Hello 4-H Families!

I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving! We had a very successful Achievement Day in November. Thank you to all who attended and received awards!

Orders for new project books have been placed and we are waiting for them to arrive before we hand them out. If you need a new book now that the deadline has passed, we can order it at the office and we will send you an invoice for your purchase.

We are looking forward to the New Year and new opportunities! We will be hosting a Project Day and Kim will be hosting a workshop at Rec Lab. The 4-H Leadership Academy will be starting for our ambassadors and teen leaders. If you have any ideas for leadership projects, we can start working on those as well!

I am excited to announce that we have 93 enrolled 4-H members this year. Last year we had 64 members! Please be sure to be welcoming and helpful to our new members as they will probably have lots of questions about 4-H and the Marias Fair.

As always, please let us know if you have any questions. You can stop by the office anytime!

Have a happy holiday!

Kim & Jackie

Re-Enrollment

Enrollment began October 1st of 2021. Please re-enroll your 4-H member on the Z-Suite website.

Clover Magazines are available in the office. They have a list of the current 4-H projects and requirements. Parents, please consider enrolling as project leaders. Project leaders are needed to organize workshops and mentor 4-H members. Being enrolled as a leader provides supplemental insurance coverage should anything happen to you while volunteering, it certifies that you've been through a background check allowing you to work with youth, and provides you with training and tools to help as a leader.

Re-Enrollment is still open, if you have not signed up on Z-Suite after November 19th, you still can. We will just invoice you for the books needed for the project.

Horseless Horse Project @ the Exhibit Building on December 4, 2021 from 1-3pm!

The Horse Committee will be hosting a Horseless Horse Project at the exhibit building on December 4th from 1 - 3 PM. What is the Horseless Horse Project? It is just taking the horse project without having a horse. You can still learn about horses even if you do not have a horse of your own. All of the Counties are invited to this!! For more information call Chad Scarborough - 406-470-0712

This workshop will include:

  • Understanding the horseless horse project
  • Tack Demonstration
  • The basics for a horse show
  • Chad will bring a horse for a demonstration

4-H International Exchange

As of this point, 4-H International Exchanges, both Outbound and Inbound, are proceeding full steam ahead! Our partner organization, States’ 4-H International Exchange Programs (S4HIEP or S4H) has been working diligently with our international partners and has streamlined some of the application process. You could go to Japan, Korea, Norway, Romania, Argentina, Costa Rica, and Taiwan.

Additional information can be found on the S4HIEP website at: https://www.states4hexchange.org/ . Interested parties can also contact me directly for more information.

Applications are no longer submitted to the MT 4-H Center for review but are instead uploaded directly to the S4H website in Seattle via the online link: https://smr.to/p71518

Third Club???

We have had so much interest in 4-H this year that we have been looking into starting a third club in Shelby again. If anyone is interested in becoming a club leader please contact Kim!!

Project Age Requirements

You must meet the minimum required age by October 1, 2021 in order to enroll in each project.

• Cloverbuds - 5 years old, Regular 4-H - 8 years old

• Shooting Sports - 9 years old • Market Beef & Beef Breeding - 10 years old

• Teen Leadership - 13 years old • Ambassador - 14 years old

• Colt to Maturity - 11 years old and have completed Horsemanship Levels 1, 2, and 3

Beef Weigh Ins

Beef weigh ins will be Friday, December 3rd @ 3pm at the Kerfoot's and Sunday, December 5th from 10am-12pm at the Flesch's Sale Barn.

Members must be 10 years old as of October 1, 2021 in order to take a steer to the Marias Fair. You must be enrolled for the Beef project on Z-Suite and you must take Quality Assurance if you did not take it last year. You must take Quality Assurance every other year.We typically host one every year at Project Day or you may attend one at another county.

The following 4-H members (who are currently signed in to Z-Suite) will need Livestock Quality Assurance this year:

Taylor ParsonsBrinlee Flesch

Ty ParsonsMorgan Riphenburg

4-H Leadership Academy:

If you are an ambassador or teen leader, join the Montana 4-H Leadership Academy workshop on Sunday, January 9th. The Leadership Academy is a network of Montana 4-H members interested in exploring and developing their own leadership skills while serving their county 4-H program in new ways.

Local county leadership groups will have an opportunity to join with groups from around the state as well as the Montana 4-H Ambassador Officer team, virtually and in person when possible, to work on skill building, planning and mentorship.

Each month the officer team members will be presenting a different workshop topic that they have found to be important as they have grown their own leadership abilities. This workshop should be paired with a local county leadership meeting to work on county projects that serve the local 4-H program and community.

Leadership Academy Dates:

January 9 - How to Make Club Meetings Awesome

February 13 - Ages and Stages for Mentors

March 13 - Successful Service Learning

April 10 - Lead with a Purpose

New Year

We are super excited for the new 4H year and we hope you are too!

If you have any questions or ideas please let us know! We would be so happy to hear from you! You can contact us at Toole@Montana.edu!

Livestock Committee Updates

The following are a few updates from the Marias Fair Livestock Committee meeting:

  • Scholarships - Livestock committee scholarships will be posted online by February and due April 1, which will allow them to be announced at high school graduations. Watch http://mariasfair.msuextension.org/livestockcom.html for the application.
  • Weight limits - Maximum lamb weight limit was increased to 165 pounds. This is more in line with other fairs and allows those larger framed lambs to be appropriately finished. A heavier carcass also provides the buyer more meat for their fixed processing costs.
  • Breeding shows - Exhibitors can enter one entry per class. Exhibitors are encouraged to choose their very best livestock to enter. Additional livestock can be entered in Open Class.
  • Seewald signs - There are spaces available in the Seewald barn for additional advertising signs. If your business, club, family, etc. would be interested in having a sign displayed, please contact Jackie at the Toole County office at toole@montana.edu or (406) 424-8350for more information.
  • Livestock photographer - A livestock photographer will be needed for the 2022 Marias Fair, if you have any ideas of possibilities, please let us know.

Montana 4-H Rec Lab

On March 18-20, 2022 Montana rec lab will be held in Hobson MT. Plan to travel 4-H Highway 2022, the Road to Success! Mark your calendar's for this amazing state wide event and help spread the word to all your 4-H friends in Montana. The Montana Rec Lab is open to all 4-H members in Montana ages 13-19! More information will be coming out. There are scholarships available for Toole County Members upon request.

KMON Contest

To be well prepared for the KMON contest this year (January 22), there will be a few livestock judging practices in the coming months.

If any parents are interested in learning how to mark reasons, Pondera County Agent, Adriane Good, will go over that at that practice as well!

There will be a practice in December and one in January. Participants will go to a couple of farms to practice with live animals.

Please contact Pondera County Extension at 406-271-4054 if interested.

Kountry Kids Fudge Sale

Shelby and other local folks - the Kountry Kids 4-H Club is making and selling fudge for the holidays, with delivery the middle of December. Each variety is $16 per pound, but will be sold in 1/4 pound slabs for $4. Each slab will be packaged separately and is approximately 2.5 x 4.5 inches.

Please contact Sanna to order the variety(ies) you would like and how many 1/4 pound slabs of each.

Thanks for supporting local 4-H! Proceeds will help defray costs associated with our adopt-a- family Christmas project.

Varieties:

▪︎Peanut Butter

▪︎Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough

▪︎Mint Chocolate Chip

▪︎Candy Cane

▪︎Hot Cocoa

*All varieties are made with gluten-free ingredients except for the chocolate chip cookie dough