Volunteers

Club Opportunity: 2024 4th H Club Challenge is live!

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We pledge our “health to better living,” but do we actually practice it? Practicing healthy habits and choices has lifelong effects on the health of youth, and the 4th H Club Challenge promotes this by encouraging Ohio 4-H Clubs to learn, practice, and advocate for healthy choices and behaviors at 4-H club meetings.

Each club that completes the challenge before the deadline will be entered into the $100 voucher drawing for their region, with the winning club receiving funds to purchase items like project books, educational tool, or other resources for their club.

How does it work? Apply three healthy practices per meeting (see list below) at six or more 4-H club meetings between Jan. – Dec. 2024.

  1. Register and complete pre-survey. https://go.osu.edu/4thHClubChallenge
  2. Record the dates and activities in the 4th H tracker link. (tracker link will be provided after registering)
  3. Share a picture of your club doing a healthy practice on social media. Be sure to include the official hashtag #Ohio4thHClubChallenge.
  4. Submit all activities to the tracker link by Dec. 31, 2024.

If your club already does some health practices, great! We encourage you to challenge yourselves with different or new health practices for your club.

Volunteers needed to help in the 4-H Display Barn during fair week!

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We are in need of volunteers to be barn guards for the display barn. During your time please keep an eye on the amazing display booths and help to answer questions from visitors. Barn guards can be older teens accompanied by parents, grandparents, advisors, and friends of 4-H. Please plan at least 2 hours and arrive at least 15 minutes prior to your selected shift.

If you are working the first shift of the day, we will be unlocking the building for you and meeting you to give a brief orientation. With each shift change, please help share this brief orientation with the next group of volunteers. If working the last shift of the day, please stay until the end of your shift to meet those who will be securing the building for the night.

Please review the available time slots below and click on the button to sign up, comment the club/chapter you are affiliated with. Thank you!

If you are able to help out, please include your name and club at this link: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/70A084CACA72EA7F94-50882078-display

Friend of the Junior Fair Award – due 9/6/2024

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The Junior Fair Board is again sponsoring the Friend of the Junior Fair Award. Agricultural students, 4-H members and community members in Fairfield County are encouraged to nominate a person or business in the community that has a strong influence in agriculture and has contributed to the lives of Junior Fair members and the Fairfield County Junior Fair. This award will be presented at the Junior Fair Panorama on Saturday, October 5th at 7:00 p.m. in Feeder Creek Vet Show Arena at the Fairfield County Fairgrounds.

Applications are due Friday, September 6th and can be here: 2024 Friend of Fairfield County Junior Fair Award or at the OSU Extension Office or from a Junior Fair Board member. Nominate a deserving person or business you know today!

Show clothes/boots/belts/jackets – donations welcome for Showmen’s Closet (open during upcoming Skillathons)

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The Fairfield County 4-H Advisory Committee is pleased to continue The Showmen’s Closet at the upcoming Skillathon events. Donations are currently being accepted to stock our closet. Junior Fair families can spend a lot of money buying new show clothes and boots each year as their children get bigger! To help one another out, we are asking for donations of jeans, show shirts, boots, belts, white jackets that are in good to new condition (no holes please). Items should be clean (including those boots!).

Items will be donated to the 4-H Advisory Committee. They will be available to families to take and/or make a donation to the 4-H Advisory Committee at the Junior Fair Skillathons on Saturday, September 7th and Sunday, September 22nd. All proceeds will benefit Fairfield County 4-H events planned and sponsored by the 4-H Advisory Committee.

Completing your 4-H project(s) this year!

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As we wind down from a busy 4-H year and wrap up project completion at the Fairfield County Fair in less than two months – we wanted to share a few updates about how you can be sure to complete at least one (if not all) of your 4-H projects this year!

If a 4-H member brought their project to SUMMER JUDGING or LATE JUDGING, our office has marked these projects as complete for this year. Any other “summer projects” that have been completed at the club/advisor level, by completing a club/advisor project review must be documented to our office by September 1st. If a member has not completed at least one project this year, they will not receive a year of completion as a 4-H member this year. If youth need to complete a project review on a summer project, they can share the story of his or her project at a club meeting and/or with a club advisor. Additionally, a complete project book should be reviewed by a club advisor. Full project completion guidelines are included in the Project Member Guidelines for each respective project.

If a 4-H member is planning to bring a project to the COUNTY FAIR, our office will receive completion records from the fair and your project will be complete for the year. This includes: Cakes/Pies/Candies/Pastries, Companion Animals, Dogs, Livestock, Horses. As a reminder, 4-H members who wish to complete a dog/horse/livestock project can complete Skillathon and Project Review at the county level to be marked complete for this year even if they do not exhibit these animals at the fair.

Please reach out to your 4-H club advisor if you are in need of completing a 4-H project this year at the club level by scheduling an advisor project review.

Additionally, if you DO NOT plan to complete a project this year, please contact Haley Black at black.768@osu.edu so that we can remove this from your 2024 enrollment. Thanks!

Grab those toys, games, puzzles for our Toys for Kids Toy Drive with the Lancaster Firefighters – Drop off at the 4-H Vendor Sale, Saturday, July 27th

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4 Legged Friends 4-H Club  is challenging all 4-H Clubs to collect new unwrapped toys to donate to the Lancaster Firefighters Toys for Kids Toy Drive! Club members should work together to collect some of their favorite toys especially games and puzzles to donate to the drive. All items can be dropped off at the Fairfield County Fairgrounds on Saturday, July 27th from 9am-3pm between the Ed Sands & AAA Buildings! Use your ‘Hands for Larger Service’ to help children in our community while competing against your fellow 4-H Clubs. Who is up to the challenge?!

2024 Junior Fair Book is Available!

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The 2024 Fairfield County Junior Fair Book is now posted on OSU Extension 4-H Youth Development and Senior Fair websites. Please review all Junior Fair Rules. Please know that Ohio’s Livestock Exhibition Rules have been updated as of May 2024 so be sure to review these as well as there are changes.

To access the Junior Fair Book, visit: go.osu.edu/fcjrbook. To access information regarding the 2024 Junior Fair Livestock Sale, visit: u.osu.edu/livestocksale.

Paper copies of the Junior Fair Book can be picked up at the OSU Extension Office or contact your club/chapter advisor as they can also request paper copies to be printed for the club/chapter.

Community Service Opportunity: Lithopolis Honeyfest

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I am reaching out to see if there may be interest in volunteering during the 2024 Lithopolis Honeyfest!

The Lithopolis Honeyfest 2024 Event Sign Up Genius Webpage is now available!

If you would like to volunteer, please click on the link below or contact me via e-mail:  https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0D4DACA72DA7FDCF8-48975613-lithopolis#/

The 2024 Honeyfest is slated for Friday, September 6th from 3pm-7pm, and Saturday, September 7th from 10am-7pm. Rain or

Please feel free to contact me if questions! For those who sign up, I will be back in touch as needed and a couple of weeks prior to the event for final reconfirmation.

Thank you!

June Queen, Lithopolis Honeyfest Volunteer Coordinator – 2024

junemqueen@aol.com

740-974-7966 (call or text) 

https://lithopolishoneyfest.com

Club Community Service Opportunity: Toy Drive

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4 Legged Friends 4-H Club  is challenging all 4-H Clubs to collect new unwrapped toys to donate to the Lancaster Firefighters Toys for Kids Toy Drive! Club members should work together to collect some of their favorite toys especially games and puzzles to donate to the drive. All items can be dropped off at the Fairfield County Fairgrounds on Saturday, July 27th from 9am-3pm between the Ed Sands & AAA Buildings! Use your ‘Hands for Larger Service’ to help children in our community while competing against your fellow 4-H Clubs. Who is up to the challenge?!

Junior Leader Outdoor Furniture Sale – NOW OPEN!

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Thank you to all the 4-H Clubs who collected plastic bottle caps for the Fairfield County 4-H Junior Leaders! Now we need your help to sell benches and tables to put those caps to good use. Any outdoor furniture purchased is for that customer’s own use and will need to be picked up from the Ag Center (831 College Ave, Lancaster). A fillable order form can be found here. All orders and money are due July 5th to the Fairfield County Extension Office. Questions? Contact our office at 740-653-5419! Order Form: Outdoor Furniture 2024 Sale fillable

To order an item, complete an order form above. Checks can be made out to the Fairfield County Junior Leaders. Please drop off order forms and payment to the OSU Extension Office by July 5, 2024. 

These items will be ordered mid-July and will be available for pick up in August. More details will be shared with those who purchase an item as timelines are finalized.