Community Service

Join Battle of the Groups during the Stock the Trailer Campaign

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 Fight the Hunger, Stock the Trailer Campaign comes to the Fairfield County Fair

All Fairgoers are invited to participate in our Fight the Hunger, Stock the Trailer campaign by bringing non-perishable food items to the Fairfield County Fair. There will be collection boxes at all fair entrance gates for individuals to leave donations.  All food collected during fair week will go to local food pantries to support local families and individuals who may be in need. The Fairfield County Junior Fair has set a goal of 10,000 pounds of non-perishable food items to be collected that can help our community. This campaign is in partnership with the Farm Credit Mid-America.  Our Junior Fair is competing against other fairs in the region; the Junior Fair that collects the most food, wins a prize.

The Fairfield County Junior Leaders are challenging All 4-H Clubs, FFA Chapters & Scout Troops to participate and bring non-perishable food items to the fair. The Top 5 groups who donate the most food by weight will receive cash prizes for their end of year celebrations. Items for group donations can be brought directly to the livestock trailer housed in the north wing of the round cattle barn, or the grain cart in the Ed Sands Building during the fair. There will be daily weigh ins for groups to get credit. All groups are welcome to start collecting now, and turn in items once the fair opens!!

 

 

Bottle Cap Project – Final Results

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Congratulations to the top 3 clubs in the Battle of the 4-H Club Contest:

1st Place: Champions

2nd Place: Thurston Future Farmers

3rd Place: Green Extreme

Champions 4-H Club will receive a bench sponsored by the Junior Leaders and a personalized plaque for their bench. Thank you to those clubs who have been collecting caps for the Fairfield County Junior Leaders Bottle Cap Project! We were able to collect 1,600 lbs of plastic bottle caps!! 10 new benches will be purchased and placed on the Fairfield County Fairgrounds.

 

We still have 7 benches  in need of sponsors, and more information can be found here.  If you have questions, please contact Aubry (Fowler.443@osu.edu).

Curious how how much your club collected? Check out how many pounds your club turned in below:

Club Name TOTAL:
Champions 490
Thurston Future Farmers 183
Green Extreme 163
Awesome Animals 144
Sewing Shefs 141
Lithopolis Livestock 102
Kountry Kidz 85
Clearcreek Showmen 43
Shooting Stars 38.5
Wild About Animals 31
AC Extreme 30
Cloverleaf Livestock 22
KKEZ 17.5
Pygmies Plus 15
Amanda Work & Win 13
Final Drive 8
Rough Riders 7
Fairfield Cavy & Rabbits 7
Cedar Hill Gang 6
Pickerington Clovers 4.5
Carroll Country 4-Hers 3
Fairfield Fowl Friends 3

Final Bottle Cap Weigh In: Sat., July 10th

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4-H Clubs do you have bottle caps to weigh in?

If you still have bottle caps to drop off, please join the Junior Leaders on Saturday, July 10th from 12-2pm in the #4 Beef Barn. This will be the LAST collection day for the 4-H Club Competition!

Please bring all clean plastic bottle caps in a trash bag and/or box to the FINAL Weigh-Ins at the Fairfield County Fairgrounds!

If you have questions, please contact Aubry (Fowler.443@osu.edu). If this date doesn’t work for you, a time can be arranged to drop them off at the Extension Office.

Community Service Opportunity: Pet Heaven Cemetery in Reynoldsburg/Etna

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Read on if your 4-H Club is looking for a community service opportunity!

From Joe Downs, Cemetery Director at Pet Heaven Cemetery:

A brief explanation of who we are; Pet Heaven was purchased by The Basement Doctor in 2018, and is now one of their many sister companies. In the years prior to the purchase of the cemetery, it has been pretty neglected and overgrown. Since purchasing the cemetery in 2018, the employees at The Basement Doctor have been volunteering their time to mow, meet with families, dig graves, and even set monuments. Finally this year, they realized the cemetery has too much business to keep running on volunteer capacity, so they hired me. I am a former dog groomer and humane agent, as well as a current funeral director and crematory operator. I am now THE only person responsible for everything related to the cemetery.

Over the past few months I have contracted with casket suppliers, monument artists, and a lawncare team.

My final big task before re-opening the cemetery and accepting new burials; is landscaping!

Pet Heaven dates back to the 1950’s, and is home to hundreds of companions final resting places. Being that we have headstones from the 50’s and up, many families don’t make it out to care for the graves anymore, and I really want the grounds to be clean and welcoming before reopening.

Some of the biggest tasks I have include:

  • Washing off headstones with soap and water
  • Pulling weeds around headstones – we do not use a weed-eater around the headstones because the string contains metal reinforcement, and can damage the stone ☹
  • Leveling stones – Many of the headstones have settled into the ground over the years and shifted. Since our headstones are sized for pets, they are fairly small and lightweight. Most of the stones just need to be re-centered on their slabs, so the rows are in nice straight lines.
  • Gardening and landscaping – I have been reaching out to local nurseries and garden centers for donations of mulch and stone. Right now, the cemetery is just lawn and trees. I want to have a nice eye-catching entrance with bright flowers and dark mulch. We also have a large empty area in the center of the cemetery where I would like to add a “Pick-your-own flower garden” – growing a variety of flowers and greenery, offering a unique experience for visitors to pick their own arrangement of flowers to place on their loved ones grave.

I am reaching out to see if your 4H community would be interested in helping us complete any of these tasks. We are eager to open our doors again and start accepting burials for at-need families!

Everything necessary will be provided for our volunteers; gloves, sunscreen, glasses, brushes and cleaners etc…

I will also be installing a community board with local veterinary office info, coupons for pet supplies etc, and would be more than happy to add a big banner thanking the Ohio 4-H volunteers for making our cemetery beautiful!

***Pet Heaven as well as all of our sister companies have been completely covid free during the entire pandemic. While our employees are getting vaccinated, we are still enforcing a strict mask policy in our offices, vehicles, and common areas. Outdoor activities are mask optional as long as a 6-foot distance is still enforced, or members are from the same household.

Thank you so much for taking the time to read this email, and I look forward to hearing back from you! 😊

JOE DOWNS 

CEMETERY DIRECTOR

PET HEAVEN CEMETERY

ADDRESS: 13701 NATIONAL RD. SW, ETNA OH, 43068

SITES: www.PetHeavenOhio.com / Facebook/PetHeavenCemetery

PHONE: 740.927.3582

~ JDowns@PetHeavenOhio.com ~

Bottle Cap Project – Update!

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Thank you to those clubs who have been collecting caps for the Fairfield County Junior Leaders Bottle Cap Project! We are well on our way to collecting 1,000 lbs of plastic bottle caps!

Check out how many pounds your club has turned in below:

Bottle Cap Weigh In Update
Club Name TOTAL:
Champions 274
Green Extreme 161
Awesome Animals 131
Thurston Future Farmers 80
Sewing Shefs 79
Lithopolis Livestock 75
Kountry Kidz 46
Clearcreek Showmen 41
Shooting Stars 34
Extension Office 31
Wild About Animals 29
Pygmies Plus 13
Cloverleaf Livestock 8
Amanda Work & Win 7
KKEZ 5.5
Final Drive 2
Rough Riders 2
Pickerington Clovers 0.5

We will continue to collect bottle caps until Saturday July 10, 2021!

We will have one final weigh in that day at the Fairfield County Fairgrounds – More details coming soon.

If you are unable to attend the weigh in, please schedule a time to drop off your bottle caps at the Fairfield County Extension Office by calling 740-653-5419!

Next Bottle Cap Weigh In: May 18th

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4-H Clubs do you have bottle caps to weigh in?

Thank you to those who dropped off bottle caps on May 8th! The countywide collection is currently 75% toward its goal of 1,000 lbs.

If you still have bottle caps to drop off, please join the Junior Leaders on Tuesday, May 18th from 5-7pm in the Beef Barn.

Please bring all clean plastic bottle caps in a trash bag and/or box to the May Weigh-Ins at the Fairfield County Fairgrounds!

If you have questions, please contact Aubry (Fowler.443@osu.edu). If this date doesn’t work for you, a time can be arranged to drop them off at the Extension Office. Collection will continue until 1,000 lbs are collected.

Community Service Grants for ServeOhio Day – 4-H Club Opportunity

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Funding Available for ServeOhio Day Volunteer Projects

ServeOhio – along with partners American Electric Power Foundation and AmeriCorps – is pleased to announce the availability of grants to support community service projects organized for ServeOhio Day on June 19, 2021. ServeOhio Day coincides with the summer solstice – the day with the longest period of daylight in the year – providing the most ample opportunity to volunteer annually. Grant awards will range between $500 to $2,000.

How can the funding be used?

The grants support projects that create or improve community assets or infrastructure such as parks, schools, senior centers, community gardens or low-income homes through volunteer engagement. Funds may be used for supplies, materials and volunteer support.

Who is eligible to apply?

Non-profit and public organizations in Ohio including, but not limited to, volunteer centers, school districts, community colleges, universities, and local governments are eligible to apply.

Ready to apply?

For the application and instructions, visit the ServeOhio website. The application deadline is May 18, 2021 at 11:59 PM. We look forward to receiving your application.

New 4-H Volunteers Needed!

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There are many ways to volunteer with the Fairfield County 4-H Program! Now is the time to apply to be a 4-H Advisor and help in a current club within Fairfield County. There are many clubs that need YOUR help – You don’t have to start a new club or be a 4-H expert, just someone who wants to help youth make the best better!

Applications can be found here: 2021 Prospective New Volunteer Packet

Completed Applications and criminal history fingerprint record check are due to the Extension Office by February 1st. If you have any questions, please contact our office!

Summer Judging – Please Schedule an Interview Time by 5:00 p.m. Friday, July 10th!

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Greetings 4-Hers!

Thank you to those who recently responded to last week’s survey regarding project completion options. We have taken survey responses into consideration, along with OSU’s guidance on primarily using virtual options for events due to the potential continued spread of COVID-19. In that light, we will be conducting project judging interviews using the online video conference format called Zoom. This will allow for a live, interactive interview with a judge and 4-Her. For those 4-Hers that do not have access to adequate technology to support a Zoom interview, we will offer a few limited slots for an in-person interview. Please read details below before choosing your judging appointment.

All SUMMER project judging will be conducted the week of July 13th. Projects will be judged on these originally scheduled days:

  • Monday, July 13: Food, Home Dec, Genealogy, Laundry, Health, Child Care
  • Tuesday, July 14: Demonstration, Communication, Creative Arts
  • Wednesday, July 15: Engineering and Environmental Science
  • Thursday, July 16: Clothing

Awards this year will be simplified with Outstandings and Honorable Mentions across projects. There is no state-level competition this year, so the primary focus of county judging will be the interview experience and an opportunity for the 4-Her to share what they have learned. Note: we will not be awarding special overall food or clothing awards this year.

Project displays: in order to offer flexibility, you may create a poster and have it near you for zoom judging, or a digital poster that you could ‘screen share’ and later print out to display at the fair. Note: food projects will NOT be required to complete a portfolio this year. Instead you could do a mini poster to display at the fair. The choice is yours.

Online (Zoom) Judging for all summer projects:

  • Extension staff will ‘host’ the meeting and send a link to the judge and 4-Her. Staff will remain online throughout the meeting as tech support, timekeeper and to provide a 2nd adult to avoid any one-on-one meetings with youth.
  • 4-Her and judge will utilize their own computer with a camera or device from their own homes.
  • This is a ‘live’ interactive interview and the judge can ask 4-Her questions.
  • Training will be provided on how to participate in a zoom interview.

In-person Judging for youth without access to internet or computer/phone:

  • Note: this option is reserved for members who cannot do a zoom interview because they do not have access to technology
  • Safety measures:
    • 4-Hers, judges and staff will be asked to wear masks. (provided if needed)
    • Plexiglass tabletop shields positioned between the judge and 4-Her
    • 6-foot distance between everyone
    • Surfaces will be sanitized after each 4-Her
  • Held at the Ed Sands building at the fairgrounds the week of July 13.
  • 4-Hers will wait in their car until it is time to be judged.

As a reminder, if you have a project that you do not plan to complete, please email Missy Koenig at Koenig.398@osu.edu with the project you wish to drop from your record. You also have the option of interviewing with your club advisor for project completion. Please contact your advisor to make arrangements.

We are excited to see all that you have completed and learned in your 4-H projects this summer. Please click on this link to schedule your SUMMER judging appointment by 5:00 p.m. Friday, July 10th: Summer Judging Scheduling Link.  Please note:  If you have multiple summer projects or multiple 4-H members, you will need to re-select the link to schedule additional projects, it is not member specific.

~Fairfield County 4-H Team

Calling all 4-H First Responders!

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Do you know a 4-H member, alumnus or club that is fighting COVID-19 in your community? Maybe it’s a 4-H’er that is delivering groceries to the elderly, 4-H programs that are finding innovative ways to deliver curriculum or other needed supplies, or a 4-H alumnus working as a nurse on the front lines? Submit stories of 4-H first responders, and we may feature them on that National 4-H News (4-H Day). Share your story here and let us know by emailing Leslie at cooksey.25@osu.edu.