Dec.-Jan. 2009-2010
4-H Family Focus Newsletter
Washington Co. Extension Office
2223 250th St.
Washington, Iowa 52353
Phone: (319) 653-4811
FAX: (319) 653-6712
W a s h i n g t o n C o u n t y p r o p e r t y t a x d o l l a r s s u p p o r t t h e
W a s h i n g t o n C o u n t y E x t e n s i o n O f f i c e . T h e s e t a x
d o l l a r s c o m e t o u s t h r o u g h t h e A g r i c u l t u r a l E x t e n s i o n
D i s t r i c t t a x l e v y . T h e e l e c t e d n i n e - m e m b e r E x t e n s i o n
C o u n c i l i s r e s p o n s i b l e f o r t h e s e f u n d s . T h a n k Y o u F o r
Y o u r S u p p o r t !
CWF Registration Due Nov.
27
Pioneer Grant application
due to Extension Office
Dec.
1
4-H & Youth Committee
Mtg.—6:00 p.m.-Ext. Office
Dec.
3
Beef weigh-in - Kalona Sale
Barn 8:30 a.m.
Dec.
19
County Council Meeting-7:00
p.m.-Ext. Office
Dec.
21
Extension Office Closed for
Holidays
Dec.
24-25
Jan.
1
4-H & Youth Committee-6:00
p.m.-Extension Office
Jan.
7
National Western Stock
Show—Denver, CO
Jan.
9-24
County Council Meeting -
7:00 p.m. - Ext. Office
Jan.
25
Hills Bank Leadership Grant Feb.
1
4-H scholarship applications
due
Feb.
1
State 4-H Leader’s Retreat Feb.
26-27
Dates to Remember
Extension programs are available to all without regard to race, color, national origin, religion, sex, age, or disability.
We’ve changed the layout of our newsletter. Pages will be specific by overall topic head-
ings. We hope that this will make it easier to find the information that pertains to you.
However, by reading additional pages you may find something new for yourself to try!!
Newsletter prepared by Kati Peiffer,
4-H/Youth Coordinator
Gene Mohling
Regional Extension Education Director
Highlights of this Edition :
Livestock “Tails”
Weigh-in Dates-Beef, Swine, Sheep & Goats
COOL Reminder
Tentative FSQA Dates
Money, Money, Money
Pioneer Community Improvement Grant
4-H Scholarships & Hills Bank Leadership
4-H Enrollment Assistance
Event Center
Iowa Pork Youth Team
CWF Trip
4-H Day at ISU Women’s Basketball
Volunteering
4-H State Volunteer Retreat
SESS Training
Wellman/Kalona Clover Kids Leader
Volunteers needed
Odds & Ends
New look online for Iowa 4-H
Project Literature
New Multi-Species Building
Club Corner
New County Council Members
Recruitment Contest
Featuring members & clubs
Additional Insert: Beef Weigh-in details
Page 2 4-H Family Focus Newsletter
Livestock Weigh-In Dates
Saturday, March 27th - Derby Swine
weigh-in at the fairgrounds
Saturday, May 8th- Sheep weigh-in
at the fairgrounds
Watch for more details as the time draws
near!
Waiver and Hold Harmless Agreement
If a youth is unable to attend weigh-in day in
Washington County and is not able to attend an-
other counties’ weigh-in day a waiver and Hold
Harmless Agreement needs to be completed. This
authorizes regional weigh/verification staff to
complete verification process for the animal. Even
if a parent brings the animal, this
waiver/agreement needs to signed. These forms
are available at the Extension Office or at
http://www.extension.iastate.edu/4h/projects/li
vestock/LivestockID.htm.
Ak-Sar-Ben & Iowa 4-H Partnership
Ak-Sar-Ben will no longer be partnering with Iowa
4-H to collect DNA samples. At beef, sheep &
goat weigh-in we will continue to collect DNA
samples at that time. Due to Ak-Sar-Ben no longer
partnering with Iowa 4-H, the cost to nominate an
animal will be $5/head. Therefore, if you were to
nominate for State Fair and Ak-Sar-Ben the cost
would be $10/head.
Beef We igh- i n
Sat . , Dec. 19
8 :30 a .m. – 12:30 p .m.
Ka lo na Sa le Barn
( s e e g u i d e l i n e s o n i n s e r t )
COOL Reminder:
As you’re purchasing your livestock for the 2010 fair
remember you need to receive documentation from the
producer as to where the animal(s) were born (country).
Examples of documentation can be: a signed affidavit
from the seller, bill of sale, health papers, or brand
inspection.
For a copy of the affidavit visit the web at:
http://www.extension.iastate.edu/washington/news/cool.
htm
We at the Extension Office do not need to see a copy of
this form. This is strictly information for you, as this is
a USDA requirement.
FSQA Dates:
FSQA dates are tentatively set for Wednes-
day, March 17th and Thursday, April 15th.
All Juniors must attend one of these sessions
in order to exhibit livestock. Intermediates
and Seniors may choose to attend one of
these sessions or may take a test. Watch for
specific information to come.
Page 3 Dec.-Jan. 2009-2010
Pioneer Community
Improvement Grant
Pioneer Hi-Bred International is again
offering a grant to help 4-H clubs get
started on community projects. Grants
range from $25 to $250. If you have
clubs with community improvement
ideas, encourage them to submit an ap-
plication. Information and applications
are available at the Extension Office and
on the web at
www.extension.iastate.edu/4H/PioneerG
rants.html. Applications are due to the
Extension Office by December 1.
4 - H S C H O L A R S H I P S
A V A I L A B L E
M o r e t h a n 1 0 0 s c h o l a r s h i p s a r e
a v a i l a b l e f o r 4 - H ’ e r s a t t e n d i n g
o r p l a n n i n g t o a t t e n d c o l l e g e i n
t h e f a l l . O v e r $ 1 0 0 , 0 0 0 w i l l b e
a w a r d e d r a n g i n g f r o m $ 5 0 0 t o
$ 5 , 0 0 0 . F o r m e r I o w a 4 - H ’ e r s
a n d c u r r e n t 4 - H ’ e r s g r a d u a t i n g
f r o m h i g h s c h o o l a r e e l i g i b l e
a p p l i c a n t s . F o r a d d i t i o n a l
i n f o r m a t i o n o r a n a p p l i c a t i o n ,
c o n t a c t t h e E x t e n s i o n O f f i c e o r
l o o k o n t h e w e b a t
h t t p : / / w w w . e x t e n s i o n . i a s t a t e . e
d u / 4 h / t e e n s / s c h o l a r s h i p s / .
I n c l u d e d o n t h e w e b s i t e i s a l s o
i n f o r m a t i o n a b o u t t h e H i l l s
B a n k L e a d e r s h i p G r a n t
A p p l i c a t i o n s a r e d u e b y
F e b r u a r y 1 , 2 0 1 0 , t o t h e S t a t e
4 –H O f f i c e
College of Ag & Life Sciences
Freshman Scholarships
Freshman students entering the ISU College of Agri-culture and Life Sciences (2010) are eligible to apply for Scholarships for Excellence in Agriculture and Life Sciences. Application deadline is Jan. 15. Information and applications are available at the Extension Office and at http://www.ag.iastate.edu/scholarships/freshman/. Note that applications must be submitted electronically. Hoover Uncommon Student Award
Applications are available for the Herbert Hoover Un-
common Student Award, a $5,000 college scholar-
ship program for juniors enrolled in an Iowa high
school or home school setting. Three scholarships
are awarded annually for study at an accredited two
or four-year college or university anywhere in the
country. The application deadline is March 31st. For
application materials, click on “student award” at
http://hooverassociation.org.
4-H Enrollment Assistance:
The Iowa 4-H Foundation is offering scholarships to those
who may not be able to afford 4-H enrollment fees. If your
family would like to apply for these scholarships contact the
Extension Office. It’s a one page form and you are not
required to give financial information.
Also 4-H’ers who have parents or siblings in the military are
able to have enrollment fees paid by a grant called Opera-
tional Military Kids. Please contact the Extension Office if
you know 4-H’ers who would qualify for this grant.
Page 4 4-H Family Focus Newsletter
Iowa Pork Youth Team
The Iowa Pork Youth Team is open to any youth from 9th
grade through age 20 who has an interest in being involved
in the pork industry. It will provide youth with opportuni-
ties to participate in activities at the Iowa Pork Congress;
Pork Youth Conference held during the summer; Pork 101
workshops; promotional and educational activities at the
local level and at the state level, such as the Iowa State
Fair; along with a PEP (Pork Education & Promotion) program
that rewards youth for their PEP activities.
Additional information can be
found online at
http://www.iowapork.org/
We have two spots open for
any youth in grades 10-12 who
would like to attend the
Washington DC Trip. The bus will leave on
June 11th and return June 19th. The total
cost of the trip is $1100.00, Washington
County will most likely provide financial
assistance. The amount provided will not
be determined until Dec. 16th.
This is a great opportunity to meet new
people, visit our nation’s capital, and have
fun!
If interested in going, contact the Extension
Office immediately.
County Events:
County Council has begun to work on county wide activities to be
held throughout the year. Dates are not set yet, but keep
watching for these fun activities to come:
4-H Family Skating Party-January
4-H New Member Fire-Up!-February
4-H Dodgeball Tournament-March
IJBBA Open Cattle Show-April
Jr. 4-H Y Lock-In-April
In the works:
Region 15 (Washington, Johnson, Iowa & Keokuk Counties) are working to
plan an Int. Trip in Minnesota and Jr. overnight trip for the summer of 2010.
Watch for more specific information to come on these fun opportunities!
ISU Women’s
Basketball
4-H Day at the Iowa State
Women’s Basketball game will be February
27th as they take on Kansas State at 7 p.m..
This would be a great club outing or a family
outing.
Cost is $15, this includes admission, pre-game
tailgate party at the 4-H Building, Cyclone 4-H
t-shirt & $2 donation to the Iowa 4-H Founda-
tion.
To order tickets go to
https://www.extension.iastate.edu/store/ and
enter “4H ISU WBB.” Place shirt order online.
Contact Shelly Greving for more details 515-
294-1607.
Page 5 Dec.-Jan. 2009-2010
4-H State Volunteer Retreat
The annual State 4-H Leader’s Retreat is scheduled for
Friday February 26th and Saturday February 27th, at
DMACC Campus in Ankeny. This event is open to 4-H
volunteers, leaders, intermediate and senior 4-H’ers,
parents, and staff. Cost is $10.00 before Feb. 5th &
$15 till Feb. 12th. Contact the Extension Office for
information or
www.extension.iastate.edu/4H/Volunteers/retreat.htm
SESS Training
March 26-28, 2010 will be the next statewide Safety and Education in Shoot-
ing Sports Leader Training. This will be held at the Iowa 4-H Center. All
attendees must have completed the Iowa 4-H Child Protection Screen Proc-
ess. Packets are available at the Extension Office. The cost for the training
is $135/person before March 5th and $150 after. Registration is required by
March 12th. Registration forms for the training can be picked up at the Ex-
tension Office or on the web at
http://www.extension.iastate.edu/4h/projects/ShootingSports/sessevents.htm.
WANTED……
The Wellman/Kalona Clover Kids
are in need of a Club Leader. This
club was new last year with a to-
tal of 26 members. If you or
someone you know is interested
please contact the Extension Of-
fice immediately at 319/653-4811!!
Santa’s Helpers Needed……
Main Street of Washington is need of helpers for their Annual SNOW events. Helpers
are needed for a variety of jobs from lighting downtown, helping with kids activities, gift
wrapping, and helping with Festival of Trees event. The dates for the helpers range from
Nov. 28th-Dec. 23rd. Contact Amy Vetter, 863-3423 if you are able to volunteer. She is
able to give you more specific information.
A huge thank you to everyone
who helped before, during, and
after the 4-H Award Family Fun Night!
Also thank you to everyone who
attended - 4-H’ers, parents, siblings,
leaders, and visitors. It was a great
evening.
-Kati
'Tis the Season
Need some ideas for the 4-H
enthusiasts on your gift list?
Take a look at the new product lineup
at: http://www.4-hmall.org/
Not only do you get a great gift at a rea-
sonable price, but you also support
Iowa 4-H! Items are also available for
purchase at the Extension Office
WE DID IT……
Last year the Fundraising Committee held a raffle and a
couple other events to raise money for improvements on the
fairgrounds. The new non-livestock shelving was completed
for the 2009 Fair. Efforts continued to raise money to build
a new multi-species livestock barn. Through all the efforts &
support of the raffle over $14,000 was raised. The commit-
tee then applied for a grant through the Washington County
Riverboat Foundation. The committee was awarded the
grant on November 18th! This grant will allow the multi-
species building to be a reality for the 2010 fair. Thank
you to all the supporters, volunteers and the
Washington County Riverboat Foundation!
2010 Washington County Fair
Sun., July 18 – Fri., July 23
Communications Night - Wed., July 14
Non-livestock Judging - Sat., July 17
Livestock Weigh-in & Livestock Judging
Contest - Mon., July 19
4-H Project Literature Notice
First year 4-H members receive their project literature FREE of charge courtesy of the Extension
Council. First year members who indicated they wanted literature by circling it on the enrollment
form will receive it from their 4-H leader. Any other 4-H members needing project literature
should come to the Extension Office to pick it up and pay for it.
Attention Parents:
Parents of 1st and 2nd year members are
encouraged to attend club meetings. A
lot of information is shared at the meet-
ings and can be overwhelming for the
kids.
We are encouraging this to keep everyone
informed and for member retention. We
have found that youth have not
re-enrolled in 4-H due to parents and/or
children being overwhelmed within the
first year.
If you have any questions about any-
thing, please don’t hesitate to contact the
Extension Office, 319-653-4811.
New look online to Iowa 4-H
Iowa 4-H has a new website. Be sure to check
out the look of this new website at
http://www.extension.iastate.edu/4h/. The new website is
user friendly, special features include Project Pages these
pages you give you specific exhibit ideas, community ser-
vice ideas in certain project areas. There is also a 4-H
Network which allows 4-H’ers to connect throughout the
state.
The website has a lot of great information, check it out!!
Page 6 4-H Family Focus Newsletter
The 2009 – 2010 County Council
The following high school 4-Her’s have been selected to
serve their term on the 2009 – 2010 County Council:
Mackenzie Adrian* Allison Schantz
Sarah Altenhofen* Ryan Schneider
Janelle Erwin Ty Sexton
Dillon Flynn* Travis Shelman
Kristen Hora Joel Vittetoe
Kyle Huber* Jordan Vittetoe
Sarah Lenz* AJ Walker
Renee Megchelsen Macy Wright
* Denotes new members
Take time to congratulate these 4-H’ers on their achieve-
ment and look forward to another fun year with county
activities planned by our County Council!
4-H Officer’s Training
We will once again be training 4-H club officers. We hope to utilize the County Council members by having them attend club meetings and work with club officers. More information will be available soon!
Lets Feature YOU & your CLUB
On this page we want to feature all the exciting
activities, experiences, fun moments, achievements
etc. of you or your club. Please send Kati, KPeif-
[email protected], you or your club’s information you
would like to feature!! We know that everyone has
something great going on. Lets share it with the
whole county!!
2009-2010 County Council Members
Invite a friend…..
Don’t forget you have till December 31st to
continue recruiting new members for the
Recruiting Contest. The club that has the
most new members before Dec. 31st will win
a $50 pizza party. Get out there and get
your friends, classmates and family to join
today!!
Page 7 Dec.-Jan. 2009-2010
Leadership Development Program
The Leadership class met on Saturday, November 21st for an all day
training. Those participating were front row: Josie Wagler, Jacqueline
Spenner, Lexi Marek, Shari Temple, Hayley Sieren, Shelly Palmer,
Maggie Van Roekel. Middle Row: Lauren Carter, Logan Moeller, Joni
Erwin, Shawna Sieren, Kayla Romoser, Bridget Nebel, Austin Witt.
Back Row: Austin Knupp, Trent Megchelsen, Zeb Fisher, Matt Ro-
moser, Austin Twinam, Justin Skovgard and Garret Skovgard.
The group had a day full of building leadership skills through a variety
of activities & games. The group will complete two community service
projects throughout the year.
Market Beef Weigh-In
Saturday, December 19, 2009
8:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.
Kalona Sale Barn
Six calves may be weighed in for the county fair and out-of-county events. Last year’s bucket-bottle
calves must also be weighed to be shown in the market beef class for 2010. Returning bucket-bottle
calves are included in the maximum of six head that may be weighed in. Please Note: Any
bucket-bottle calf project shown the previous year, 2009, ID form and weighed in for the
current year (2010) is eligible to be entered in the Market Beef class or the Dairy Steer
class for the 2010 County Fair.
Breeding Heifers do not need to be weighed.
Required information for purebred calves being nominated for Iowa State Fair and/or Ak-Sar-
Ben:
Breed
Sire Name or Sire Registration #
Tattoo
Exhibitor and parent/guardian signature on each animal’s identification material is required. If
the parent or exhibitor is unable to attend the weigh-in, we will need a signed waiver (Extension
will provide the waiver forms at the weigh-in or you may obtain a form prior to December 19).
Required information for purebred calves for county fair ONLY:
Breed
Required information based on breed requirements (see additional sheet with this information)
Signed Affidavit from the producer, verifying this calf could be registered
Tattoos will be checked at county fair weigh-in
Breed Reminder-Steers ONLY
For County Fair ONLY exhibitors are not required to register the steer with the breed association
to show in a purebred class. If not registered with the association, a copy of proper documentation
based on the breed must be brought to weigh-in along with an affidavit signed by the producer veri-
fying that this animal could be registered. Documentation requirements are listed on the back &
the affidavit is included. Need one per animal.
If the above information is not provided at December weigh-in, it will be assumed the calf is a cross-
bred.
Costs: $1.50 per tag for all beef. AGAIN: Washington County will do retinal scanning for those
nominating for the State Fair. Ak-Sar-Ben will require DNA samples for market beef. If exhibitor
nominates beef for State Fair OR Ak-Sar-Ben the cost is $5/head. If an exhibitor nominates for
BOTH State Fair and Ak-Sar-Ben the cost is $10/head. Bring money to pay.
Show up at your own convenience between 8:30 and 11:30 a.m.
4-H LEADERS – Please notify your NEW MEMBERS enrolled in beef project about beef weigh-in day!