Shawnee County 4-H. A Word From Your Agent... To Make the Best Better! Dates to Remember: May K-State Research & Extension

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1 May 2016 Dates to Remember: A Word From Your Agent... May 1-Weight In at the Blythe s Farm May 6-King & Queen Applications Due May7-8: Spring Livestock Show May 25 & 27-PQA Training May 28-29: Sn. Co. Horse Show May 30-Office Closed May 31-Discovery Days Visit us on the Web: Candis Meerpohl 4-H Youth Development Agent candism@ksu.edu ext.120 Brooke Gray 4-H Program Assistant begray@ksu.edu ext.112 Kim Seeley 4-H Office Professional kjseeley@ksu.edu ext.111 Hello 4-H Families and Supporters! Our office is humming with activity as we are finalizing summer camp and getting ready to mail out fair books and entry forms! Please be on the lookout for your fair book and entry form in the mail in Mid May. If you have moved make sure you update your address on kansas.4honline.com. We are also sad these days at losing Brooke Gray from the 4-H Program Assistant position. Brooke has been a rock for the 4-H office and all our families these last seven years. She will be missed and we hope to see her smiling face from time to time at 4-H events! We wish her all the best as she finds her next great adventure! Lastly, we are working really hard to get feedback from our 4-H ers and families about our program. We can t make things better unless we get your input. Right now all 4-H clubs are conducting a survey about 4-H and those will be forwarded to the State 4-H office to measure impact. This is a statewide effort that I am proud we are a part of. On May 12 th I will be hosting a listening meeting about what type of group Shawnee County should have for our older 4-H members to be a part of. We now have an Ambassador program but participation in that program is low for a county of our size. I would like to hear from youth what they need from a group to grow their participation in 4-H. When and how often would they like to meet and what would the goals of the group be? Everything is open for discussion. I will have information about what surrounding counties do for their older youth. The meeting will be May 12 th at 7pm in the Extension Meeting Room. Have a great May everyone! ~Candis I want to let everyone know that I have decided to leave my position as the 4-H Program Assistant. May 9th will be my last day in the office. families and volunteers are absolutely wonderful! I have enjoyed working with each and everyone one of you over the last 7 years. has been my home away from home and I am blessed to have been given the opportunity to work with all of you and your wonderful children. I will cherish the memories I have, especially 4-H Camp and Fair. This is a bittersweet moment for me. I am sad to be leaving the Extension Office and all the 4-H families, but am excited for the adventures to come. 4-H will always hold a special place in my heart. Thank you for your continued support of the 4-H program. Sincerely, Brooke Gray 1

2 Mark Your Calendar! May 1 last day to add projects May 2 last day to register for Camp Oz-Some! Spring Livestock Show, May 7th-8th June 8 th Deadline for NE district horse show entries OZ-Some Summer camp are June 4th thru the 7th. Campference, June 24th thru the 27th July 6th, Pullorum Testing for all Fair Poultry! Shawnee County Photo Judging, July 10th, 1-4pm Shawnee County Fashion Revue, July 15th Shawnee County Horse Show, July 16th-17th Shawnee County Fair, July 21st-24th May 7th & 8th Spring Livestock Show Information and Registration forms are located on the Events page of the Shawnee County 4-H website. (Click here for the link) NE District Horse Show Flyer and Forms can be found on the Events Page of the Shawnee County 4-H website. (Click here for the link) Livestock Weigh/Tag-In Bucket calf, goat, sheep, and swine weigh/tag in will be May 1 st from 2-3:30 p.m. at Rodney Blythe s Farm Hackberry Rd. Maple Hill, KS We will be weighing all animals this year. This is the last tag-in date for your bucket calves and market animals. Please make sure if you cannot attend the weigh-in to contact Brooke Gray at begray@ksu.edu before May 1 st so we can set up a time for you to bring your animals in to the office to be tagged. Breeding Sheep and Goats that do not have a current 4-H tag or breed registration papers will need to be tagged in order to be eligible for fair. The cost of tags is $1.50 for a 4-H tag and $3.00 for an EID tag. Please bring exact change or checks. You only need an EID tag if your animals will be showing at the Kansas State Fair or Junior Livestock Show. 2

3 Tractor Safety Training Offered Pottawatomie, Riley, Wabaunsee, and Shawnee Counties June 7th & June 8th Kan Equip, Wamego, Kansas The Annual Tractor Safety Training Course (a.k.a. Hazardous Occupation Training Course or H.O.T.C.) will be held on June 7th from 9:00am to 4:00pm and June 8th from 9:00am to 3:00pm at Kan Equip in Wamego, Kansas. This training is required by law for those 14 and 15 years of age who will be operating a tractor on a farm owned by anyone other than their parent or legal guardian. If your son or daughter may be working for another farmer this summer, or if you plan to have a 14 or 15 year-old working for you this summer, they must pass this course. Any youth 13 and under (even though they should not be working on other farms) or age 16 and above are welcome to attend the class. Items covered in this training include: Tractor and Equipment Safety Working with Livestock Working with Fertilizers and Chemicals Skidsteers and ATV s Silos and Grain bins Electrical Hazards and use of Power Take Off (PTO) Registration and a $30 fee are due by June 1st. This is to cover the cost of the manual and refreshments and meals. Make checks to Pottawatomie 4-H Council and mail to Pottawatomie Extension, P.O. Box 127 Westmoreland, Kansas Please include the name and age of the youth(s) attending. Leroy plans to drive to and from Wamego each day from the Shawnee County Extension Office if your youth needs a ride both ways. Please call the extension office at to make arrangements. 3

4 What Do You Want! On May 12 th at 7pm. There will be a listening meeting about what type of group should have for our older members. We now have an Ambassador program but participation in that program is low for a county of our size. Other counties have Jr. Leader groups, travel groups and combination of Ambassador and leadership groups. I would like to hear from youth what they are looking for and what they would be excited about. Everything is open for discussion. I will have information at the meeting about what surrounding counties do for their older youth. The meeting will be May 12 th at 7pm in the Extension Meeting Room H Camp #4HFUNGROWSHERE Are you ready for campfire, swimming, canoes and camp fun?! Make plans to register in March for H Camp June 4 th -7 th. Our county camps with eight other counties at Rock Spring 4-H Camp just south of Junction City, Ks. Camp is for youth who are currently in 1 st grade through 7 th grade. Camper registration is open March 1- May 2. Rookie Camp for youth currently in 1 st and 2 nd grade is filled on a first come first serve basis. It is a one night two day camping experience. We have two sessions of Rookie Camp this year June 4 th -5 th and June 6 th -7 th. If you would like a particular session make sure to register early! The first session of Rookies will travel to Rock Springs with the big group and need to be picked up by their guardian on the evening of the 5 th. The second session of rookies will need to be brought to camp by their guardian on the 6 th and then will travel back to Shawnee County with the big group. Rookies are not allowed to attend both sessions. Shawnee County provides transportation to and from camp for full time campers and counselors. Camper registration is online this year. Links to the online registration can be found on the 4-H tab of on March 1 st. We are once again using the Camp Doc registration site. If you had a youth go to camp last year you will still be required to update their health information and emergency contacts. Prices for camp this year are as follows: Regular Camp $ Rookie Camp $ Counselor $

5 What Makes My Community Special The Topeka Performing Arts is having a photo contest! Overall theme: My community (what makes my community special) Prizes for the contest will be: 1 st ) Photo displayed inside TPAC for 1 month, certificate, 4 tickets to a performance (TBD by winner) and winning announcement to the media, 2 nd ) Photo displayed inside TPAC for 1 month, certificate, Pair of tickets to one show (TBD by winner) and winning announcement to the media, 3 rd ) Photo displayed inside TPAC for 1 month, certificate and winning announcement to the media. Prizes are awarded for overall (what typically is Grand Champion, Reserve Grand Champion, etc at the fair). Age category winners will receive recognition in the media announcement, certificate and photos displayed for 1 month inside TPAC as well. Please mount the photos according to county fair standards. Contact the 4-H office if you would like more information on how to mount your photo. Print on the back of the mount board your name, age, address and phone number you can be reached at. Please also write a brief description and the location of the photo. You will get your photos back before the July 10th photo judging for the county fair. Age Categories are: 7-9; ; There will be outside judges attending and making the determination on winners. Limit of 3 entries per person. Deadline to drop off at the Extension office is Friday, May 27 at 5pm. Winners will be announced at the First Friday Art Walk event, June 3rd at 7pm in the lobby of the Topeka Performing Arts building located at 214 SE 8th Ave. Topeka, Participants and family are encouraged to be present but will not be disqualified if unable to attend the event. From Project to Profit Have you ever considered turning your 4-H project into a small business? On June 15 th from 1-5pm will be having a workshop on the subject of Entrepreneurism. That s a big word for what it takes to start your own business! The workshop will be from 1-5pm at the Farm Bureau meeting room at 3801 SW Wanamaker. Topics covered will be Turning your Assets into Money, Time Management, The Language of Business and How to Create a Business Plan. You do not need to have a business idea in mind to learn about the entrepreneurship process. The day will be formatted for youth in 6 th -9 th grade. Registration will be $5 and include handouts and a snack. Registration will be on the Shawnee County 4-H website on May 9 th. If you have any questions please Candis at candism@ksu.edu. 5

6 Calling all poultry members The Birds Are Back!!! I am happy to announce at this time we are planning for showing poultry and offering poultry showmanship at the Shawnee County Fair. With that in mind, we will have our pullorum testing clinic available Wednesday, July 6 th from 4pm 7pm, please try to arrive by 6:45pm at the extension office parking lot. Once again, we are lucky enough this year to have this service provided to us at no cost by the State Kansas Department of Agriculture. Please remember that if you are planning on showing your birds during the fair they are required to have pullorum testing done prior to the fair and proof of testing will be asked for during the bird inspections before entering the building. If you do not have the certificate of testing, you will not be allowed to show your bird or use them for showmanship. There will be one change in the process, with the new Animal Disease Traceability rules and the outbreak of HPAI, the rules are being more strictly enforced. A wing band will be placed on either side of the elbow depending somewhat on the size of the bird. The state will be doing this wing banding for all the birds that they tests. This wing band will not replace the need for a leg band, your birds are still required to have a leg band for fair entry. The wing band procedure is something that actually has been in the NPIP requirements for a while, but has not been enforced in the past. The wing band number will also be recorded on the test chart so verification can be looked up at a later time if necessary. If you have any questions regarding the testing, please give me a call. Donna Braden, Shawnee County Poultry Superintendent, CALLING ALL RABBIT 4-H PARTICIPANTS. May is here and a quick reminder that all 4H kids should have possession of your animal(s) by May 1st to show in the July County Fair. All new rabbits and kits need to have a TATTOO in their left ear before County fair. If you are needing a tattoo we can arrange for someone to come to the Bunny Bunch meeting in June or July on the first Monday's of the month. Please do not expect to come to fair and have it done there. Contact Stephanie Magill at or the extension office, if you are needing tattoo's so arrangements can be made to get one to the club meeting. Also, please have your rabbit sexed and breed identified correctly. If you are unsure of your breed we can provide correct pictures to you so that you are able to correctly fill out breed identification for the fair. 6

7 4-H Campference 2016 By Beth Hinshaw 4-H Campference is for youth ages (before January 1, 2016), and will be held June at Rock Springs 4-H Center. Participants will experience the feel of a conference, while enjoying the 'camp' activities Rock Springs 4-H Center has to offer. This is a great transitional opportunity, as these tweens go from being a camper to attending educational conferences. 4-H Campference will feature workshops about opportunities in the 4-H program and how to better interact with others. Participants will meet other youth from around the state of Kansas. Register early as the space will fill on a first come basis, and Campference was full in 2014 and 2015! Register online by May 15 (or earlier it will close when it is full) and payment must be in the local Extension Offices by May 15. Registration and detailed information will be on the State 4-H Website: KSU Horse Judging Camps By Lois Schreiner Dates have been set for the 2016 KSU Horse Judging Camps. The Beginning Section will be held on Tuesday, June 7 and the Advanced Section on Wednesday and Thursday, June 8 and 9. The camps will be held in Weber Hall on the KSU campus. For more information, visit: Please note that the camp registration is due by May 13, 2016 and will be limited to the first 30 participants Kansas State Fair 4-H SpaceTech Changes By Deryl Waldren -For all Divisions - Sources of scientific information must be cited on the front of your exhibit, including all posters and educational display boards. -Computer Systems Physical computers as an exhibit will not be accepted. -Robotics - Weaponry is defined as any instrument, possession or creation, physical and/or electronic that could be used to inflict damage and/or harm to individuals, animal life, and/or property. Remote controlled robots are allowed under certain conditions provided that the robot is not drivable. Remote controlled cars, boats, planes and/or action figures, etc., are not allowed. A robot designed and constructed by two or more 4-H SpaceTech project members which is 7

8 eligible for the Team Robotics Challenge, if entered. The Robotics Challenge is a separate class number and activity for general robotics. -Rockets - Displays should be creative and showcase something specific you have learned in the Rocketry project during the current 4-H year. For example, rockets that have crashed and/or are highly damaged that can t be launched again may be made into an educational display or poster that tell a great story with many lessons learned. For more information, please contact Deryl Waldren, , or dwaldren@ksu.edu Kansas State Fair 4-H Crops Identification Contest Changes By Deryl Waldren Crops Identification Contest: In keeping with National 4-H rules, contestants who have participated in post-high school course work or training for post-high school competition in the subject area of this contest are not eligible to compete. College freshmen who are enrolled in agronomy coursework and/or who are on a collegiate agronomy team of any type are not eligible to participate in the contest. For more information, please contact Deryl Waldren, , or e- mail dwaldren@ksu.edu State 4-H Geology Field Trip The State 4-H Geology Field Trip will be held June 10-12, This year one trip, based in Minneola, will be offered. Participants will collect Cretaceous through Quaternary rocks, minerals and fossils from the Champion Draw area of Kiowa County through the chalk beds of Gove County. The state trip provide excellent opportunities for youth in the Geology project to learn more about the geology of Kansas, interact with trained geologists and geology leaders, go on collecting trips, participate in quiz bowl and judging contest events, and attend workshops. Everyone attending the trips (adults and youth) must register online through C-vent. Detailed information about the trip will be posted on the Geology Field Trip page. Registration opens April 20, The registration deadline is May 22,

9 Kansas 4-H SpaceTech and Cosmosphere Overnight Experiences The Kansas 4-H SpaceTech Program and the Cosmosphere located in Hutchinson will again be teaming up to provide fun, hands-on and science-based programming for Kansas 4-H Youth Development. We are pleased to announce two Cosmosphere overnights in the coming year designed to be an adult-child experience, where 4-H members and adults can interact and learn from these fun and educational experiences. The program will include an overnight experience at the Cosmosphere (bring your own sleeping bag, pillow, towel and toiletry items). The experience is open to 4-H members, parents, grandparents, volunteer 4-H leaders, and KSRE staff. #1 - Space Exploration and the Mars Habitat, Friday, September 30, 6 p.m. start. Cost (to be finalized) will include three meals, and two breaks, and an overnight stay. The program will end on Saturday, October 1, 4 p.m. Topics to be covered include: a tour of the facility, Journey to Space movie, creating a Martian habitat, geocaching items that you will need to live on Mars, robotics design challenge with building an item you will need to survive on Mars, a star observation experience outside (weather permitting), plus much more. #2 Unmanned Aerial Vehicles, Friday, March 31, 6 p.m. start, ending on Saturday, April 1, by 4 p.m. The world of UAVs has opened up the past few months. Drones are everywhere now. They are cheap, fun, and can do so much. Find out what you need to know to be safe and compliant with new Federal Aviation Administration regulations, plus much more. Full details about this overnight in 2017 will be shared in the next few months Kansas 4-H Dog Care and Training Project Changes Periodically the Kansas 4-H Dog Care and Training Project shares changes as they affect 4-H dog shows including the Kansas State Fair 4-H Dog Show. For questions, contact Deryl E. Waldren, or dwaldren@ksu.edu Kansas State Fair 4-H Dog Show fee A $5.00 entry fee per class with a maximum of $30.00 per 4-H member will be due to the Kansas State 4-H Office with all Kansas State Fair 4-H Dog Show entries by August 15, For time constraints at the Kansas State Fair 4-H Dog Show, teams receiving a non-qualifying score may be excused from the ring at the show committee s discretion for long performance times (more than 5 minutes) AND repeated failures at obstacles. 9

10 Shunga Valley 4-H Club Shunga Valley 4-H Club has been very busy this year doing monthly service projects. Our club has collected donations for local food pantries, the Humane Society and back to school supplies; just to name a few. Our club has also visited McCrite Plaza to deliver Valentine s, sing Christmas carols and in May we delivered May Day baskets. The picture is of our club with the final May Day basket. We enjoy helping others. Shawnee Riders 4-H Club The Shawnee Riders met on the 19th for our meeting this April. Our club voted to get shirts for the fair. The club will pay a portion of the cost for the shirts of the 4- Hers. Parents will pay for their own if they would like one. During the meeting, Candis asked the 4-Hers to take a survey that will be used to tell people what 4-H means to its youth. Later in our meeting, Brighton Covel gave a demonstration on how to make UV glowing slime. He mixed glue, Borax, water, and the dye from a yellow highlighter together, to create the slime. He showed us how it glowed as well. Haley Tillery showed us her sewing machine and the quilted pillow she made with it. Our next meeting will be May 17, at the Farm Bureau Building. 4-H Ambassadors This month the ambassadors will be continuing their projects from the previous month. We have gotten a model made for what the lending library will look like courtesy of Robert Shultz and some size dimensions. Almost all of the ambassadors were at farm to you whether it be helping with escorting the second graders to their next station or giving almost forty six minute presentations on the various stations, the ambassadors did a good job. Everyone at farm to you did well with almost universally positive reviews. We will keep you updated as the ambassadors enter the next month. Geology Field Trip 10

11 May 1 Last day to add a project 1 Sheep, Swine, Goat and Bucket Calf Weigh-In 2-3:30 Blythe Farm 2 Bunny Bunch 7:00 p.m., EMR 4 4-H in the Library 4:00-5:00 p.m. 4 Horse Clinic, North Topeka Saddle Club 5 Sport Fishing Club Meeting, 6:00-7:30, CR 6 King & Queen Applications due to the office 7-8 Spring Livestock Show, Livestock Pavilion 10 Extension Council Exec. Board 5:30 p.m., EMR 11 Livestock Committee 7:30 p.m., CR 12 Events Council Exec., 6:15 p.m., CR 17 Sport Fishing Club Meeting 6:00-7:30, EMR 19 Shooting Sports II, 7:00 p.m. EMR 23 Paw Prints 7:00 p.m., EMR 24 Deadline to submit articles to Chatterbox 24 Fairboard 7:00 p.m., EMR 25 Pork Quality Assurance Training, 5:30 p.m., EMR 26 Horse Club, 7:00 p.m., EMR June May 31-June 3 Sewing Camp 2 Exchange 7:00pm, Sn. Co. Farm Bureau H County Camp, Rock Springs 6 Bunny Bunch 7:00 p.m., EMR 7-8 Tractor Safety Class 9-4pm, Kan-Equip in Wamego 8 Livestock Committee, 7:30 p.m., CR 9 Events Council Exec., 6:15 p.m., EMR Events Council Meeting 7:00pm,EMR State Geology Field Trip, Minneola area 14 Extension Council Exec. Board 5:30pm,EMR 15 All other Livestock Nominations Due to the State Office 15 Horse Clinic, Livestock Pavilion 16 Ambassador Mtg. 7:00 p.m., CR 16 Shooting Sports II, 7:00 p.m. EMR Citizen Washington Focus Trip 20 Fair Pre-Entries due by 5:00 p.m Campference 24 7/1 Exchange traveling to Wisconsin 23 Deadline to submit articles to Chatterbox 23 Horse Club, 7:00 p.m., EMR 27 Paw Prints, 7:00 p.m., EMR 28 Fair Board, 7:00 p.m., EMR 27 Pork Quality Assurance Training, 5:30 p.m., EMR H Horse Show, Livestock Pavilion 30 Office Closed/Memorial Day 31- Discovery Days, Manhattan -June 3 All dates and activities are subject to change. 11