Never Say Impossible!

A quote by Audrey Hepburn really explains how I have been involved during March. “Nothing is impossible, the word itself says I’m possible.” The month started with a face-to-face meeting with team building activities that bond me closer to my fellow team members. Some of the activities were taking what I knew about myself and digging deeper into something greater. We shared an unbelievable amount of items with the team that helped us to understand where we were all coming from.

I am proud to say that 3 of the 5 weekends in March were filled with 4-H events. I represented the team along side Sarah and Danny at Clinton County’s teen retreat. Here is where we engaged the youth in team building activities as well as spreading the news about events on the state level. A big point we tried to overlay was that we are always looking for State Council applicants. The application is on the Penn State 4-H site under State Council. If you have any questions you can contact any of us as council members, or you county extension educators. It’s an amazing opportunity!

In my home county we are celebrating the 100th Birthday of 4-H with a big event. To make the event a huge success a group of 4-Hers around the county as well as adult leaders has formed a committee. I serve on the committee and am helping to plan the early fall get together. We had our first meeting in March where we tossed around ideas as to what we want the event to be. I think we are well on our way to having a day of fun and excitement!

My next big adventure was rocking out the Leadership positions with Montgomery County 4-H. I actually just got home from a day of learning with this county. Here the teens learned how to be an effective communicator and leader in their clubs as officers.

It may have been a packed month of 4-H events, but during each event the team became stronger and more ready to tackle each future event. April will be filled with preparations for Capital Days. Hope to see you all there!

With something to think about,

Ashley Mohn

State Council Secretary

“Imagination is everything. It is the preview of life’s coming attractions.”

Cow washing in Bradford County

There are some people who ask their kid to go out to wash their cars during the spring, but here in Bradford County they send their kids out to wash heifers. Yes, it’s a cow wash! The cow wash is on the Thursday before our annual Calf and Heifer sale on Saturday. On Thursday people who have donated heifers for the sale bring them in, and it is our job to wash them up and make them look good for the sale. Other 4-H kids and I help to wash the heifers. We usually get at least 60 cows, and all day it’s a repetition; unload them, tie them to the wash rack, wash them, and then put them in a nice bedded spot. After they are in the bedded area it is someone’s job to scoop up any poop so the heifers don’t lay in it and need another wash.

The next day the cows are spot washed, unless they got really dirty over night. They are then clipped up so that they look good for the buyers the day of the sale. I don’t usually go on this day, because I am busy at home preparing some goodies for the food booth for the auction. The food booth is run by the County Council of our county. I am happily in the food booth all day during the sale. We are sometimes hard pressed for volunteers in the booth because there are 4-H members helping out in the live auction holding items up for the bidders to see. The 4-Hers that helped during the previous days of the sale also get to lead their choice of a heifer around in the ring to present. The food booth workers create a system so it runs smoothly and the food is given to the customers quickly, even if we don’t have a lot of helpers. Sometimes it is better with a smaller amount so that we don’t run into each other in the booth… which has happened before, and we have learned from it.

This year the Calf and Heifer sale is the day before Easter, April 7th. I hope that the weather decides to warm up a bit during our cow washing, so the poor girls don’t get too cold! As mentioned a little bit earlier included in the sale we have a live and silent auction filled with items that 4-H Volunteers have asked local businesses to donate, or have made themselves. In the silent auction the items are ones that each club from our county has donated, usually they consist of baskets, like a picnic basket, hunting basket, toys basket, and so on. Each club gets to come up with their own idea and bring at least one basket to the sale. The live auction and silent auction proceeds go to the funding for our 4-H building at the fair to keep it running and get the bills paid.

I’m looking forward to it again this year, because it is always a good time... even if it is in cold weather! It will be a little bit tricky for some of us with Easter the next day, but will still be very enjoyable. Spending time with friends and supporting 4-H as a team is some of my favorite things to do on a Saturday.

Enjoy your Easter weekend!

Danielle Knapp

Reporter

Everyday We Learn Something New!

Every day we learn something new, whether it is a random
fact or a life lesson. So I decided to share some of the things that I have
learned this past month through 4-H.
1: Everyone should color. Coloring brings out the kid in us.
2: I need to get a GPS because I don’t pay attention to road
names well enough.
3: Ashley and I both like romantic movies
4: The 4th H was originally Hustle in 1911 but in
1912 it was changed to Heart.
5: For long road trips a couple of good CDs with sing-able
songs are needed.
6: Every county does 4-H differently
7: It isn’t hard as we think to teach a workshop. (As long
as you are prepared ahead of time.)
8: Sometimes it’s good to change tradition.
9: You can never be too prepared.
10: Every group of friends needs a techy.
These are just a couple of the random things I
learned. I encourage you to think about what you have learned this past month. It
is crazy the things we pick and carry with us the rest of our lives.

Springtime

March 21 began the official first day of spring, and we have had some crazy weather to kick spring off. Even though the weather has been a little rough that hasn't stopped the regular happenings of spring to go on. This month I visited several places some were close ,and some far away. On the second through the fourth I attended the Southwest Teen Leader Retreat, where Liz Mcandrew and I taught a class on the leadership ladder. We also had a council face to face in which we did several team building opportunities. I also attended th Penn State Dubios reception, where I toured campus. Now I wont be lost when i start down there this fall.

Another thing that happened this month is my boss found out that he has the early stages of cancer, I ask that you keep him in your prayers. He is an awesome guy and is more of a grandpa to me than a boss.

March was a thoughroly enjoyable month, all the 4h steer kids have their projects and have started to walk them. Everyone is in full swing to start the year. I wish all the livestock kids a good year for their projects , and I hope everyone will take advantage of our good weather. Thanks and Good Luck. This is your council VP of Internal Affairs and Sentinel


Garrett J. Richardson

Piglets and calves

This past month was another busy one down here in my neck of the woods. My farm has had a busy month, from adding on to our farrowing, haveing litters of pigs, school, oh and of course working. I get the privlage not only to work on my farm with sheep, hogs, and donkeys but also to work at a local dairy farm. The cool part about my job is I have learned so much about dairy and the many aspects of that industry, but also some of the simplest things that everyone should know. I have learned enough at both farms to realize that i truely do want to work with livestock and farming the rest of my life!

At my place I have learned stuff such as how to artifically insemenate a sow or gilt, how to properly give shots, ear notch piglets,catch ewes and sows/gilts when their in heat, judge for proper quality in my livestock and also how to love what I am doing. The dairy farm however has taught me how to appreciate being able to grow up on a farm. I have only been working there for 3 monthes now and I'm already doing things that the other kids working there had to wait a lot longer to do. My boss has taken the time to show me how to artifically insemenate a cow, which is so much different then a pig, they've showen me how to give pills to calves and even how to properly feed a newborn calf. I have come to the conclusion tho had it not been for 4-H I probably would have wanted to quit this new job by now. 4-H has taught me to take every new opportunity given and make the best out of it. I mean heck I'm the only girl that works at the farm and yet i can show up some of the guys when it comes to driving some of the equipment, or getting a calf that won't drink to drink.

Hope to see alot of you at Capital Days here in April!

What an exciting month!......

February was a very action pack month for my side of the state. We began the month with the anticipated yet dreaded appearance of Punxy Phil, a groundhog that looks for his shadow to determine whether or not we will have six more weeks of winter or if it will be an early spring. Yeah, we're crazy ,but the youth in the area don't seem to mind. They get two whole days of school off.
The week after that, love was in the air, emotions were high, and many men (including me) were actually shopping. Feb. 14 and that whole week was very pleasant, not only because of the occasion, but also the weather. At the end of that week my county had their Leader's Symposium. I was asked to represent council ,and give a presentation on our county, regional, state, and national events. The first night of the Symposium I didn't have to be there, but I went anyway. Halfway through the night, when we came down to the last two presenters, my extension agent ,Carol Schurman, came to me and asked if I could speak in her workshop. I agreed, thinking I could look over her materials and speak on her subject. About the time I began to search through her notes, she came up to me and asked me to pick a random card from the dreaded, green impromptu cards. My mind was spazzing out thinking "Impromptu, she meant impromptu speech!!" I slowly pull a card, I read it, the subject " To you what does pledging your heart to greater Loyalty mean?" It is not a hard hard question to talk on, until you actually start trying to think what your are going to say. Mind you this is two minutes before she started her presentation. Three minutes into her speech she starts introducing me ,and I do not even have the first sentence in my head. I take my place at the head of the room and start. " How many of you know what the 4H pledge truly means?...." after that my words spewed a motivational speech about What the 4-H pledge meant to me with an emphasis on Heart. I ended took my seat as the audience judged my skills. I collected papers and  to my delight my three minute impromptu speech got no lower than a score of 95. Talk about an ego booster. The weekend couldn't have gotten better ,or could it have? I did my presentation on the events ,and as I was handing out my council business card, a lady who listened to my impromptu speech and attended my workshop, came to me and asked if I would come be a motivational speaker at their county's round-up.

As I said February was an action packed month. I will be speaking at several round-ups ,because of my involvement with the state council. It taught me the speaking skills, and I am really now looking for a way to give back. Until Next month this is your Council Vice President of Internal Affairs and Sentinel. Garrett Richardson.