1625 Adventureland Drive Suite A, Altoona, Iowa 50009 | 515-957-5760 | Monday—Friday 8:00-5:00

Iowa State University Extension programs are available to all without regard to race, color, national origin, religion, sex, age, or disability.

1625 Adventureland Drive Suite A, Altoona, Iowa 50009 | 515-957-5760 | Monday—Friday 8:00-5:00

LEARN MORE AT WWW.EXTENSION.IASTATE.EDU/POLK

CLOVER POWER OCTOBER 2016

POLK COUNTY EXTENSION

Headliner: “Hands”

JEFF JACKSON County Youth Coordinator jsjack@iastate.edu (515) 957-5771

MARCI VINSAND County Youth Coordinator vinsand@iastate.edu (515) 957-5770

Greeting 4-H Family,

Fall is officially here. School starts, Sports begin, and 4-H Clubs begin meeting.

Marci and I have been blessed to have so far met with quite of few of the 65 Clubs that we have here in Polk Coun-

ty. As we discussed the plans for the year that each and every club has, I am humbled to hear the plans that every

club has for community service.

I remember going on a service trip when I was a freshman in High School. We were serving in Jackson County Ken-

tucky. My task all week was to help paint a house. The family that owned this house was extremely poor. Their

situation was so bad they didn’t even have running water. They lived on a small river and had a hole in their dock

over the river as a restroom. We had just finished painting the house in the 90+ temperatures. Margaret

(homeowner) came up to me with a plate of cookies. She had tears in her eyes as she offered me one. I thanked

her and took one. When we returned to where we were staying I asked my Leader why she was crying. He replied,

“She was overwhelmed with thanks for what effort we made.” He continued to share that the family gets grocer-

ies delivered to them about once a month from a pantry. He said that she used the last of their supplies to bake

those cookies for us (feeding over 20 youth). He shared that as she baked she kept saying “I know it isn’t much,

I’m sorry.”

This is what the heart and hands of the 4-H clover looks like in a person. I thought “we” were the ones out serving,

and instead it was “us” being served. I encourage you all to seek out those “service” opportunities this year. If you

need ideas check out the opportunities section further down in Clover

Power (CLASSIFIEDS). I can’t tell you if Margaret remembers our time

there, but I know I will never forget it.

Thank you all for being “hands”,

Jeff- County Youth Coordinator

ENROLLMENT BEGINS FOR 2016-2017

Focus

CLUB OFFICER TRAINING

Enrollment for new and returning members begins September 15, 2016 by logging in to 4-H Online. Remember, families that have been enrolled in 4-H previously should NOT create a new profile. There is a $40 enrollment fee for each member in grades 4-12. Although the enrollment fee is not applicable to Clover Kids (grades K-3), they are still required to enroll in 4-H Online.

4-H Families will have the option to pay the enrollment fee online! Otherwise a check made payable to Polk County Extension can be mailed or dropped off to the Polk County Extension Office, 1625 Adventureland Drive, Ste. A, Altoona, IA 50009. Enrollments are not considered complete until members have (1) enrolled in 4-H Online and (2) paid the $40 enrollment fee. INCENTIVE! Clubs that have 90% of their enrollments completed by November 15, 2016 will get to choose an incentive gift for their club. The absolute enrollment deadline to be eligible to exhibit at the 2017 Polk County Fair is May 15, 2017. However, youth are not considered active members until they have completed their enrollment. This means inactive members will not receive Clover Power and will not be covered by insurance at 4-H events, including club meetings. If you have questions about enrolling in 4-H Online or paying the enrollment fee, contact Carla. If you need financial assistance to pay the enrollment fee, contact Jeff or Marci.

The Officer Training workshop will be held Thursday, November 10 from 6:30 – 8:30 p.m. at the Polk County Exten-sion Office. The workshop will include an overview of parliamentary procedure, working together as a group, and practicing the skills of their office. County Council will lead the workshop and provide FREE pizza for all who attend! Please register at the following link http://goo.gl/forms/T2zdw5paXW

PHOTOGRAPHY AND DIGITAL EDITING WORKSHOP

events Learn from an award-winning professional photographer, David Byrd, and develop your

photography and digital photography skills on October 23 at 1:00 - 2:30 pm at the Polk

County Extension Office. David owns two businesses, Dreamstate Photography and Reality Reimagined . He will go

over some photography basics, share some tricks the professionals use, and demonstrate live with us how he

manages his digital editing and Photoshop work. You do NOT need to bring your camera.

The workshop is FREE and open to all ages. Invite your friends; even non-4-H youth and adults are welcome.

NEW FAMILY WORKSHOP Are you new to 4-H? Do you have Questions? We are here to help. We have scheduled a New Family Workshop

for November 8th- from 6pm till 7:30 pm at the Eastview Community Center 4101 E. 42nd St. Des

Moines, IA

We will learn about goals, projects, County Fair, Record Books,

etc. Come out, meet other new families, and learn more about

4-H. Please register at https://goo.gl/forms/r1eBEwrlojdidvEZ2.

COUNTY COUNCIL

spotlight Congratulations to our 2016-2017 County Council Members! This year’s County Council includes: Taylor Albaugh, Carly Bigelow, Jessica Bigelow, Halley Blades, Michael DeDecker, Alex Faidley, Anna Feldstein, Miranda Fickbohm, Megan Ford, Emma Freel, AJ Gill, Hannah Hawkins, Addison Hild, Jamie Hoss, Greta Krohn, Kelsey Krois, Jack McGonegle, Laurel McGonegle, Ben Means, Kaytlyn Messer, Lisa Messer, Gabby Neddermeyer, Rebecca Osthus, Elly Parker, Ellen Sattler, Logan TeKolste, Juila Tubbs, Antoinette Veldhuizen and Brittany Woods.

Congratulations to the Polk County Swine Exhibitors for placing 2nd in herdsmanship. These youth did and an

amazing job at caring for their pigs and their area in the barn. Congrats to Ben Ewing, Olivia Ewing, Alex Faidley,

Landon Sparks and Brayden Weldon for all of your hard work.

STATE FAIR SWINE HERDSMANSHIP

REGGIE’S SLEEPOUT VOLUNTEERS NEEDED

classifieds

Volunteer at Reggie’s Sleepout 2016! There are over 100 volunteer positions available throughout the event. Volunteer positions include assisting with set-up/tear down, serving in the food tent, and more. All volunteers will receive a free Event T-shirt. Reggie’s Sleepout is a great individual or group volunteer opportunity!

Sign up at http://www.signupgenius.com/go/30e094ba4a92ea0fe3-volunteers. Once you have signed up to volunteer, you will receive a confirmation e-mail from Taylor McKee, IHYC Volunteer Coordinator, and will get more information and updates. All questions regarding volunteering can be directed to Taylor at 515-883-2379 or by email TMcKee@yss.org.

Record keeping is an important part of 4-H (and life) because records track your projects and growth over the span of

several years. Remember, Record Keeping in Polk County has been revamped! The rubrics are by class: Junior,

Intermediate and Senior, and we allow digital record books! To discover the new rubrics and view an orienta-

tion presentation, visit the Polk County Record Keeping website:

http://www.extension.iastate.edu/polk/page/4-h-recordkeeping

Contact Marci Vinsand, Teresa TeKolste or Bart Weldon for further information regarding record keeping.

RECORD BOOKS

NIGHT EYES– BLANK PARK ZOO OPPORTUNITY

For those who don’t know, Night Eyes at the Blank Park Zoo is the largest children and youth event held in the State of Iowa with over 35,000 youth in attendance. We have worked with some contacts at the Zoo and are honored to be representing Iowa 4-H for all 8 days. This is a huge opportunity for us to share about 4-H with the youth as well as share about volunteer opportunities with the parents/adults. We would LOVE to have some 4-H Club leaders, student leaders, even Clubs themselves come out and support. We have several time slots open.

See them below, but please contact Jeff Jackson before October 14th 5 pm to schedule. Remember that 4-H

Grows Here. Help us Grow 4-H.

Saturday October 22- 1:00 pm- 4:30 pm

Saturday October 22- 4:30 pm- 8:00 pm

Sunday October 23- 1:00 pm- 4:30 pm

Sunday October 23- 4:30 pm- 8:00 pm

Saturday October 29- 1:00 pm- 4:30 pm

Saturday October 29- 4:30 pm- 8:00 pm

Sunday October 30- 1:00 pm- 4:30 pm

Sunday October 30- 4:30 pm- 8:00 pm

Classifieds cont’d. COUNTER-ADVERTISING CAMPAIGN OPPORTUNITY

Polk County 4-H has been reached out to by EFR (Employee and Family Resources) to support the Iowa Department of Public Health by developing a “Counter-Advertising Campaign” about Prescription Drug Abuse amongst youth. The goal is that any youth interested to participate in Group Meetings to develop a Radio Ad, Billboard, Social Media Campaign, or even a Television Commer-cial to promote the negatives of abusing Prescription Drugs or promote ways to avoid abuse. This is an amazing opportunity to make a huge impact on Polk County youth. Prescription Drugs are the #1 abused substance by teenagers in the State of Iowa. This opportunity will be a GREAT Resume builder, help develop leadership skills, but also can be used in developing Projects for the County Fair (opportunities for several categories). Contact Jeff or Marci for more information.

SERVICE OPPORTUNITIES Many of you have asked about opportunities to serve. Here is a list of the resources we have connected to that have needs. Please contact Jeff Jackson to schedule service projects with these organi-zations. -Freedom for Youth- painting, cleaning, yard work needed at their campus in Des Moines. -Riverside Bible Camp- LOTS of various opportunities. Many outdoors, some indoors. Anything from cleaning to light construction. -Eastview Community Center- painting, cleaning, yard work, light construction. -Easter Seals Camp Sunnyside- LOTS of opportunities. I mean LOTS!

PINKY SWEAR FOUNDATION After 9 year old Mitch Chepokas had given all the money he had saved (over $500) to help the children

with cancer in the hospital, Mitch made a pinky swear promise with his dad to continue to help children

with cancer and their families by providing immediate needs support and unique family programs. Mitch

passed away shortly after that promise. But the mission continues.” Learn more at www.pinkyswear.org

Pinky Swear Mission: Helping kids with cancer and their families with financial and emotional support

The foundation helps 500+ families annually with a $750 average grant per family. The organization has been helping families in

39+ states nationwide with a total of $11 million raised since 2003.

Brayden Weldon is organizing a community service project to generate funds to donate to The Pinky Swear Foundation. He would

like to challenge 4-H clubs to help with this worthy cause. The club that raises the most money during the months of October and

November will receive a pizza party provided by the Weldon family. Be creative with how to raise the funds. One suggestion is a

“can drive”. We ask that ALL MONIES be turned in to the Extension Office by December 5th

4:00 pm.

Kelly Koch, Miss Iowa 2016, will be at the 2016 Polk County Awards to speak. She has cho-

sen this cause as her platform issue throughout her campaign and reign as Miss Iowa.

Please come out November 13th to support our 4-Hers receiving awards, meet Miss Iowa

and hear more about The Pinky Swear Foundation.

Classifieds cont’d.

DONATE A PHOTO FOR 4-H

National 4-H has partnered with Johnson & Johnson in a new digital promotion! The initiative allows 4-H members, vol-unteers, and supporters to post a photo every day; for every photo uploaded 4-H will receive $1. To upload your daily photo and to learn more visit http://www.donateaphoto.com/en_US/cause/4-h. This promotion runs through October 25, 2016 or until the goal of $40,000 is met. Snap on!

SUPPORT IOWA 4-H WITH YOUR LICENSE PLATE

A new specialty license plate is available to recognize the important role that agriculture plays in Iowa’s economy. By purchasing this license plate, you are not only showing your support for agriculture, but also supporting three youth organizations: Iowa 4-H, Iowa FFA, and Iowa Agriculture Literacy. License plates are available for order now at www.IowaAgTag.org. The fee is $35 for a standard plate or $60 for a personalized plate.

POLK COUNTY 4-H AND FFA FAIR ASSOCIATION MEETING

The Polk County 4-H and FFA Fair Association will hold their Annual Meeting on Wednesday, October 19, 2016 at 7:00 p.m. at the Polk County Extension Office. Directors for each of the four districts of the county and at-large members will be elected for 3-year terms in accordance with the bylaws. Any registered voter in Polk County is eligible to vote for Fair Board members. The Polk County Fair Board meeting and election of officers will follow at 7:30 p.m. There are a number of open board positions. If you are interested in holding a position on the Fairboard, please contact Nominating Committee Chair Don Timmins at 967-2345.

WEIGH-IN DATES

HORSE EXHIBITOR MEETING

Animal & Livestock news Attention all horse exhibitors: our annual horse exhibitor meeting will be Wednesday November 2, 6:30 p.m. at the Extension office. Come to give your feedback on the horse show, including suggestions for changes/improvements to the schedule and class list.

Horse Superintendent | Sondra Feldstein | 515. 250. 2330 | sondraf@uchicago.edu

Please mark your calendars with the following weigh-in dates:

Beef – Saturday, December 17, 2016 from 8:00 am-12:00 pm at the Iowa State Fair Grounds Cattle Barn

Swine – Saturday, April 8, 2017 from 8:00-11:00 am at Don Timmin’s Farm

Sheep and Meat Goats – Saturday, April 29, 2017 from 8:00-12:00 pm at the Iowa State Fair Grounds Sheep

Barn

BEEF BLAST

Youth 7-12 grade are invited to a workshop presented by Iowa State University- Beef Department. Theme is

Reproduction. See the flyer at the end of this month’s Clover Power for full details.

NEW VOLUNTEER TRAINING

Attention: leaders!

PORTABLE CHALLENGE TRAINING

4-H requires all new volunteers from 1- 18 months, to attend a New Volunteer Training. It is composed of two parts:.

Part one is an introduction to 4-H and volunteer leadership through webinars. Part two is a face to face training.

All volunteers are asked to view the webinars prior to attending the face to face training. The training in this area will be on October 10 at 6:00 - 9:00 pm at Norwalk Eastview School. Please regis-ter by October 4 by filling out this form: http://tinyurl.com/region13volunteer.

ANNUAL LEADER MEETINGS

We are currently in the process of scheduling one-on-one conferences with each club leadership team. It’s always ex-citing for us to hear about the wonderful things you are doing with your 4-H clubs! It’s also a great opportunity for you to get your questions answered and to pick up supplies from our office that you need to get your club’s 4-H year ready to rock!

We would like to have the conferences set up for the two weeks of September 12-22. We are willing to travel to meet. Please contact Marci or Jeff to schedule a time for your club leadership team to meet with us.

Do you want ideas to unify a group or team you lead? This training is great for teachers, youth leaders, human resource administrators, or anyone who is looking to bring co-workers, youth, or classmates together as a team. For more infor-mation and to learn how to register, see the flyer at the end of this month’s Clover Power.

… and justice for all The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) prohibits discrimination in all its programs and activities on the basis of race, color, national origin, age, disability, and where applicable, sex, marital status, familial status, parental status, religion, sexual orientation, genetic information, political beliefs, reprisal, or because all or part of an individual’s income is derived from any public assistance program. (Not all prohibited bases apply to all programs.) Persons with disabilities who require alternative means for communication of program information (Braille, large print, audiotape, etc.) should contact USDA's TARGET Center at 202-720-2600 (voice and TDD). To file a complaint of discrimination, write to USDA, Director, Office of Civil Rights, 1400 Independence Avenue SW, Washington, DC 20250-9410, or call 800-795-3272 (voice) or 202-720-6382 (TDD). USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer.

Calendar 2016-2017 October 2016

3 County Award Applications Due

3 Clover Dash 5K Scholarship Applications Due

3 Lifeskills Award Applications Due

2-8 National 4-H Week

4 4-H Program Advisory Board 7:00 pm

5 National Youth Science Day

5 County Council Meeting 7:00 pm

10 New Volunteer Training 6:00-9:00 pm

22 Reggie’s Sleepout

23 Photography and Digital Editing Workshop 1:00- 2:30 pm

25 County Award Interviews 5:00-9:00 pm

27 County Award Interviews 5:00-9:00 pm

19 Fair Board Meeting 7:30 pm 20-23 Night Eyes at Blank Park Zoo 27-30 Night Eyes at Blank Park Zoo

November 2016

1 4-H Program Advisory Board 7:00 pm

2 Horse Exhibitor Meeting 6:30 pm

2 County Council Meeting 7:00 pm

2-3 Portable Challenge Training

8 New Family Workshop- Eastview Community Cen ter 6pm - 7:30 pm

10 Club Officer Training 6:30-8:30 pm

13 County Awards Ceremony 2:00 pm

16 Fair Board Meeting 7:30 pm. 24-25 Office Closed, Happy Thanksgiving!

December 2016

6 4-H Program Advisory Board 7:00 pm

7 County Council Meeting 7:00 pm

13 New Family Workshop- Altoona ISU Extension Office 6pm- 7:30 pm

21 Fair Board Meeting 7:30 pm

17 Beef Weigh-in 8:00-11:00 am

23-26 Office Closed, Happy Holidays!

January 2017

2 Office Closed, Happy New Year!

3 4-H Program Advisory Board 7:00 pm

4 County Council Meeting 7:00 pm

16 Office Closed

18 Fair Board Meeting 7:30 pm

February 2017

1 State Award Applications Due

1 Scholarship Applications Due

7 4-H Program Advisory Board 7:00 pm

1 County Council Meeting 7:00 pm

15 Fair Board Meeting 7:30 pm

March 2017

7 4-H Program Advisory Board 7:00 pm

1 County Council Meeting 7:00 pm

9 FSQA Training 6:00 – 8:00 pm

14 FSQA Training 1:00 – 3:00 pm

15 Fair Board Meeting 7:30 pm

April 2017

4 4-H Program Advisory Board 7:00 pm

5 County Council Meeting 7:00 pm

8 Swine Weigh-In 8:00-11:00 am

19 Fair Board Meeting 7:30 pm

27 Leader Meeting 1:00–3:00 pm or 6:30–8:30 pm

29 Sheep Weigh-In 8:00-11:00 am

May 2017

2 4-H Program Advisory Board 7:00 pm

3 County Council Meeting 7:00 pm

15 Livestock ID’s Due in 4-H Online

15 Last Day to Enroll in 4-H

15 Polk County Fair King and Queen Applications Due

17 Fair Board Meeting 7:30 pm

29 Office Closed

June 2017

6 4-H Program Advisory Board 7:00 pm 7 County Council Meeting 7:00 pm

10 King and Queen Candidate Interviews

21 Fair Board Meeting 7:30 pm

TBD Intermediate Trip

TBD State 4-H Conference July 2017

1 Polk County & Iowa State Fair Entries Due to Ex tension Office 4 Office Closed

5 County Council Meeting 7:00 pm

11 4-H Program Advisory Board 7:00 pm

12 Fair Board Meeting 7:30 pm

15 Clothing Event 19-24 Polk County Fair