The Sussex County RCE/4-H Office will be closed Friday, June 21 to honor Juneteenth.
It’s Time to Prepare for Fair!
All Fair paperwork and record-books are due to the 4-H office this MONDAY, July 1.
4-H Fair paperwork, the 4-H Exhibit Catalogue, and our annual Prepare for Fair Guide can be found in the Forms section of our Sussex County 4-H Website.
4-H Record Book Reminders
Just reminder that you should be working on your 4-H record book though-out the 4-H Project year and at this point some sections should be complete.
At this point you should have completed your:
- Cover
- Goal Setting
- Inventory (if applicable)
Sections that may still be a work in progress but close to being completed are:
- Logging monthly activities
- Finances
- 4-H Story
Logged monthly activities should be including all monthly club meetings attended, special events held separate from club meetings (ie- fundraisers, community service projects), and county or state events such as public presentations, workshops, or a judging event.
Finances should included all the expenses and income associated with a member’s project. ANY money spent on the project during the project year (ie- supplies, animal feed, dues, entry fees) should be recorded in the project financial pages. Or if you made money-income, (ie- sold a project or received prize money) this should be record too.
If there is no income or no expenses for your project, instead of leaving the page completely blank, please indicate “not applicable” or “none”.
Your 4-H Story is your chance to tell us about your project year in your own words. Tell us about what you learned, what skill you worked on, something new you tried, something funny that happened at one meeting, about a 4-H experience that helped you grow as an individual, etc. In short, We don’t expect a short story or a full length novel, but at least a full paragraph or 2 about how 4-H has inspired you and how it has helped you become the person you are today!
Don’t forget to have your parent or guardian and your 4-H club leader sign off on your project book once it is completed!
2024 NJSF®/SCFH 4-H Club Booth Theme
The theme for the 4-H club booth displays for the 2024 NJ State Fair/Sussex County Farm & Horse Show is…Olympics
Since the second week of 2024 Summer Olympics will be occurring at the same time as our fair, let’s share the Olympic spirit and go the gold with our club booth designs.
4-H Club booth judging criteria that are mandatory items to be included is the display of the 4-H clover, the 4-Hs, and the club name prominently displayed.
With the 4-H criteria met, you should then center your 4-H booth around a creative display of this year’s theme. Think of a slogan that goes with the theme and promotes 4-H. Points are awarded for creativity and originality.
Interactive displays are encouraged, but all parts and décor must remain in the booth. Please remember that booths should be a collaborative effort by the whole club. A 4-H booth should let club members display their hard work to the public.
The Club Booth Entry Form is due to the 4-H Office by July 1.
Congrats to Annabel Lee and her puppy Emme of the Love on a Leash 4-H Puppy Club for placing 1st in her class (4-5 month Seeing Eye) and also taking Best of Show in her division (Seeing Eye) at the NJ State 4-H Dog Show held on June 8th at the Somerset Ted Blum 4-H Center
Tables at the Farmer’s Market available to 4-H clubs for fundraising!
Sussex County Farmer’s Market Committee, part of the Sussex County Board of Agriculture would like to invite 4-H groups to have a free table at the Sussex County Farmer’s for fundraising or to showcase their projects, small animals etc.
All sales proceeds must go to the 4-H group itself. The SC Farmers Market is open the 2nd and 4th Saturdays of the months of June, July, September, October and due to the Fair only the fourth Saturday of August.
This is a great public speaking opportunity for the kids, and an all round fun day.
If your 4-H group wants to recruit members, sell items, have a bake sale etc., please contact:
Lori Day
zoomomma@embarqmail.com
973-919-1748.
2024 Learn2Lead-Lead2Serve 4-H Program
This program is open to youth completing grades 7-10 in 2024. This three-day program will be held in person in Monmouth, Middlesex, and Ocean counties with shared hybrid activities and a final day with the group meeting together. It is open to all youth from any county – and you do not need to be in 4-H to attend!
New Jersey 4-H Summer Camps Sign Up – Open Now
Sessions are Selling out!
Registration opens for both:
Our 74th summer at L.G. Cook 4-H Camp, New Jersey 4-H’s overnight summer camp in beautiful Stokes State Forest. Join our caring, tech-free community for a one-week sleepaway session in July or our BIG 18 day session in August … AND …
Our 2nd summer at 4-H Camp at Rutgers Gardens, our brand-new day camp program combining the social-emotional learning of 4-H Camp’s friendly, communal experience with the educational opportunities of Rutgers Gardens.
More details and online registration at nj4hcamp.rutgers.edu! Call 973-948-3550 to reach the Camp Office with any and all questions.
Save the Date for our 4-H Open House
Sunday, September 15
4-H Shotwell Building
We will again be holding our 4-H Open House in conjunction with Sussex County Day. It’s a great opportunity for our amazing 4-H clubs to share all they have to offer and what they do with the people of Sussex County.
Save the Dates
Poetry x Hunger: Poetry Call from Middle and High School Youth
Do you want to help eliminate hunger and poverty through the power of your pen? NJ Arts 4-H is introducing Poetry X Hunger. Join in the Poetry X Hunger project promoted by Expressive Arts 4-H of Rutgers Cooperative Extension. Write a poem that addresses hunger, poverty, and/or food insecurity and submit it to Poetry X Hunger. For more information click
here
. Submit your poem through this link here. Why not present your poem to your clubs and community groups? If you have any questions, contact Ellen Williams, Expressive Arts 4-H Agent at williams@njaes.rutgers.edu.
For more information visit https://nj4h.rutgers.edu/comm/poetryxhunger/
Information and Programs for Our 4-H Leaders
Registration is open for the New Jersey 4-H Volunteer Retreat Weekend – September 27-29, 2024
Register Today! The weekend will be full of fun, learning, and networking at this special event just for NJ 4-H Volunteers. It will be held at the LG Cook 4-H Camp in Branchville! The price is $45 per person for the full weekend and $25 per person for Saturday only. Friday evening will be optional with meet and greet activities and refreshments. Saturday will include workshops, camp activities, a recognition dinner and giveaways. Sunday will include a closing reflection ceremony.
Are you in?! Register here: https://go.rutgers.edu/VolRetreat2024
The first episode of 4-H Volunteer Ventures is available on Spotify and other platforms. The 4-H Volunteer Ventures Facebook page is also available.
The 4-H Volunteer Ventures Podcast examines the fun, but sometimes confusing role of the 4-H volunteer. Each episode will explore a specific aspect or challenge volunteers face ad offer best practices to improve the experience. Join hosts, Kelly and Laura, as they discuss current trends, share resources, and offer tips and tricks learned from their own volunteer experiences.
Spotify link: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/4hvolunteerventures
Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61558574791500
We want to hear from YOU! If you have any suggestions for volunteer-based topics you would like us to address, or something you would like to learn more about as a 4-H volunteer, let us know. We appreciate your input.
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@SussexNJ4H