Across the state, Michigan 4-H is growing true leaders for today and tomorrow. From Marquette to Monroe, these young people are impacting their clubs, communities, country and world.

To help share this impact with others, we’re looking for youth to share their own testimonials of how 4-H has influenced their own personal growth and development.

Submissions will be posted on the Meet Michigan 4-H’ers section of the MSU Extension website and promoted digitally in newsletters and social media.

To learn more and download the guidelines, visit www.canr.msu.edu/4h/meet-michigan-4-h.

Do you need to tune up your horse knowledge, prepare for the fair, or just enjoy learning about horses? June 13th -17th 9am-1pm at the Eaton County Fairgrounds the Eaton County Horse Development Committee is sponsoring a free week-long Horse Day Camp for all county youth. During this camp, the youth will get to talk to experts and professionals about horses. There will be vets, farriers, saddle fitters, and trainers for the youth to learn and ask questions. That is not all! There will be crafts such as t-shirt making, horse treat making, and stall front decorations. The topics that will be taught are how to wrap polos, hoof care, tack cleaning, vet care, saddle fitting, nutrition, horse judging, show preparation and so much more! This camp is designed for all youth ages 8-19 that are interested in horse knowledge. For the pre-registry form or more information follow the Facebook page: Eaton County 4-H SPIN Club

You do not have to have a horse to attend this camp!

Are you planning to help with your club's shift at the 4-H Food Shack during fair week? Here are a few things you may need to know:

Do you know an individual or business who has gone above and beyond for the Eaton County 4-H Small Animal Association or Jr Livestock Association? Nominate them for the 2022 SAA or JLA Friend of 4-H award!

Do you want to be a part of improving the sale? Sign up to help with a sale committee for the 2022-2023 program year! Committees will be formed this summer to observe the 2022 sale and take notes, look at survey feedback from this past winter, and begin to give recommendations to JLA to take action on this fall. Committees can consist of youth and Gold level volunteers.

If you are interested in one of these committees, fill out this brief survey by June 8, 2022: https://forms.gle/X3rX4rkyDEaaUJfp7

4-H youth in the horse project area: The State 4-H Horse Show is back! We have 13 delegate spots for Eaton County 4-H (and will need 3 volunteers if we fill all 13 spots).

Dates: August 19-21,2022

Entries due to Eaton County MSU Extension office: July 8, 2022 (NOTE: Entries for our county are due earlier than the state advertised deadline due to our fair week)

As a reminder, to be considered as a delegate for the State 4-H Horse Show, all 4-H members must complete the delegate selection packet, including 8 of the listed activities, and return to the Extension office by July 1. The packet can be found at: https://www.canr.msu.edu/eaton/eaton_county_4_h/eaton_county_4_h_associations_and_committees/horse_development_committee

State 4-H Horse Show information is available at: https://www.canr.msu.edu/horses_ponies/

All meetings will be in-person at the PMR (basement conference room at the Extension office building) and will offer a Zoom option to connect virtually to the meetings, unless otherwise indicated. If you would like a virtual connection option for these meetings, please use the Zoom registration link for each meeting to register. Once you are registered, you will receive an email with the connection information. If nobody is registered for the Zoom option by 5pm the day of the meeting, Zoom connection will not be set up.

JLA is in need of one more volunteer to help with various sale tasks at the Extension office from mid June through mid August. Volunteers will earn a stipend of $550. The role consists of approximately 10 hours of work total prior to fair (split between weeks), Wednesday through Friday of fair week, and approximately 30 hours total after fair (split between weeks). Volunteers must be Gold level volunteers (or complete screening at a Gold level prior to start date). Tasks include preparing items for the sale such as buyer folders, processing premiums and payments, supporting sale day volunteers and each sale role type, collecting and processing shipping, and assisting with billing and payment collection and reports after the sale. Detail oriented and ability to learn computer systems (Fair Entry) is desired. If interested, please contact Kristy at 517-543-2310 or oosterh6@msu.edu by June 15.

The JLA sale cannot run without YOU! We need a significant number of volunteers to help on the Thursday and Friday of fair week to make the sale run smoothly. Sale shift sign up will be available in June. As a reminder, youth who work a sale shift (or have a representative work a sale shift on behalf of the youth) will receive their sale check a week earlier than those who do not.

Sign up here: https://signup.com/go/guOTVPS

Note that adults will need to complete screening in order to volunteer this year! This includes all adults for the shifts listed below, whether you come from 4-H or FFA. 4-H age youth (4-H or FFA) do not need to complete screening to help. Screening at a Gold level may take 2-4 weeks and screening at a Silver level may take 3-4 days, so please plan ahead (if staff are processing a large volume, it will take longer - applying now is highly recommended! If you are not accepted as a volunteer prior to fair, you may not volunteer in the role). If adults are interested in volunteering for one of the sale shifts mentioned below and need to complete the minimum level of screening listed, you can apply at: https://msu.samaritan.com/custom/502/#/volunteer_home

All clubs that have youth registered in large animal projects in 4-H Online, regardless of intent to exhibit at fair or sell in the sale, are included in responsibilities of working a sale lunch shift and providing food for the sale lunch.

July 14, 2022

Eaton County Fairgrounds (in-person sale)

Sale will start at 10:00 a.m. with a pause for lunch following the beef sale.

Sale Order: Beef - Sheep - Swine

Sale Resources

The SAA sale cannot run without YOU! We need a significant number of volunteers to help on the Thursday and Friday of fair week to make the sale run smoothly. Sale shift sign up will be available in June.

Sign up here: https://signup.com/go/CLJLPTX

Note that adults will need to complete screening in order to volunteer this year! This includes all adults for the shifts listed below, whether you come from 4-H or FFA. 4-H age youth (4-H or FFA) do not need to complete screening to help. If adults are interested in volunteering for one of the sale shifts mentioned below and need to complete the minimum level of screening listed, you can apply at: https://msu.samaritan.com/custom/502/#/volunteer_home

July 16, 2022

Eaton County Fairgrounds (in-person sale)

Sale starts at 1:00 p.m., Silent Auction runs from 9:00a.m. to noon, luncheon begins at noon

Sale Order: Poultry - Rabbits/Cavies - Goats

You can find many resources for youth sellers and for buyers on the websites linked below, including the following:

Website for Youth Sellers: Sale rules (in the SAA Bylaws), Frequently Asked Questions document, lunch schedule and food list (when available), shift sign-up (when available), sale forms

Website for Buyers: Sale Flyer, Proxy and Premium Forms, Frequently Asked Questions document, and additional information

June 10 & 11 at the South end of the Ingham County Fairgrounds: Facebook event page https://fb.me/e/1MQ9goEN8

This is a really inexpensive horse show and should be a smaller show so it would be great for those new to showing. Stalls are only $10 if they are willing to clean them before they leave and classes are $6/class (stalls are $30 if they are not cleaned out at the end of the show). Gymkhana is Friday night and trail/rail classes on Saturday. Here is a direct link to the show bill: https://www.canr.msu.edu/ingham/uploads/files/2022%20Leaders%20Show%20Bill_Final.pdf.

July 11-13 at the Ingham County Fairgrounds: Facebook event page https://fb.me/e/1I1f8DM6g

This is a three-day camp with two days of instruction and a horse show on the third day. Riding sessions range from showmanship, horsemanship/equitation, patterns, ranch riding, pleasure classes, gymkhana and more! Non-riding classes include things such as trailer safety, horse healthy, photography and more! Details on camp can be found at: https://www.canr.msu.edu/ingham/4-h/animal-projects/horses. The deadline to register has been extended to June 12 and they can register online (payment has to be mailed in by check).

To find out more and register go to: https://events.anr.msu.edu/moneycamp22/

Save the Date! Join us on Wednesday, July 13th at the MSU Pavilion in East Lansing! The State 4-H/FFA Livestock Judging Contest is held in conjunction with the Michigan Livestock Expo (MLE) and is a collaborative effort between Michigan 4-H and Michigan FFA. By participating in the livestock judging contest, contestants can enhance their livestock evaluation and selection skills, as well as improve their communication and decision-making skills. Registration information coming! https://www.canr.msu.edu/4_h_animal_evaluation/

Michigan 4-H Youth Dairy Days and Michigan Dairy Expo return to the MSU Pavilion July 18-22! There are numerous events for youth to participate in: a dairy management contest, dairy cattle youth showmanship and breed shows, dairy cattle judging, and dairy quiz bowl. Entries are due June 28. Complete details, schedule, rules, and entry information can be found here: https://www.canr.msu.edu/events/michigan-4-h-youth-dairy-days. Contact Melissa Elischer (elischer@msu.edu) for more information or questions.

Camp will be held July 31-August 6, 2022, in person, at Camp Chickagami in Presque Isle, on the shores of Lake Esau. This year’s camper fee is $500.00 per camper and includes 6 nights of lodging, all meals and snacks, a t-shirt, and experiential learning provided by MSUE staff, MSU Fisheries and Wildlife and MSUE Sea Grant. Camper age is 13-15 and they do not need to be a 4-H’er to attend.

Registration can be found on the 4-H Great Lakes and Natural Resource Camp website.

*Reminder: Eaton County 4-H has scholarships to attend this event. Contact the Extension office prior to registering for information!

SAVE THE DATE! 4-HYPE: A teen leadership and influencer retreat is a NEW overnight event for youth ages 12-19 taking place August 10-12 at Barothy Lodge in Walhalla, Michigan. Teens will participate in hands-on learning activities to sharpen their skills in communications, learn about their personal strengths and how they contribute to a team, and will learn about opportunities to get engaged in local and statewide Michigan 4-H leadership opportunities. Registration details are coming soon, but let us know if you’d like to attend and you’ll be the first to hear when it opens. Spaces are limited! Cost is $75, scholarships are available!

Please “Save the Date” for the Michigan 4-H Creative Arts Celebration to be held November 11-13, 2022, at the new location of the Ralph A. MacMullan (RAM) Conference Center, Roscommon.

The Michigan 4-H Creative Arts Celebration! (Formerly Visual Arts, Crafts, Sewing and Textiles) has been a popular overnight workshop with a life skill focus each year. This year will be the health benefits of the Arts from the 4-H Healthy Living & Mental Health First Aid team. Participants (4-H adult and teen gold leaders) will be learning new things, making new friends, putting all their creativity to work, and having a fabulous time! We are so excited to have an overnight face-to-face event at the new location this November 2022!

We are looking for potential instructors for this event. Sewing, textiles, visual arts, performing arts, crafts, art of cooking, photography, poetry, music, folk art, and so much more! If you are interested or know someone, please share to complete the link: https://forms.gle/DmvLn7o9YdCokH5z7

Do you participate in a public event involving animals (such as the Eaton County Fair or other summer shows and opportunities)?

4-H members, volunteers, and families work hard to ensure project animals are properly cared for – helping to ensure a state of positive well-being for the animals before, during, and after a fair or exhibition. The Animal Care and Well-Being resource materials provide answers to commonly asked questions youth may encounter from the public about animals during a show or exhibition and features the following:

In addition to these resources, the Animal Care and Well-Being Guide was created for event managers, volunteers, parents, and youth that includes:

You can find all these resources online at: https://www.canr.msu.edu/resources/animal_care_and_well_being

Tags are now in and available at the Caledonia Elevator (formerly Eaton Farm Bureau). Information needs to be submitted by June 15. Forms and photos can be sent to Doug Pennington at pennind@olivetschools.org. More information at http://eatoncountyfair.com/pageserver/tag-in.