the week, he also campaigned for the office of NC 4-H President.  Although he lost the vote by a small margin, Justin maintains his county position as president and serves as the Central Director for the National Junior Horticulture Association.  His leadership skills will still be used as he leads his county into the statewide 4-H “Hungry to Help” initiative and serves as the county representative at the NC Association of County Commissioners Youth Summit in August.

More than 500 4-H’ers, volunteer leaders and North Carolina Cooperative Extension agents attended 4-H Congress.

Summer Fun Keeps Rollin’ On July 28, 2010

A number of 4-H Summer Fun camps have been provided by the Cooperative Extension Service through the months of June and July.  These single day camps are open to all youth age 5-19 and topics range from animal science activities to theatre arts to health and fitness.

Campers learn how volunteers at Carolina Canines help others with service dogs.

"Sight" is explored during a day devoted to learning all about our 5 senses!

4-Hers learned how sailors on the NC Battleship communicated with Morse code.

Fifteen Brunswick County 4-H youth attended Betsy-Jeff Penn 4-H Camp July 27, 2010

Betsy Jeff Penn 4-H Camp 2010

Fifteen Brunswick County 4-H youth attended camp at Betsy-Jeff Penn 4-H Educational Center July 11^th-16^th in Reidsville, North Carolina.  The week began with a cookout on Sunday afternoon, and culminated with fond farewells and hugs on Friday morning.  Packed with activities, new friends and new opportunities, the week seemed to go by way too fast.

Campers had the opportunity to be involved in several activities such as canoeing, wall climbing, horseback riding, crafts, swimming, and archery, just to name a few.  Traditional campers from Brunswick County included Swain Curtain, Eliza Douglass, Aaron Dreyer, Hailey Dreyer, Antonio Grissett, Declan Hall, Maggie Hopper, Lauren Johnson, Teddy Johnson, Makayla Randolph, Chandler (CJ) Schaffler, and Joshua Woodard.

Quincy Randolph participated in the Outdoor Adventure program.  Adventurers camped outdoors for two nights on the camp grounds.  They learned the importance of trust and communication through team building and high ropes course activities.  Adventurers also developed canoeing skills and learned global positioning skills during Geocaching adventures.

Adventures in team building!

Matthew Hampton and Zachary Golliday participated in the Trekker program.  Trekkers spent the first half of the week learning canoeing and rock climbing skills.  During the last half of the week, Trekkers traveled offsite to canoe down the Mayo River, rock climb  and camp at Pilot Mountain State Park.

Leslie Kammer, 4-H Program Assistant, attended the camp with the Brunswick County youth. If you are interested in Betsy-Jeff Penn 4-H Camp, contact Leslie Kammer at 910-253-2610 for  information about attending next year.

Youth Extension Service (YES)

The Youth Extension Service (YES) was created in response to the growing needs of military families for youthdevelopment programming.  This initiative is designed to expand and enrich the efforts of the United States Department of Defense through Joint Family Support Assistance Program (JFSAP) and Yellow Ribbon Reintegration Program (YRRP).  The National Institute of Food and Agriculture, U.S. Department of Agriculture and the  U. S. Department of Defense support this initiative.

YES interns provide youth development programming for military youth while their parents and/or guardians are participating in pre- and/or post-deployment processing.  This goal is accomplished through a cohort of 25 to 30 college-aged students who serve as YES interns for one year while continuing their university studies.  YES interns are recruited from universities across the nation, and are interested in pursuing careers in Extension, community-based organizations, non-profits and/or military family-related support.  Typically, YES interns are rising juniors or seniors in college.  They are selected through a national search, application and interview process.

After their selection as YES interns, they receive high-level training in leadership development, facilitation skills, youth development and curriculum.  As a result of the training and experience, YES interns become highly skilled youth development leaders and facilitators. YES interns are equipped with cutting-edge technology and support to ensure their success.  Each YES staff intern is required to select a related research project to complete during his/her year of service.  YES interns will work with a professional who will serve as a mentor throughout their yearlong service.  The topic is approved by the YES program director and efforts will be made to assist YES interns so that they may receive college credit for their projects.  YES interns are prime candidates for future employment in the public sector.

Throughout their year of service, YES interns are deployed in teams to different states to provide youth development programming and support for military children and youth.  This need is especially critical during adult-focused events and activities for military personnel, spouses, significant others and other appropriate family members.  YES intern teams are scheduled for a location for two to three days (usually a weekend) depending upon the programming needs and audience size at that particular location.   The youth development programs offered at the site are based on the ages, interests and duration of the program for the youth participants.

YES interns receive a stipend and the program covers all expenditures incurred related to the YES initiative.  This national program is housed at NC State University in the Department of 4-H Youth Development and Family & Consumer Sciences.  If you have questions regarding this program, please feel free to contact Dr. Marshall Stewart at marshall_stewart@ncsu.edu.

Extension programs and employment are available to all without discrimination. Evidence of noncompliance may be reported through your local Extension office. This material is based upon work supported by the National Institute of Food and Agriculture, U.S. Department of Agriculture, and the U. S. Department of Defense under Award No. 2009-48667-05833. Developed in partnership with [lead university] and [other universities, alphabetically listed].  Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed herein are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the view of the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Join Indo Jax Surf School in their Ocean Cure fundraiser “Pennies 4 Pins” July 26, 2010

What is Pennies 4 Pins?  Pennies 4 Pins is the upcoming Ocean Cure fundraising event to be held on Sunday, September 19th. This bowling fundraising event will feature teams of bowlers bowling for pledges to raise money for Ocean Cure and their extensive charity surf camp schedule.  Our August 15th newsletter kicking off this fundraising event will announce the teams and players that will be seeking your support.
 
As most of you know Ocean Cure is our non-profit charity dedicated to providing surf camps for children facing a broad range of challenges: difficult home lives, visual impairment, Type 1 Diabetes, Autism, AIDS and Cerebral Palsy, to name a few. Ocean Cure also partners with other charities such as Boys and Girls Club, Life Rolls On and Surfer’s Healing, as well assisting at retreats for the Wounded Warriors Project for veterans transitioning into civilian life after suffering physical and emotional combat injuries.
 
With an ambitious 2010 schedule of 18 outreach events, budgeted at over $50,000, fundraising is critical to the continued success of Ocean Cure. We at Indo Jax and Ocean Cure are committed to the completion of this year’s schedule and look to our Pennies 4 Pins event to help finish out he 2010 season and roll into 2011.
 
 So, stayed tuned for our August 15th newsletter for more information on Pennies 4 Pins and how you can help us keep these wonderful Ocean Cure charity surf camps going!  Or, for more information now, please visit www.pennies4pins.com!

Go To Bat for 4-H and help National 4-H win $25,000! July 23, 2010

Help us win big!  Play the State Farm® Go To Bat for Charity Game. All you have to do to play is visit the State Farm Site and pick “Human Services” as your charity category, then pick “National 4-H Council” as your charity. Follow the instructions to sign up then Go To Bat & hit some home runs to win points (entries) for you and 4-H.  Here’s how you and National 4-H Council can win:

• Every person that signs up and selects “National 4-H Council” earns Council 1 point.
• When you play the homerun derby, you have a chance to hit 10 homeruns. Each homerun counts as a point.
• You can play once a day and every week one person will be randomly selected to win a trip for 2 to the World Series or a Cash Prize! The more home runs you hit, the more entries in the weekly drawing.
• The charity with the most points will win $25,000! The promotion ends when the baseball season ends (9-26-2010), so hurry up & swing for the fences & win for you and Council!

The State Farm site has all the details so visit them today & start playing. Make sure you forward this email to your friends so we can let everybody know about this great opportunity.