Green & Growing
The annual Winter Project Fair is upon us! This event is a great opportunity for 4-H members to explore project opportunities or for new families that are interested in joining 4-H. Lots of 4-H project displays and activities will keep participants engaged. Invite your friends to explore what 4-H has to offer!
What: Winter Project Fair
Date: Saturday, February 15, 2025
Time: 11:00am - 1:00pm
Where: Nationwide and Ohio Farm Bureau 4-H Center
Parking: Free parking is available in the Bill Davis Baseball Stadium parking lot with the parking permit on your dash. Print it now or get one at the event and take it out to your car.
Food concessions will be available and provided by Far East 4-H Club.
The 2025 Franklin County 4-H Walk & Serve will be held on Saturday, April 12. Mark your calendars and invite all of your family and friends!
- Area 4-H clubs adopt a local non-profit organization.
- The club members learn about that organization, how it serves the community, and how they can help meet some of those needs.
- The clubs purchase and prepare all of the supplies needed to make/assemble a cool project to be completed at the event by the public that comes to the event.
- Example: Carousel Riders 4-H Club partners with the American Cancer Society. They purchase supplies to dye silk scarves. Then at the event, the club members help the public create colorful silk scarves to be given to patients with cancer.
- Grant funds are available to help clubs purchase supplies.
All Franklin County 4-H Clubs are encouraged to consider working with a non-profit organization and participating in the Walk & Serve this year. Contact Amy Fleshman with questions or to get your club started at amy1peter3.4@gmail.com
Clubs Already Committed to the 2025 Walk & Serve
Blue Ribbon Connection - YMCA Van Buren (hygeine kits)
Carousel Riders - American Cancer Society (dying silk scarves)
Change the World - Possibly YWCA (sewing bags and adding items to be determined)
Clever Clovers - NNEMAP Food Pantry & Worthington Resource Pantry (birthday bags)
Fantastic Futures - Ovarian Cancer Alliance (project undetermined)
Far East - Simply Living (project undetermined)
FC Shooting Sports - Veterans Food Bank (meal bags)
Great Expectations - MASH Pantry (food and/or hygiene bags)
Grove City Clover Crew - Moms2B (stuffed toys)
Let's Get Better Together - Star House (toiletry bags)
Lucky Clovers - A Kid Again (making cards and crafts for "Courageous Care Kits")
Whetstone 4-H'ers - Clintonville Beechwold Resource Center (decorating placemats)
* More clubs and projects needed - reach out if you have questions!
*Participating clubs are asked to provide 100 (or more) giveaway items for the Clover 5K runner bags. Examples of giveaway items include: lip balm, nutrition bars, small packs of healthy snacks, pens, etc. Clubs are encouraged to get these giveaways from local businesses that can donate their branded items as advertising.
*Gift cards to any local retailer or restaurant are needed for 5K awards that day. Any donation of gift cards are greatly appreciated.
Get your walking shoes ready. The annual walk/run has been a valuable fundraiser for the Franklin County 4-H program and we're excited to announce its return for 2025! The Clover 5K will be held the morning of the Walk & Serve on April 12.
New this year! 4-H families will receive a $10 off their Clover 5K registrations! Contact your club's volunteer advisor to get your coupon code for $10 off each registration. If you can't get your coupon code from your club advisor, contact the Extension Office.
NOTE: Individuals using a coupon code who are not a member of a current 4-H member or volunteer's household will have their registration canceled after verification.
Register today for the low price of only $20 (or $10 with the coupon code).
The official Walk & Serve / Clover 5K event shirt can be purchased separately at check out.
This year, Franklin County 4-H will not be holding an officer training event. The 4-H Council discussed it, and decided that there wasn't enough participation to go through the required effort to prepare for the event. Club officers are encouraged to check out the many online resources to learn about their particular office. There are many informative videos and resource guides for each office at this website: https://ohio4h.org/officerresources
If club volunteers would like a officer pins and certificates, please contact Beth boomershine.10@osu.edu or Rachel stoneburner.31@osu.edu and they would be happy to put a packet together for your club.
This is your place to connect to the entire collection of Ohio 4-H project books for the year. When choosing a project, consider your interests, background, what is necessary to start the project, and the resources available to help you complete it. Start looking for your 2025 projects now! Family guides will soon be mailed to all families who participated in 4-H last year, or you can download the Family Guide now at https://ohio4h.org/projectguide
Do you know what you need to do in order to complete your project? Make sure you check out the Franklin County 4-H Project Requirement Guide HERE. The project requirement guides explain what is required to complete each project.
EquiSTEP - Equine Safety, Training, and Education
EquiSTEP is an annual statewide requirement for all youth participating in Ohio 4-H Horse Program activities. EquiSTEP replaces the statewide requirement of reading the Horses, Safety, and You (191R) resource and viewing the Every Time, Every Ride and Horses, Kids, and Ethics videos for youth and their families who are new to the 4-H horse program. The EquiSTEP curriculum focuses on helmet safety, equine safety & handling, equine health & nutrition, and sportsmanship and is designed to rotate topics every year. The topics for the EquiSTEP program are shared below and will rotate as the member completes the course annually.
STEP 1: Head (Helmet Safety)
Helmet Safety Video (Every Year)
STEP 2: Hands (Equine Safety & Handling)
YR 1 Equine Behavior
STEP 3: Health (Equine Health & Nutrition)
YR 1 Assessing Horse Health
STEP 4: Heart (Sportsmanship)
YR 1 Winning & Losing
Here is the link to enroll in/access EquiSTEP:
https://cfaesosu.catalog.instructure.com/courses/equistep-2025
To complete EquiSTEP individually, a participant must enroll using their own unique email address. (Participants should not use their school email addresses as the course enrollment invitation will be blocked by the school’s email system.) Participants must view all five videos (introduction and STEPS 1-4) which last approximately one hour in total. Once the videos are completed, participants will be able to access the 10-question quiz. Participants must complete the quiz associated with the training and achieve a minimum score of 7 (out of 10) in order to pass the training. Once the quiz is successfully completed, participants will need to complete the course survey to trigger a certificate of completion. The certificate will be emailed to the participant’s email address as well as their county’s 4-H office. The participant must select their correct county (Franklin) to trigger the email to the correct email address and they must click on the submit button at the end of the survey to trigger the email.
The EquiSTEP Program is required for ALL 4-H Horse members! Failure to complete the online course by April 1, will result in the members' inability to participate in the Franklin County Fair.
Note that any horse member competing in any statewide horse events such as the Hippology Contest, Horse Bowl, or the Horse Communication Contest must complete EquiSTEP prior to the event.
Are you taking any of these 4-H projects to the Fair?
- Market Rabbits
- Market Poultry
- Market Lambs
- Market Goats
- Lactating Dairy Goats
- Market Beef (including beef & dairy feeders)
- Market Swine
If you answered yes to the question above, YOU ARE REQUIRED BY LAW to attend a livestock quality assurance session in order to exhibit your animal at the fair. There are three options available.
Multi-County Session Sponsored by ASE Feed & Supply
Date: March 19, 2025
Time: 6:15 PM - 8:00 PM
Location: Tolles Career & Technical Center
Address: 7877 US-42, Plain City, OH 43064, USA
FREE PIZZA INCLUDED
Register while spots are available: https://www.asefeedandsupply.com/qa
Franklin County 4-H Session 1:
Date: April 14, 2025
Time: 6:30 PM
Location: Kunz-Brundige Franklin County Extension Building
Address: 2548 Carmack Rd., Columbus, OH 43210
No registration required.
Franklin County 4-H Session 2:
Date: May 22, 2025
Time: 6:30 PM
Location: Franklin County Fairgrounds
Address: 2548 Carmack Rd., Columbus, OH 43210
No registration required.
Sale Promotion Sub Committee Members wanted: The Livestock Sale Committee is searching for individuals who are intersted in serving on the Sale Promotion sub committee to assist with the buyers brunch, buyer letters and tickets, photos, etc.
The next meeting is scheduled for Monday, February 17, 2025 at 7:00pm in the Junior Fair Office.
February 15, 2025 - Winter Project Fair
February 19, 2025 - 4-H Council Meeting
March 19, 2025 - ASE Livestock Quality Assurance (Tolles)
April 1, 2025 - Enrollment Deadline
April 12, 2025 - 4-H Walk & Serve
April 14, 2025 - Livestock Quality Assurance
April 16, 2025 - Advisor Fair Update & 4-H Council Meeting
May 1, 2025 - Fair Entry Portal Opens
May 22, 2025 - Livestock Quality Assurance
June 7, 2025 - Fair Entry Deadline
June 13-17, 2025 - Franklin County 4-H Camp
June 25, 2025 - 4-H Council Meeting
July 9, 2025 - Livestock Evaluations & Skillathon
July 14 - 20, 2025 - Franklin County Fair
July 23 - August 3, 2025 - Ohio State Fair
September 17, 2025 - 4-H Council Meeting
November 19, 2025 - 4-H Council Meeting
Real Money, Real World
Ohio State University Extension provides a financial literacy program to local schools. Students simulate real life by making their way through a series of stations where they "pay bills" with their assigned salary for their career. Each station requires a volunteer to help the students make these "adult decisions".
If you would like to help Family & Consumer Science Educator, Jenny Lobb, at one of these events, please sign up below. Dates, locations, and volunteer sign up links are below. No experience needed – just a willingness to talk with youth during the simulation.
East Bridge Academy of Excellence - February 21st at 9am – go.osu.edu/RMRWFeb2025
Bridge Gate Community School - March 21st at 9am – go.osu.edu/RMRWMarch2025
Ohio Construction Academy - May 16th at 9am - go.osu.edu/RMRWMay2025
Questions? Contact Jenny at lobb.3@osu.edu
OSU Extension, Franklin County
Email: boomershine.10@osu.edu or stoneburner.31@osu.edu
Website: franklin.osu.edu
Location: 2548 Carmack Road, Columbus, OH, USA
Phone: 614-866-6900 option 2
Facebook: facebook.com/4hfranklin