Chisago County 4-H Bi-Weekly News

Happy Friday!

I would like to remind everyone to re-enroll in 4-H Online and pay dues for the 2023-2024 year! Please see the following link for help, if needed:

• https://docs.google.com/document/d/1QF9641ZSv1CblNAknlhWNqpMxBjJb5B_mje4FXTEscA/edit?usp=sharing

I hope you all have been enjoying your February, it seems hard to believe we're already halfway through the month! I want to direct you to an excellent resource included in the newsletter that may help it be a bit more digestible and less overwhelming. On the left side of the screen, you'll find the table of contents. Simply browse the topics listed and click on one you'd like to know more info about and it will bring you directly there. This will mitigate the amount of info you have to sift through to find any info you are looking for!

Reminder: The Extension Office will be closed Monday, February 19 in observance of the Presidents' Day holiday. Normal hours will resume on Tuesday, February 20.

Have a great weekend!

Josiah

As always if you need help please contact the office. Our hours are M-F 8-4:30 pm*. Please call to make sure someone is in the office to help you, at times our schedules lead us out of the office.

*NOTE: Josiah is only in office Monday-Wednesday. He can still be reached by email (colex300@umn.edu) on Thursday and Friday.

We follow closures and cancellations of schools. For all county-wide events, we will cancel in the event that one or more schools closes early, closes for the day or calls off after school activities.

Cancellation and rescheduling decisions will be communicated to our 4-H members and volunteers through sending a mass email and text message (only to those who have ok’d it in 4honline) to all members and volunteers using 4honline. In addition, notes will be posted on our Facebook page and in this article below.

When canceling an event that will be attended by only a small number of people, in addition to sending an email and text, we will make calls to those who have pre-registered.

We will try to make cancellation and rescheduling decisions as soon as possible for all events, but no later than 12 p.m. (if possible) on the day of the event for a weeknight meeting/event and the work day prior to an event for weekend events.

Most importantly, use your best judgment. If you feel it is unsafe to travel, please do not do so.

Are you curious about the learning opportunities for livestock-related topics that are available in our county? Do you have species-specific questions for your animal? Maybe you have questions regarding the show for your livestock species at the county fair? Or possibly, you want to get involved in a livestock project and don't know where to start!

Look no further than our new 2024 Livestock Calendar! Here you can find more information on upcoming events and contact information for each livestock species. As events are approaching, they will be added to the newsletter with more information, so keep an eye out for those!

Chisago Air Rifle/Pistol registration is open. Spring classes are Saturdays 9-11 am March 16, 23, 30 April 6, 13 in Almelund.

Air Rifle/Pistol is for grade 6 and up after taking either 4H BB classes or having a firearms safety certificate.

Fee covers all equipment. Coaches are certified. The venue is not heated. Places are limited and youth must be 4H members.

Please come and participate in our February Horse project meeting being held on February 20, 7:00 pm at the Chisago County Community Center in North Branch. We will be doing some horse learning and fun activities and remember, by attending meetings you earn points towards our new project incentive program introduced at the January meeting! We put together the Chisago County Horse Project Incentive Program, to continue to encourage and support the projects goals of project participation, learning and fun around horses!

Horse Drill Team is ramping up, our first practice and commitment meeting will be on Sunday, February 25, 3:00-4:00 at Kost Church, so if you are interested in joining the team, please plan on attending the first practice and connect with me at the project meeting.

Hope to see you at the project meeting, please like our Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100067097543276, lots of horse project information is shared on this page. Contact Christina Fasbender at christinafasbender@gmail.com with specific horse project questions.

• Date: February 24, 2024
• Location: Immanuel Lutheran Church in Almelund
• Time: 9:30 AM to 3 PM
• Registration Deadline: February 16, 2024 (Need waist and hip measurements for pattern provided with reg.)
• Limit: 12 4-Hers
• Cost: $20
• Supplies Needed: Sewing Machine and Manual (If need machine, let office know), Sewing Basket with Scissors, Pins, measuring tape, etc. Fabric will be provided unless you want to bring your own. (Need 100% woven cotton and let committee know)

Pizza lunch and snacks are included. Come ready to have some fun and bring your positive attitude!!!! There will be prizes. Any questions, call Gwen at 651-674-8568 or Ann at 651-583-3320.

Parents and grandparents are always welcome, just let us know you are coming, so we can plan the numbers for lunch. Cloverbuds you will need to have an adult with you to do this project.

Contact the office to register!

Information for pick-up has been given to each club leader. ONE person/family will be picking up all orders for their club and individual orders will be dispersed at a secondary location and time. For information regarding your club's dispersal, contact your club leader!

Join us for this learning opportunity from a Purina Nutritionist as we focus on dairy and meat goats' nutritional needs, how they are similar, and how they are different! Learn about what dairy goats need more or less of to make the best milk, what do they need for the most milk. What do meat goats need to grow faster or slower to manage growth. We will also talk about crossing over to other animals. Things like if we are feeding the same feed to our dairy goats and dairy cows should we add something to one or the other to offer a more complete diet.

• Wednesday, February 28
• 6:00 pm - 8:00 pm
• Chisago County Community Center
• Pizza provided!

Please RSVP to the office to help with the pizza order and if you have dietary concerns.

Join us on the following date for a fun, wood pallet project! Contact the 4-H office to register!

March 21st

• Hat Rack
• $35

This training session on March 23 is for adult volunteers who work with cloverbud (K-2) youth or for volunteers who would like to establish programming for cloverbuds. This training is open to volunteers from Isanti, Chisago, Sherburne, and Anoka Counties. Chisago has a LARGE number of Cloverbuds enrolled and this is an excellent opportunity to build some background and explore resources to use for Cloverbud-specific programming!

Cost: free

• Free coffee and breakfast bar is provided.

• This training will run simultaneously with our Project workshop day event.

Register in 4-H Online by March 15th, 2024. If you are not a screened volunteer but would like to attend the training please follow the steps to become a volunteer here and email Cora (rostx034@umn.edu) to let her know you plan on attending. Space is limited.

Schedule:

8:30 a.m. Check in & Breakfast Bar

8:45 a.m. Training Begins

9:45 a.m. Reflection and Q&A

10 a.m. Training Ends

It’s FREE tree time! Chisago County 4-H is partnering with Neighborhood Forest to provide free trees for 4-Hers to plant during Earth Week. Parents/guardians, sign your 4-Her up for a free tree by March 15th! Trees are set to arrive in time for Earth Day 2024. More information regarding when you can come and pick up your tree will come in the coming months! #EarthDay2024

Sign up using this link: https://www.neighborhoodforest.org/parent-registration/?school=65428

Want to learn about or show an animal, but you don't own one? Take advantage of the 4-H animal leasing program!

You'll gain valuable hands-on experience managing and showing animals, and you'll learn from caring adults.

Visit https://extension.umn.edu/4-h-projects/leasing-animal for more information!

When it comes to providing your child with a life-changing experience, there’s nothing quite like 4‑H summer camp. Camp provides the full benefits of a 4‑H experience coupled with the fun and wonder of camping in the great outdoors.

Try something new at a wonderful overnight 4-H summer camp, East Central 4-H Camp! Experience all of the fun that comes along with a resident camp, with a 4-H hands-on learning twist! East Central 4-H Camp is a fun overnight summer residence camp for 4-H’ers brought to you by Isanti, Chisago, Mille Lacs, Sherburne, Carver, and Scott counties and available to all youth.

• Who: Open to 4-H members, grades 3 to 8. (Grade completed in May 2024)

• Location: Timber Bay Camp & Retreat Center (18955 Woodland Rd, Onamia, MN 56359)

• Date: June 24-26, 2024

• Cost: $190/ camper until April 15th, $200 from April 15th to June 1st

• Additional Details: Registration closes on June 1st, 2024

• Registration: Register on 4-H Online

• Contact: colex300@umn.edu or 651-277-0151

Are you or someone you know a registered nurse looking for a fun summer opportunity? Consider volunteering at East Central Camp as our camp nurse! East Central Camp will take place on June 24-26 at Timber Bay Camp & Retreat Center, 18955 Woodland Road, Onamia, MN.

If interested, or if you have any questions contact the Chisago County Extension Office for more information!

Looking for something to do this winter/spring? Check out the document below!

Slither into the winter with us as we learn about Minnesota's three little lizards, get to know the state reptile and dig deeper into the secret world of amazing amphibians and roaming reptiles!

Join us from your hibernation spot in your home on Thursday evenings from 6:45 to 7:45 p.m. on the following dates:

• Feb. 29
  
• March 7
• March 14
• April 4
• April 18

Audience: Youth in grades K-13

Cost: Free

Registration: Register in 4-H Online.

Come toss around some flour with us as we create a variety of breads that you can enjoy on their own or partner up with pastas, chilis, and soups, including Minnesota's famous wild rice soup! You might find a dessert bread to add as a treat! We'll learn about the mysterious chemical reactions that are part of making these bountiful breads. This series will bring lots of hands-on learning, and you won't be able to keep your hands off the dough!

Sessions will be held virtually from 5:45 - 6:45 p.m. on the following Tuesdays: Feb. 27; March 5, 12, 19; April 2, 16.

For youth in grades K-13. There are no deadlines for this series.

Learn more and register.

Discover how gravity influences plant growth and observe roots in action! Join us for an exciting winter series of 4-H Science Sprouts. This opportunity is open to youth in grades 3+ who are interested in plants and science. Online sessions will take place Feb. 26 and March 25 from 5 to 5:30 p.m. Throughout this series, we'll explore how gravity affects plant life and delve into the fascinating world of root growth. We'll cover agronomy and horticulture topics tailored to the season using STEM. While there's no cost for the program, we'll share a list of optional supplies for those who want to try hands-on experiments at home. We'll send the list out a week before each gathering. Let's explore the wonders of science together in this engaging winter series!

Learn more and register.

Have you ever looked out your window and wondered about the animals that share the same environment as you do? How do they stay warm in the winter? Why do some of our winged friends fly south when the weather changes and some hang around? Discover the wonderful world of wildlife around you with Wildlife Wednesdays! Join us, virtually, as we explore and uncover the fascinating lives of the wildlife.

Sessions are held virtually on Wednesdays from 7 pm - 8pm on the following dates: February 21, 28 ; March 6, 13, 20, 27; April 3, 10, 17 and 24

For more information: https://z.umn.edu/WildlifeWednesdaysWinter2024

This training is for youth treasurers and any adults on the bank accounts. The 1-hour training will cover best practices and policies, roles of the financial team, the importance of youth treasurers, how to make their roles meaningful, and preparing for chartering.

Training will take place March 7 from 7 to 8 p.m.

Register.

Calling youth in grades K-3!! Join the Green Superhero of Science and engage in fun weekly experiments that spark curiosity and discovery. Create moon dough (a bio-plastic), explore green chemistry and make a foaming fizzy, engineer materials to build a super soaker, solve a plastic litter mystery and create an art sculpture, and more!

Each youth will receive a kit of materials in the mail before class. Each experiment includes a lesson plan and “How To” recorded video to guide youth in doing the “at home” experiment before a weekly interactive “LIVE” Superheroes gathering. Youth will “show and tell” what they explored, tested, and discovered! Our 4-H Teen Superheros will lead these sharing sessions.

Online sessions will take place on Tuesdays, April 9, 16, 23 and 30 from 6:30 - 7:00 p.m. Our April 30 meeting will be longer, 6:30-7:15 pm.

Visit MN 4-H for detailed information: https://z.umn.edu/MN4HGSOSSpring2024

Do you have some basic knowledge of video creation and editing, but want to bring your videos to the next level? Then you need to join this Zoom video class!! Designed for youth in 8th grade & older who already have a baseline knowledge of video creation and editing, this online program will dive deep into creating the videos that you always dreamed you could make! In this class, you will create a video on a theme with the guidance of a professional instructor!

Deadline to register is March 13, 2024

z.umn.edu/NextLevelVideo

Are you looking for a rabbit judging experience before your county fair? Do you need to purchase a rabbit for showing before the May 15 deadline? Need your rabbit tattooed or are you in the market for rabbit supplies?

Mark your calendars for Sunday, April 28 and attend this annual event. Registration begins at 10:30 a.m. and judging begins at 11:30 a.m. Cost is $ 3 per rabbit entered.

• Ribbons and medallions awarded
• Food stand on site
• Door prizes and silent auction offered

This show has lots to offer! For more information or questions, contact the Douglas County Extension office at 320-762-3890 or mnext-douglas@umn.edu.

Ambassador Meeting:

• First Monday of the Month
• 6:00 pm
• Chisago County Community Center

Management Board:

• First Monday of the Month
• Immediately following Ambassadors Meeting, ~7:00 pm
• Chisago County Community Center

Fair Board Meetings:

• 4th Monday of the Month
• 7:00 pm
• Chisago County Fairgrounds/Chisago Lake Town Hall

Livestock Committee:

• 4th Tuesday of the Month
• 6:30 pm
• Chisago County Community Center

• February 16 - LQA & E
  
• February 16-17 - B-BOP
• February 20 - Horse Project Meeting
• February 24 - Sewing Workshop
• February 24 - Cheese Pickup
• February 26 - Fairboard Meeting
• February 28 - Goat Nutrition Workshop
• March 4 - Ambassador/MGMT Board Meeting
• March 15 - Free Tree Deadline
• March 21 - Industrial Tech Workshop
• March 23 - Cloverbud Training

1. Read the newsletter!
2. Links to calendar: https://calendar.google.com/calendar/u/0/r/week? tab=rc,

• https://extension.umn.edu/local/chisago/events?local_program=3416

1. Chisago County 4-H Website: https://extension.umn.edu/local/chisago

Email: colex300@umn.edu
Website: https://extension.umn.edu/local/chisago
Location: 38814 Third Avenue, North Branch, MN, 55056
Phone: 651-277-0150
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/chisago4H

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/chisagocounty.4h/

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