BOX BUTTE COUNTY 4-H NEWSLETTER

Mar. 6 - Alliance Clover Kid Meeting at 4 pm

Mar. 9 - Market Beef Workshop at 3 pm at Extension Office

Mar. 11 - Extension Board Meeting

Mar. 12 - YQCA In Person Training at 4:30 pm

Mar. 18 - 4-H Council Meeting at 6 pm

Mar. 21-22 - State Robotics

Mar. 23 - Box Butte County Fair BB Gun Shoot

Mar. 24 - Hemingford Clover Kid Meeting at 4 pm

Mar. 24 - 4-H Fundraiser 5-7 pm

Apr. 2 - Hemingford Animals Inside & Out

Apr. 2 - Livestock Committee Meeting at 6 pm

DEADLINE DATES:

March 15 - Register for BB Gun and Air Rifle County Fair Shoot

April 1 - Public Speaking Contest Registration

June 15 - 4-H Enrollment

The Extension website got a new uplift. Check out the webpage for upcoming information including pesticide trainings at the link below.

Club leaders need to enroll in 4honline.com by March 15th for this 4-H year to complete the volunteer screening. Please contact the office if you need help.

The 4-H Fundraiser will be held on March 24th at the Westside Event Center from 5 to 7 pm. We will not have pre-sale tickets this year. Again this year we will be serving Hot Beef. The cost per ticket is $20 for adults and $15 for kids. Raffle tickets for really nice baskets will be available for $5. Take and Bake items can be brought to the event or delivered on Monday morning.

It was decided to host the County Fair Shoot on March 23rd instead of waiting until this summer. In order to participate in the County Fair Shoot, members must be enrolled at 4honline.com and attend safety sessions and practice shoots prior to the County Fair Shoot. Please register for the shoot by March 15th using the form below. Results will still be displayed at the County Fair in August and prizes will still be awarded in the summer like normal. Please contact the Extension Office for more details.

The Panhandle Best Matches are underway and State will be right around the corner. Below are some of the results from the February contests.

Results from Kimball:

• BB Gun
• 11-12 year old: Corley Connor - 2nd, Ford Swanson - 8thh, Alexander Ackerman - 11th
• Air Rifle Sporter
• 11-12 year old: Corley Connor - 7th, Ford Swanson -9th, Alexander Ackerman - 10th,
• 15-18 year old: Makenna Quick - 1st, Ashley Carr - 2nd, Katrina Karell - 11th
• Air Rifle Precision
• 11-12 year old: Ford Swanson and Corley Connor - 4th
• 15-18 year old: Makenna Quick - 3rd, Ashley Carr - 4th, Katina Karell - 11th

Results from Scottsbluff:

• BB Gun
• 11-12 year old: Corley Connor - 6th, Ford Swanson - 12th, Alexander Ackerman - 18th,
• Air Rifle Sporter
• 11-12 year old: Corley Connor - 2nd, Ford Swanson -9th, Alexander Ackerman -12th
• 15-18 year old: Ashley Carr - 1st, Makenna Quick - 4th, Katrina Karell - 7th
• Air Rifle Precision
• 11-12 year old: Corley Connor - 2nd
• 15-18 year old: Ashley Carr - 3rd, Makenna Quick - 4th, Katina Karell - 12th

Results from Alliance:

• BB Gun
• 11-12 year old: Corley Connor - 1st, Alexander Ackerman - 6th, Ford Swanson -13th
• Air Rifle Sporter
• 11-12 year old: Corley Connor - 2nd, Alexander Ackerman - 8th, Ford Swanson - 9th
• 13-14 year old: Jacen Buskirk - 8th
• 15-18 year old: Ashley Carr - 3rd, Makenna Quick - 4th, Katrina Karell - 8th, Keith Buskirk - 13th
• Air Rifle Precision
• 15-18 year old: Ashley Carr - 3rd, Makenna Quick - 4th, Katrina Karell -9th

Clover Kids is a program for 5-7 year olds to get introduced into a variety of projects in 4-H. We will have a Clover Kid Meeting in Alliance on March 6th at the Extension Office from 4 to 5 pm and in Hemingford on March 24th at the Multipurpose Hall from 4 to 5 pm. The program will include an activity and snack. Please contact the office if your child plans to attend.

If youth ages 8-18 as of Jan 1 are showing beef, pigs, sheep or goats (this includes breeding, bucket calves and feeder calves), dairy cattle, dairy goats, poultry and/or rabbits at County fair, state fair, AKSARBEN or other shows, they need to complete the YQCA Certification.

There are 3 ways to complete this certification:

1. Youth can complete an online course. This course has 3 sections and youth must complete a quiz in each of the sections and pass with an 80% or better. If youth do not get at least an 80% they are locked out for an hour and should review material. This course also has a fee of $12 that must be paid online.
2. Youth can attend an Instructor Led Session put on by the Extension Office. Youth will attend in-person and actively participate through the 60 minute PowerPoint, as well as some hands on activities at the end. This session has a fee of $3 that must be paid online through the YQCA Website. We also ask that you pre-register through the YQCA website so we can make we have enough supplies for the hands on activities.
3. Youth could complete the Test Out option online at the Intermediate or Senior Level. These courses cost $36 & $48 respectively.

Please visit: https://yqcaprogram.org/ for more information, get registered and pay fees for the in-person course, or take the online course.

Dates for Instructor Led Trainings:

• Wednesday, March 12 at the Extension Office at 4:30 pm
• Monday, April 21 at the Extension Office at 9 am
• Wednesday, May 21 at the Multi Purpose Building in Hemingford at 12 pm

Deadline to complete YQCA is June 15th! YQCA Certificates need to be sent (mmracek2@unl.edu) or returned to the office.

Please contact the Extension Office if you have more questions.

Travis Wenzel with Zoetis is providing a Market Beef workshop on March 9th at 3 pm located at the Extension Office. Travis will present on Carcass Project Strategies, Feeder Cattle Economics, and Cattle Technology. This workshop will be recorded and is mandatory for Carcass Contest kids. Register at the office by Monday, March 3rd.

For those who have a High School Senior within the Box Butte County 4-H Program or have a Box Butte County 4-H Alumni attending a 2 or 4 year college, please consider completing a scholarship application! The applications are attached below for both the 4-H Alumni Scholarship and the High School Senior 4-H Scholarship Applications below (They are attached in Word or PDF form).

A committee will select 6 recipients (5 at $1000 and 1 at $500).

Both Scholarships will be due on Friday, April 11, 2025. Please submit the high school scholarship as a physical paper copy; hand delivered or mail to 415 Black Hills Ave, Alliance, NE 69301. The Alumni scholarship turned in as a physical copy or email to mmracek2@unl.edu.

If you have questions please contact the Extension Office.

The Premier Communication Event and will be a two-day event held on the University of Nebraska-Lincoln East Campus on June 19th & June 20th. For more information including help resources visit: https://4h.unl.edu/statewide-events-opportunities/communication/pce/

Box Butte County 4-H will participate in the North Panhandle Public Speaking Contest on Sunday, April the Speech, PSA and Presentations Contest on Sunday, April 6th at 1:00 pm at the Harrison Fire Hall. Contest will consist of youth from Box Butte, Dawes, Sheridan, and Sioux counties. Youth will be judged in each county and separate awards will be given per county.

Registration forms are due to the Box Butte County Extension Office or email mmracek2@unl.edu by Tuesday, April 1st!

Youth qualifying at the local level can participate at the state event being held on June 19-20, 2025 in Lincoln, NE. There are some great cash prizes for those that win the events! More information can be found at the Premier Communication Event Site. Registration for the state competition is due on JUNE 1st! The office will be in contact with a new registration form if you qualify.

Nebraska 4-H is now accepting nominations for a new awards program to recognize the outstanding contributions of 4-H volunteers across the state.

The Nebraska 4-H Volunteer Recognition Awards honors adult and youth volunteers, as well as and multi-generational families, who have provided meaningful contributions to Nebraska 4-H. One Outstanding Adult Volunteer Award and One Emerging Adult Volunteer Award winner will be chosen for each of the state’s 10 Nebraska Extension Engagement zones. Statewide winners will be named in the each of the youth volunteer and multi-generational family categories.

“Our 4-H volunteers go above and beyond to serve Nebraska’s youth every year,” said Jill Goedeken, 4-H Youth Development Extension educator. “We are looking forward to another opportunity to recognize 4-H volunteers for their contributions to youth in Nebraska.”

The nomination period runs through March 20, 2025. Nominations can be submitted by any 4-H member, family, supporter, or Extension staff member. Nominees must fit the award categories and can be a volunteer for any Nebraska 4-H experience. Some examples may include 4-H club leader, project leader, junior leader, county or State Fair volunteer, special interest volunteer (such as robotics or shooting sports), afterschool club volunteer or 4-H camp volunteer. More information, along with the nomination form, is available online at: https://4h.unl.edu/volunteer-recognition.

Winners will be announced virtually in April 2025. A special awards presentation will take place at the 2025 Nebraska State Fair.

REGISTER NOW! 2025 Tractor & Equipment Safety Trainings are scheduled across the state. Certification from this course allows 14- and 15-year-olds to legally drive a tractor and do field work with certain mechanized equipment. Visit go.unmc.edu/tractor-safety-training to learn more!

Certification is earned by completing a two-day certification course, which includes a written test and a driving exam. Successful completion grants NSTMOP certification, allowing them to operate tractors and certain mechanized equipment on farms and ranches, and obtain a husbandry permit. Youth under 14 can attend Day 1 if accompanied by an adult, at no charge.

No Day 1 at your location? You can attend it at another location, or choose the online option!

The 2025 What’s the Buzz? season of the Nebraska State 4-H Camp will share the importance of pollinators in Nebraska- why they’re important, how they impact agriculture, and what youth can do in their own communities to support the various native pollinators we have in Nebraska. From bees and butterflies to hummingbirds and bats- it’s going to be a week full of learning and fun!

The Nebraska State 4-H Camp is returning to Chadron and Burwell for summer camp 2025! Youth new to camping can attend a shorter camp session designed to let them experience all the best parts of summer camp in a 3 day/2 night session. Choose from one of two 5 day/4 night sessions for youth 10-14 years old and returning this year is the Leaders in Training camp for high school youth 15-17 years old! Campers will focus on developing leadership skills with an opportunity to put those skills into practice by volunteering at one of our other camp sessions!

Registration is now OPEN! More information on sessions, dates, and the link to register can be found at 4h.unl.edu/camp.

Spring into 4-H judging! A training series for 4-H project judges will take place in April 2025:

• Thursday, April 10th (5:30 - 6:30 pm CST): Introduction to Judging 4-H Projects
• Audience: Adults interested in learning about judging 4-H projects at county and state fairs.
• Topics: Ensuring interview judging is a positive experience, the role of Positive Youth Development in the judging process and more!
• Monday, April 14th (5:30 - 7:00 pm CST): 4-H Visual Arts & Foods Judges Training

This year our annual LOG N Camp will be held at Fort Robinson State Park. The youth will get to spend two nights at the camp, learn leadership skills, while being immersed in the rich history of Fort Robinson State Park. The cost of the camp is $80, 4-H scholarships may be available. Check out the application below to apply.

We are excited to announce the fifth year of the Nebraska 4-H Livestock Achievement Program. This additional opportunity for enrolled livestock project youth, is designed to promote all educational aspects of 4-H livestock projects including selection, production, leadership, and exhibition by recognizing youth striving to improve in their livestock project knowledge and leadership.

The program recognizes Members of Excellence across all 4-H livestock project areas, including: beef, sheep, meat goat, swine, dairy cattle, dairy goat, rabbit, and poultry.

The program consists of three levels that require 4-H members to plan and report a broad range of age-appropriate and project-related accomplishments. For each level, the Livestock Achievement Program provides a list of accomplishments from which 4-H members choose their goals. Each accomplishment is worth a specific number of points. Junior 8-10 submits pictures, poster, presentation, and other learning activities to receive the distinction of Junior Member of Excellence, no point value, Intermediates, ages 11-13, must complete 100 points worth of activities to receive the distinction of Intermediate Member of Excellence. Seniors, ages 14-18, must complete 150 points worth of activities to receive the distinction of Senior Member of Excellence. The Plan and Reports, linked on the webpage, show examples of the project related accomplishments they can choose, or they can identify their own with approval of their local educator.

Applications/Sign up are due June 15th through the application form link on the website. Plan and Reports, as well as Project Records will be due August 1 via the completion form on the website.

Youth completing the achievement program and receiving member of excellence recognition in the various species will be recognized during the Parade of Champions, 4-H weekend at the Nebraska State Fair.

For more information or to apply, go to: Livestock Achievement Program | Nebraska 4-H (unl.edu)

The 4S Goat Expo would like to extend their scholarship to young goat producers again this year. They will be awarding two - $250.00 scholarships to High school seniors and Freshman in college that apply. The deadline for this scholarship is May 31, 2025. For more information, view the scholarship attached.

Email: boxbutte-county@unl.edu
Location: 415 Black Hills Ave Alliance, NE 69301
Phone: 308-762-5616
Instagram: @bbc.4h