az CLOVER CRIER Camp Registration Available Summer Fair and Contest Dates

Transcription

1 az CLOVER CRIER A NEWSLETTER FOR CASS COUNTY 4-H FAMILIES Courthouse, 102 E. Wall St., Harrisonville, MO (816) FAX: (816) torberts@missouri.edu Camp Registration Available 4-H camp applications are NOW available. Camp will be held June at Camp Bob White near Warrensburg, MO. There is only one session of camp this year and I think it will fill up fast so get your applications in soon. Camp is for youth ages 8-12 that are enrolled in the 4-H program. Camp applications can be obtained from the 4-H Web site or by calling the Extension Office. Be sure to have members who attended last year talk about camp at your upcoming club meetings. This year s theme is Celebrate 4-H. Camp is limited to the first 100 kids from all 5 participating counties that apply, camp cost is $ Summer Fair and Contest Dates As you plan upcoming vacations and trips this summer remember the following dates: In Pleasant Hill July 17 - Speaking and Demo Contest and Fashion Review July 18-4-H Council Meeting July 19 - Entry Day July 22 - Project Pick Up In Harrisonville July 27 Dairy and Dairy Goat Show and Steer Set Up July 28 Steer Show July 30 Rabbit, Dog, & Poultry Show and Goat, Sheep, & Swine Set Up July 31 Goat and Sheep Show August 1 Swine Show August 2 Livestock Auction Inside This Issue: Volume XX, Issue 8 April 2012 Family Fun Activities 2 General News 2-3 Community Service News 3 Older Member News 3-4 Volunteer News 4 Fair News 4 Project News 4-6 Clubs Reports 7 Project Meeting Dates 8 Calendar of Events 9 Project on Wheels Flyer 10 University of Missouri Extension does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, religion, age, disability, or status as a Vietnam-era veteran in employment or programs. Other Dates May 5 Open Horse Fun Show June 23 Open 4-H / FFA Horse Show July 26 July 29 State Horse Show Aug 9 19 Missouri State Fair August 18 4-H Shooting Sports Contest August 25 Open Horse Fun Show August 25 State 4-H Trap Shoot Clover September Crier State 4-H Shooting Sports Contest 1

2 Family Fun Activities Join Us in the Following Countywide Activities June Worlds of Fun The 4-H club will be sponsoring a trip to Worlds of Fun on June 6 th. A ticket order forms with bus pricing and ticket information will be in the MAY CLOVER CRIER. The plan is to meet at the Justice Center at 9 am to coordinate rides. We will leave Worlds of Fun at 5 pm with plans to arrive home around 6 pm. Families do not need to ride with the group, which means you can arrive later or leave later if you wish. The cost for a group rate ticket is $27.00 but they MUST be ordered in advance. Orders will be available in late April and must be placed with the Extension Office by May 11 th. Bus information will be available in the next newsletter. Project on Wheels - Again this year the 4-H Council will sponsor the Project on Wheels Community Service Project. Members are asked to make item for elderly that the 4-H Council will put in baskets. Items should be in the Extension Office on or before April 27 th. If you need ideas please call Sarah and she will help you. Perishable food items should be brought in as close to April 27 th as possible. Monetary donations and baskets are also suggests donation items. General News Summer Reading Program Needs Volunteers Do you have a talent, craft, or performance that could be part of the Libraries Summer Reading program? This year s theme is Dream Big so a lot of different programs and ideas will fit into this theme. If you have something you could do at the library this summer please let Sarah know and she will connect you with the appropriate people. Purple Up for Military Kids April marks the nation s Month of the Military Child, a time to honor youth impacted by deployment. In celebration, New Hampshire Operation: Military Kids (OMK), part of the 4-H Youth Development program of UNH Cooperative Extension, is inviting OMK programs across the country to join in the 2 nd annual Purple Up! For Military Kids. 2 We are encouraging everyone across the state of Missouri to wear purple on Friday, April 13, as a visible way to show support and thank military children for their strength and sacrifices. Purple is the color that symbolizes all branches of the military, as it is the combination of Army green, Coast Guard blue, Air Force blue, Marine red and Navy blue. OMK hopes everyone will take this opportunity to appreciate and celebrate these young heroes. Mark Your Calendars Paper Clover Sales at Tractor Supply Co. The spring 4-H Tractor Supply Company/Del s Paper Clover promotion will be May 2-13, 2012! This fall, 4-H in-store participation of the Paper Clover fundraiser helped to make it the most successful in its history. Clubs please think about doing an event at Tractor Supply Company during the Paper Clover sales period to help others learn about the opportunities in 4-H. Having a presence in the store might also help to increase sales. Please contact Sarah if your club would like to plan an event and she will get you in touch with the right people. Food Stands Available Are you looking for a club fundraiser? Volunteers will be taken on a first come basis for the following food stand opportunities. July 29 Dairy Show August 2 Sheep/Goat Show August 3 Swine Show Buy Missouri 4-H Merchandise Online The Missouri 4-H Foundation and Treetop Enterprises announce the opening of the Missouri 4-H Merchandise Store Online. The Merchandise Store is an outstanding resource for a wide variety of University of Missouri Extension 4-H apparel, promotional items and gifts to meet the needs of the 4-H community and the general public. Treetop Enterprises, Inc. and the Missouri 4-H Foundation will give back to the communities that purchase 4-H products through this website. Five percent of total quarterly purchases will be distributed by the Missouri 4-H Foundation to support Missouri 4-H in the counties that place orders. The store offers lots of great apparel and products and will be expanding rapidly. Please check back often for new products. The site can be viewed at missouri4hstore.com

3 Citizenship Opportunity The Harrisonville Police Department would like to invite you to join them on Saturday, April 21, They will remember and honor the lives of two local officers killed in the line of duty, Donald Marler and Frank Wirt, as well as one civilian, Orville Allen, marking 40 years since their passing. The Missouri Department of Conservation is offering free tree seedlings to 4-Hers participating in this project, but it s on a first come first served basis. If out of the free seedling there are other sources available. For additional information about the 4-H Million Trees project see our Missouri web page: Community Service News 2012 No MOre Trash! BASH The 2012 No MOre Trash! Bash is com-ing in April. Join thousands of volunteers to clean up Missouri and celebrate 10 years of No MOre Trash! and 25 years of Adopt-A-Highway. During April, conduct a litter pickup or educational event to raise awareness of the importance of reducing litter. Report your activity and get recognized for your efforts with a lapel pin and entered into a drawing for one of seven No MOre Trash! prize packs. Report your activity at: by May 15. Million Tree Challenge Do your part in helping reach the one million tree goal. Plant one tree or plant many. Missouri 4-H members, families, clubs, special interest groups are encouraged to assist with the greening of the environment and to participate in the national 4-H Million Trees project. After 3 years, the record shows that 51 Missouri 4-Hers, families or clubs have planted 7,435 trees. But only 1,000 of that total was reported as planted last year. Let s put our Hands to service and add a couple of thousand additional trees this year. Spring is tree-planting time. Some special dates you might want to observe by planting trees include: Missouri Arbor Day on April 6, National Arbor Day on April 27 and National Earth Day on April 22. Be sure to report what you plant. If you haven t reported your tree planting on the national website, be sure to do so. Go to Click on the Join Us button sign up and report. Check out the Missouri listing and map on the Participants page. 3 Community Improvement Grants Available Developing a thriving rural Missouri is important to FCS Financial. The Shaping Rural Missouri grant program offers Missouri 4-H and FFA organizations $250 grants to implement projects that will benefit their rural communities and youth development. Funds will be awarded to assist club or chapter members in bringing positive change by establishing projects that make their local communities better places to live. FCS Financial encourages applicants to collaborate with other community organizations to develop and complete their improvement project. Applications are due April 15, An application and more information on the Shaping Rural Missouri grant program can be found at Older Member News MCIA The Capitol This summer, you are invited to come and learn how your government works.from the inside! This event will put you in the action as you train with state legislators; local, state and federal office holders; legal staff and journalists to take on their roles and even have the opportunity to solve issues surrounding a state disaster.. This isn t just another spectator sport this is Missouri Citizenship In Action! If you prefer to learn about government by listening to lecture, this event is definitely not for you. Cast yourself in an exciting new role, with the experts as your guide, and learn what it takes at MCIA! MCIA is June in Jefferson City and is for youth who have completed at least 8 th grade. Registration is $90 for a quad room or $145 for a double room and is due May 5th. Scholarships are available and must be postmarked by April 13 th. For more information, visit:

4 Public Speaking Academy The 4-H Public Speaking Academy is preparing for its second year! Extension staff, along with former 4-H volunteers and college professors, will provide educational workshops to help youth build their skills and comfort with public speaking. Participants will be guided through the basics and finer points of writing and delivering a speech. Youth will receive individual assistance. The camp is open to all youth years of age interested in learning more about public speaking. The Academy will be held June 19-20, 2012 and registration is due May 15. Lodging will be provided on the campus of Central Methodist University in Fayette, MO, with activities that include swimming. For more information, contact Patty Fisher at fisherp@missouri.edu or or Kathy Bondy at bondyk@missouri.edu or and be sure to download the brochure on the Missouri 4- H page at 4h.missouri.edu/go/events/publicspeaking/. On-Line Volunteer Training Option All new leaders must attend a volunteer orientation. We will have a few face to face trainings in the upcoming months but even easier you can do your training online. To take the course online go to erorientation/index.html A welcome screen appears and will guide you through the course. If you do not have access to the internet you can also check out a CD Rom from the Extension Office to take the Volunteer Orientation. Discover the Clover Volunteer Forum You give your time and commitment directly from the Heart! For our wonderful volunteers, we offer a conference designed especially for you. Come, experience, learn, refresh, and meet others who give so much to the 4 H program. Cape Girardeau, Missouri - May 5, 2012 Springfield, Missouri - May 19, 2012 Chillicothe, Missouri - September 29, 2012 St. Louis, Missouri - November 3, 2012 Volunteer News 4 Agenda and registration form are available on the Missouri 4 H website at rclover/ Fair News Speaking and Demonstration Contest The Public Speaking Contest will be held on Tuesday, July 17, 2011 at the Memorial Building in Pleasant Hill. In order to follow along with what is being done at a state level we will again have all the state speaking categories. Demonstration topics will continue to follow State Fair rules, and some contests have opportunities for cash prizes or national competitions. Look for a complete list in next month s newsletter. Speaking contest topics will include Prepared Speaking, Extemporaneous Speaking, Public Service Announcement, Technology Assisted Speaking, Dramatic Interpretation, Pantomime Interpretation, and Humorous Interpretation. For specific rules for each category please check out the following link: ries.htm Project News Show-Me Wares at the Missouri State Fair The 6th Annual Show Me 4 H Wares at the State Fair program will be accepting applications May 1 July 1, 2012 for young entrepreneurs to sell their 4 H products and services at the Missouri State Fair on August 9, 10, 11, or 12, (Applications will be available on the 4 H website, and require a signature of county 4 H staff.) Show Me 4 H Wares applications require a thorough description of the product or service being sold, a recommendation of the youth written by an unrelated adult, and approval by the 4 H youth staff from the county. Up to 16 youth exhibitors and/or teams will be selected to sell during the 4 days. Applications due July 1 st.

5 Attention Project Leaders If you are willing to be or would like more information on being a countywide leader please contact Sarah at We are always looking for more projects to add to the list! Please send your countywide project meeting dates to the Extension Office by the 23 rd of each month so that they can be part of the monthly newsletter. DAIRY Dairy Cow Camp Missouri 4-H Dairy Camp is scheduled for May 29-31, Participants ages will be guided through the basics and finer points of fitting dairy cattle. Deadline for application is April 13. Enrollment is limited to the first 40 complete registrations (including registration fee) so register soon! More information can be found on the Missouri 4-H website at 4h.missouri.edu/events/livestock/#camp. HORSE Fun Show May 5 This year we will be having a Fun Show Two copies of the show bill were included with your horse packet. Please hang them up and share them with friends. If you need additional copies please contact the Extension Office. Also if you would like to pre-fill your entry blanks check out the forms section of the 4-H website for blank forms. Dates Set Thank you so much to ALL of the leaders and members who came to the Horse Committee meeting this past week. We had a lot of business, but I feel we made some great decisions and are headed in a good directions. Horse Project members please mark your calendars for the following dates: May 1 st Horse Paperwork is Due May 5 th Fun Show, North Park (rain date May 20 th ) May 25 th Horse Shirt Forms Due June 23 rd 4-H Show (open to other counties, no pre-registration required) July 5 th County Show Rain Date August 25 th County Fun Show LIVESTOCK Beef Project Meetings The next project meeting will be held on April 12 at 7:00 pm at the Bartholomew home. Make you re your accounts have been set up (login name and password) with the Masters of Beef Advocacy program. We will be doing lesson 1. You need to bring a laptop or let Tammy know and a laptop can be provided. We will have a Fitting and Showing Seminar on May 5 from 6:00-8:00 pm at the Bartholomew Farm. At this meeting we will also discuss homework that needs to be done before the show. CCJLA Meeting The next meeting for CCJLA will be held on April 23, 2012 on the third floor of the Courthouse. Please contact David Hoffman or Megan Richner with agenda items. Sheep, Goat, and Swine Weigh-In Weigh-in for smaller species will be held on May 12 th from 8-10 am at North Park. Please be there on time and ready to go. Please contact David if you have a conflict or questions. Swine who have ear notches will not be required to be tagged at weigh-in. Pigs without any identification will receive tags. Swine DNA Cards New Price DNA cards for the state fair are now $3. DNA cards are required for all individual Market Barrows entered for state fair youth division competition. Market Barrows must have been owned solely by the youth exhibitor by May 1, A DNA Sample Card must be mailed to the Missouri State Fair, postmarked by May 15, 2012, and also must be received in the state fair entry department within 10 days following May 15th for each Market Barrow entered. We do not keep DNA in stock in our office. If you want them it is your responsibility to get them. 5

6 Goat and Sheep Camp The North-Central Missouri 4H Goat and Sheep Camp will be held Saturday, April 21, 2012 from 7:30 a.m. 4:30 p.m. at Lincoln University Carver Farm, Jefferson City. The cost is $15 per registration. Sessions will be offered for adults and youth covering a variety of topics including marketing, foot care, ethics, feeding, animal selection, health, and vaccinations. Upon completion of the workshop the youth will have earned their SMQA certification. To register or gain more information please contact Charlotte Clifford-Rathert, Lincoln University Cooperative Extension and Research, at or clifford-rathertc@lincolnu.edu. Goats for Sale 4-H Family Alumni the Bagby family has project goats for sale. For more information check out ml Jackpot Show in Henry County The Henry County 4-H program would like you to join them at the Henry County Livestock Sale Committee MYSPC Sanctioned Preview Show on June 9, The show will include steers, market heifers, pigs, lambs, and meat goats. For more information check out H/Jackpot2012%20(3).pdf. PHOTOGRAPHY New Photography Fair Guidelines The photography guidelines have been changed to reflect the three basic requirements, eliminating the helpful hints and instructional content that several felt was long and confusing. The updated guidelines for State Fair exhibits (now only 1 page in length!) may be found at delines.pdf. POULTRY Poultry Day 2012 Birds of a Feather Join 4-H poultry project members from all over the state at Poultry Day on June 9, Learn about showmanship and health and try your skills at judging. New for this year, learn about photography! Entries are due May 4! Find the registration form at 4h.missouri.edu/events/livestock/#poultry. Project Update The next Poultry meeting will be April 21 at the Missouri State Poultry Association Show in Sedalia, MO. Show time is 8am-4pm. A huge thank you to Dr. Michael Koch, from Koch- Stigge Veterinary Clinic, for providing the Poultry Project with valuable health/husbandry info for our birds at our last meeting! SHOOTING SPORTS Hunting and Outdoor Skills The next Hunting and Outdoor Skills project meeting will be on Saturday April 14th 9:00-11:00am at Ray Lawler s house, 812 N Kurzweil Rd, Raymore, which is 1.3 miles north of J Highway and 58 Highway (J Highway ends at 58 and Kurzweil continues north). The meeting will be in the workshop building north of the house. Park on the circle drive in front of the house or the driveway next to the workshop. Call Ray at or at ray@lawlergear.com if you have questions. Fundraiser Planned The 4-H program will be taking part in a joint fund-raising opportunity with the Friends of the NRA. 4-H Shooting Sports in Missouri could benefit by as much as $100,000 and 75% of the profits for calendars sold here in will come directly back to our county program. It involves selling calendars for $50 each. This sounds like a lot, but purchasers of the calendar are then eligible for 104 firearm give-a-ways during the calendar year. Twice a week, a drawing will be held and someone will win a firearm. This will be repeated for a full year 52 weeks. Winners remain in the pot and could win more than 1 gun. Calendars will be available AT THE EXTENION OFFICE ON March 19 th and will be sold until to May 15 th. The calendar is a July-July calendar, which means the first drawing will happen in July. More information will soon be posted to the Missouri 4-H Shooting Sports web page 6

7 Club Reports 4-H Council The County Council meeting was held March 20 th at the Courthouse. Clubs are reminded to continue collecting non-perishable food items because the food drive ends at the end of this month. At the meeting we voted on themes for the banquet on October 13 th, the theme that won was Fiesta. Good job to all who went or helped out at the Regional Energizer. Events to look forward to are Worlds of Fun on June 6 th from 9 to 5, 4-H Camp, and State Congress. The next County Council meeting will be May 15 th, 7:00 pm at the Courthouse. -Austin Moreland, Reporter Dusters The Dusters 4-H Club met on Sunday, March 11, 2012 at the Lake Lotawana Sportsmen s Club. Discussion will continue at our April meeting about buying a new dry fire system for our club. It was passed to pay for four rounds of shooting for club members who worked the BVI concessions at least one hour a month. We will decide at our April meeting whether to stay with buying four rounds or paying for three rounds, due to the need to purchase the new dry fire system. The cost of rounds have increased to $4.50 from $3.50. We will clean out the flower beds at LLSC at our April meeting, weather permitting. Bring work gloves. Shooting sports calendar fundraiser starts March 19 th. The fundraiser will end May 15 th. The Dusters next meeting will be Sunday, April 15, 2012 at 2:30 at LLSC, change in date due to Easter Sunday. -Reporter, Hunter Kelley Dusty Trails The Dusty Trails 4-H club had their monthly meeting on March 27, 2012 at 6:00 in the First Baptist Church of Peculiar. While we were there we talked about all of the fund-raising ideas that we saw and learned about at the fundraiser fair. We talked about selling World s Finest or name brand chocolate, some lunchbox/ bags, some LED light up signs for your car or desk, or maybe even just holding off on the fundraisers until next fall. On a different note, we collected the food that we gathered for our food drive, and we gave all of our Easter basket supplies to the Semler Family. We will have a short meeting at the Semler home on April 6th at 12:30 to put the Easter baskets together and deliver them to Hope Haven for community service. We also had the people who went to Harvesters on the 17th talk about how it went and they said it was great. For our next meeting please remember that we moved it to April 12, 2012 at 6:00 at the First Baptist Church of Peculiar. -Reporter, Ashly Weight Lucky Clovers The Lucky Clovers met on March 1st at the Community Building. We started off the meeting with a Pinata swing to celebrate Bradley Jones' birthday. The month's activities are: Food Drive at Walmart, March 17th, 8:30-5:00, (contact Jeanne to sign up for a time slot), Spring Clean-up and Highway Trash pickup, April 28th, 8:00, (bring garden tools, gloves), Clover Kids, March 23, 6:00, Community Building, Poultry, March 11, 3:00, North Park, see for all Horse dates. Jeanne Kanzler will continue work on 4-H sign to put up at the entrance to town. Valerie Jones will have information available for 4-H shirts at the April meeting. The Sonic Fundraiser will be August 4th, from 9:45-5:00. We need ALL MEMBERS and PARENTS to make this event a success. Please reserve this date on your calendars now! The was reviewed. Our next meeting will be April 5th at the Community Building. Thank you! -Bradley Jones, Reporter Raymore The Raymore 4-H club met at St. Paul's Episcopal Church on March 6th. We decorated a collection box for the food drive as our community service this month. Stephanie White and Geana Snart both gave wonderful demonstrations. Don't forget to bring $10 for our new club t-shirts next month, April 3rd! See you there! -Megan Dominik, Reporter 7

8 Project Meetings -Listed in alphabetical order by project- Project Date Time Location Contact Info.22 Pistol.22 Rifle Air Pistol Air Rifle Archery Beef Dog Care Hunting and Outdoor Skills Leadership Muzzeloading Photography Poultry Public Speaking Rabbits Sportfishing Shotgun Small Engines April 15 May 20 April 7 and 21 March 5 and 19 April 22 May 6 April 15 May 6 and 20 April 15 May 6 and 20 April 12 May 5 April 9 May 14 6 pm 5 pm Hoenshell Home Monica Hoenshell Schrock Home Wayne Schrock :00 pm Hoenshell Home Monica Hoenshell pm North Park Scott White :30 6 pm North Park Dan Olsen pm 6-8 pm Bartholomew Farm Tammy Bartholomew pm North Park Sarah Thompson April Lawler Home David Rush April 17 7 pm Courthouse Sarah Torbert April 10 and 24 May 8 and 22 April 10 or 14 May 8 or 12 April 21 May pm Hoenshell Home Lawrence Holder :30-8 pm 2 3:30 pm Courthouse Jim Braswell Sedalia Tiffiny Johnston April 27 7 pm FCS Financial Cheryl Crudup April pm North Park Amy Endecott April Moreland Home Matt Moreland April 1, 15, and 22 1 pm May 6 May 20 1 pm Please call to schedule a meeting time Lake Lotawana Hoenshell Home Keith DeBrot Jeff Torbert

9 1-Power Play, 2-7 pm -Shotgun, 1-4 pm, LL 2-4-H Day with the Cardinal Registration Due Rifle, 9 am, Schrock Home 8 9-Dog, 7pm, NP 10-Muzzleloaing, 11-Sarah Gone 12-Sarah Gone 13-Sarah Gone 14-Photography, 5 pm, Hoenshells -Photography, 6:30 pm, Courthouse -Beef Project Meeting, 7 pm, Bartholomew Home -Camp Counselor Applications Due -Dairy Cow Camp Applications Due - Purple Up for Military Kids 2pm, Courthouse -Sportfishing, 9-11, Moreland Home -Hunting and Outdoor Skills, 9-11, Lawler Home 15-County Improvement Grant Applications Due -Air Rifle, 2pm, NP -Archery, 4:30 pm, NP -.22 Pistol, 6 pm -Shotgun, 1-4 pm, LL 22-Shotgun, 1-4 pm, LL -Rabbits 2-4 pm, NP -Air Pistol, 5 pm, Hoenshell Home Leadership, 7 pm, Courthouse 23- Information Due -CCJLA Meeting, 7 pm, Courthouse 24-Muzzleloaing, 5 pm, Hoenshells Sarah Gone 20-Sarah Gone 21-Camp Counselor Project on Wheels Items Due -Public Speaking, 7pm, FCS Training -Poultry Project Meeting, Sedalia -Sheep and Goat Camp, Jefferson City -Rifle, 9 am, Schrock Home P 30 APRIL 6-Shotgun, 1-4 pm, LL -Air Rifle, 2pm, NP -Archery, 4:30 pm, NP 1-Horse Enrollment 2-PAPER CLOVER Forms Due 7 8-Muzzleloaing, 5 pm, Hoenshells -Photography, 6:30 pm, Courthouse -Office Closed SALES START AT TSC 3 4-Poultry Day Registration Due Worlds of Fun Registration Due 5- Horse Fun Show -MCIA Apps Due -Beef Project Meeting 6-8 pm -Rifle, 9 am, Schrock Home 12-Photography, 2pm, Courthouse -Sheep, Goat, and Swine Weigh-In, 8-10, NP 13-PAPER CLOVER SALES END AT TSC -Poultry Project Meeting, 3 pm, NP 14-Dog, 7pm, NP 15-Public Speaking Applications Due -4-H Council, 7pm, Courthouse - DNA Cards Due Discover the Clover, Springfield -Rifle, 9 am, Schrock Home 20-Air Rifle, 2pm, NP -Archery, 4:30 pm, NP -Horse Show Rain Date -Shotgun, 1-4 pm, Hoenshell -.22 Pistol, 5 pm Muzzleloaing, 5 pm, Hoenshells Office Closed 29-Dairy Cow Camp 23- Information Due 30-State 4-H Congress -Dairy Cow Camp Horse Shirt Forms Due 31-State 4-H Congress -Dairy Cow Camp 26 MAY

10 Get Ready For the Fair! 4-H Council Community Service Project Project on Wheels You may be thinking the Fair and the Junior Livestock Show are months away. But as I am sure you know from past experience, events like the fair sneak up on you before you know it. Once again we will be participating in a community service project to help you prepare for the fair. The project is called Project on Wheels. I know it sounds confusing, but it is similar to the all familiar Meals on Wheels program. We are asking that project leaders focus the next few months on making projects that can be given to elderly and shut-ins (people who are unable to get out of their homes because of age or illness). We will collect items at the end of April. Examples of things that can be made are canned foods, cookies, bars, blankets, potholders, Christmas ornaments, home decor items, paintings and drawings, stationary, woodworking items and so forth. I realize that some of your projects don t normally create these kinds of items, but we are asking that at one project meeting you focus on making something that can be used in this project. For many of you, this will serve as a great practice round for the fair. Besides these items, we will also need baskets. So if you have some at home or want to donate some, it would be greatly appreciated. Projects that can t come up with something to make can purchase baskets or other items to put in the baskets. Items need to be brought to the Extension Office before April 27 th so we can get together and stuff baskets to deliver. If you are bringing food items, please be sure to bring them on or around April 27 th so they do no spoil. The 4-H Council hopes that you enjoy helping others with this creative idea. If you have any questions, please talk to a 4-H Council officer, your club representatives or call Sarah at the Extension Office.