4-H Clubs are still active
February 24, 2021
Adrienne Quiros-Zucca
The 4-H program is still as active, with the organization over one-hundred years strong. Despite COVID, 4-H has been overcoming obstacles throughout the year, participants are trying to stay proactive however they can. Marcia Moreland, chair of the University of Missouri extension, helps the 4-H program connect with experts in certain categories, such as sewing or farming, so that they teach the young members important life skills.
“It’s the sort of skills that stick with you throughout your life,” said Moreland. “The kids learn important things like leadership, or how to farm.”
4-H is currently the largest youth-serving organization in the world, and was formed in 1902 in Clark County, Ohio. It was founded by A.B. Graham, an agricultural extension engineer. 4-H was formed to help children, ages five to 18, and their families gain skills so they could contribute to their community. Since then, the organization has made an impact on families' ever-changing needs. In fact, Missouri studies show that 4-H participants are three to four times more likely to give back to the community, and twice as likely to attend college with their non-4-H peers.
Not only does 4-H give children a brighter future, according to Moreland, but they also partake in projects that teach them important lessons. According to Karla Jeaver, the county engagement specialist in 4-H Youth, the projects include a wide variety, such as aerospace, robotics, woodworking, gardening, livestock, dogs, and cats; the list goes on.
Regarding COVID, Jeaver stated that 4-H has continued to adapt to change in order to protect families from the pandemic. Of course, clubs are still meeting, though participants are recommended to practice and follow CDC guidelines. “Some classes have even gone virtual,” Jeaver said. “There are even a few counties that are doing 4-H at Home, which allows members to use specially made activity kits created by 4-H staff to complete unique projects that can be accomplished within the child's own abode. Primarily, these have been STEM projects and the children have built mini-catapults, straw rockets, and even balloon cars in their own house.”
Despite the obstacles in their way, the 4-H organization is still thriving and teaching our youths the life skills they need, Jeaver concluded.
To get involved in 4-H, contact your local 4-H office through 4-h.org to help your child find the right program and provide meeting locations, time commitment and program details. Costs to enter the program are kept to a minimum and children are not required to wear a uniform.
Adrienne Quiros-Zucca
The 4-H program is still as active, with the organization over one-hundred years strong. Despite COVID, 4-H has been overcoming obstacles throughout the year, participants are trying to stay proactive however they can. Marcia Moreland, chair of the University of Missouri extension, helps the 4-H program connect with experts in certain categories, such as sewing or farming, so that they teach the young members important life skills.
“It’s the sort of skills that stick with you throughout your life,” said Moreland. “The kids learn important things like leadership, or how to farm.”
4-H is currently the largest youth-serving organization in the world, and was formed in 1902 in Clark County, Ohio. It was founded by A.B. Graham, an agricultural extension engineer. 4-H was formed to help children, ages five to 18, and their families gain skills so they could contribute to their community. Since then, the organization has made an impact on families' ever-changing needs. In fact, Missouri studies show that 4-H participants are three to four times more likely to give back to the community, and twice as likely to attend college with their non-4-H peers.
Not only does 4-H give children a brighter future, according to Moreland, but they also partake in projects that teach them important lessons. According to Karla Jeaver, the county engagement specialist in 4-H Youth, the projects include a wide variety, such as aerospace, robotics, woodworking, gardening, livestock, dogs, and cats; the list goes on.
Regarding COVID, Jeaver stated that 4-H has continued to adapt to change in order to protect families from the pandemic. Of course, clubs are still meeting, though participants are recommended to practice and follow CDC guidelines. “Some classes have even gone virtual,” Jeaver said. “There are even a few counties that are doing 4-H at Home, which allows members to use specially made activity kits created by 4-H staff to complete unique projects that can be accomplished within the child's own abode. Primarily, these have been STEM projects and the children have built mini-catapults, straw rockets, and even balloon cars in their own house.”
Despite the obstacles in their way, the 4-H organization is still thriving and teaching our youths the life skills they need, Jeaver concluded.
To get involved in 4-H, contact your local 4-H office through 4-h.org to help your child find the right program and provide meeting locations, time commitment and program details. Costs to enter the program are kept to a minimum and children are not required to wear a uniform.