Thank you, Volunteers!

4-H would not be the quality program that it is without all of the volunteers who give so much to make 4-H so great! From club leaders, project leaders, fair superintendents, and anyone who volunteers, Thank you!! April 21-27 is National Volunteer Week, members take the time to thank all the volunteers who work so hard to make your 4-H experience great!

County Club Day and Regional Club Day Results

Thank you to everyone who took part in this year’s Kingman County 4-H Club Day. We had 81 entries this year! You can find the results here. 

Kingman County was very well represented in Medicine Lodge at Regional Club Day this year. We had 19 entries. Here are the results from that event.

This year we held a Family Consumer Science Judging contest along with the traditional Photography Judging Contest. Thank you to the members who tried something new and gave it a try! We had seven seniors and twelve juniors take part. First place in Seniors with 434 points was Brecken Bergkamp, second place with 416 points was Peyton Boos, third place with 388 points was Reese Allen, and forth place with 217 points was Andrew Ziegler. Great job! In the Junior division first place went to Kylee Piester with 292 points, second place Faith Ziegler with 287 points, third place Luke Ziegler with 286 points, and forth place to Joe Thimesch with 282 points. Great job to everyone!

In the Photography Judging Contest 23 members took part in the Senior Division. The top four were Peyton Boos with 309 points, Brin Bergkamp with 295 points, Kristyn McAndrew with 280 points, and Addisyn Hudson with 277 points. In the Junior Division there were 34 members that took part. The top four were Ty Schultz with 300 points, second Natalie Francis with 281 points, third Joe Thimesch with 263 points, and forth Anna Schomacker with 259 points. Great job!

New Year Information

Enrollment

The 4-H Online enrollment system will be up and ready to talk 4-H member enrollments starting October 3^rd. Please use this link to enroll in 4-H!  https://v2.4honline.com/#/user/sign-in 

Remember, you must be enrolled in 4-H by May 1 in order to show at the County Fair. You can log back into your 4-H online account and add or drop any projects that you would like to. All project changes also need to be completed by May 1.

Updating the Email List

On March 26, all emails were removed from our list that is not associated with a 4-H family. If a family was removed from the email list, they will no longer receive the monthly newsletter and other important emails. Please take the time now to re-enroll and keep your email current. Once enrollment is received you will be added back to the email list.

Kingman County Fair

Fair Pre-Entry Date Set

All Fair Pre-Entries will be due on the Fair Entry system by May 10. We are aware that this is an early deadline, however, the Fair Board needs time to order awards and Fair T-Shirts without as much waste as in the past. Please note, that entries can be made and then scratched when the fair gets closer. So, I recommend making entries on everything that your members might take. Example: five entries for foods, seven entries in visual arts, and that extra educational poster or notebook. If something happens that something doesn’t get made or finished, just toss that card closer to the fair. There is a deadline of June 14 to confirm these pre-entries. No additional entries can be made at this deadline, but if anything needs to be removed that can be done. Watch for more details to come.

Fair Superintendents Needed

Would you like to help out at the Fair this year? We need some Fair Department Superintendents. This job would include working with the judge to make sure all entries are judged, making sure all entry cards are marked and returned to the fair office, making sure all entries have ribbons attached to them, and making the department entries nice and neat for the fairgoers to enjoy. We need Superintendents for the following areas Pets, Home Environment, 4-H and Open Class Woodworking, Open Class Quilts, and Open Class Recycled. If you are interested, please let Melissa know.

Junior Superintendents Needed

If you are 12 years old and up and would like to help out as a Junior Superintendent in the Art Departments, please let Melissa know!

Livestock Tag Information

This year any animals that will only be showing at the Kingman County Fair will use a county-specific ear tag. All tags will be available at weigh-in dates. If an animal will be showing at the Kansas State Fair or Kansas Junior Livestock Show, EID tags will still be required. Members must know at the tagging events which tags they will need. Cost for the County Tags will be $2 for Beef, $1.50 for Swine, Sheep, and Goats. EID tags will cost $3.50 each for each species. 

Cloverbuds and Livestock Projects

In the State 4-H Policy it is stated that Cloverbud members are not allowed to show livestock at the County Fair. To stay in policy, the Kingman County Fair Association to be starting a PeeWee show this year. Watch for more details to come.

Fair Project Details

There are some new classes in the Wildlife, Veterinary Science, and Shooting Sports projects for the Fair. If you are enrolled in one of these projects and would like to see the new classes, please let Melissa know.

Public Fashion Revue

This year the Public Fashion Revue will be held at the Kingman Methodist Church Fellowship Hall. The date for this event will be July 14^th at 2:00 pm.

Horse ID Papers

If you are planning on showing at the Kingman County Horse Show at the Fair, your Horse ID Papers are due into the Extension Office by May 1^st. You can find the ID Paper here. 

If you have the same horse that you will be using, your papers are in the office. Please call and Melissa will sign those for you. 

FOR THE 2024 KINGMAN COUNTY FAIR COGGINS TESTS ARE NOT REQUIRED.

Upcoming Activities

Livestock Weigh-In Dates Set

Small animal livestock weigh-in will be Saturday, April 27 from 7:00 to 9:00 am.

Weigh-in will take place at the Livestock Barn and the Fair Grounds.

If you are unable to make it to weigh-in, you can come to the office and purchase your tags. You will need to send Melissa a picture of the tag in your animal’s ear (pic of the tag in ear and pic of the whole body of the animal) at either 620-243-3766 or mthimesch@ksu.edu. All pictures need to be in by May 1. 

If you do not attend the weigh-in, your animal will not compete in the Rate of Gain Contest at the County Fair. 

If your breeding animal is registered with its breed association and has a tattoo or other approved form of identification it does not have to receive a tag for the fair; the paperwork and approved alternate form of identification on file with its association will constitute as a tag and proof of ownership.  This information needs to be in the Office by May 1.

Dairy Cattle or Leasing Identification forms must be filled out for identification of all cattle showing at the Kingman County Fair. You can find the 4-H Dairy Cattle Identification Form here. 

YQCA Trainings

If members will be showing at the Kansas State Fair or the Kansas Junior Livestock Show this year, you will need to attend a YQCA Training. We have four training dates set to try to help with families’ busy schedules. Members only need to attend one training. Training dates will be April 1, and April 8. Each training will be held at 7:00 at the Extension Office. Members will need to register for the training at yqcaprogram.org and there is a $3 fee to attend. 

Please note that YQCA has recently changed its website. The correct address is yqcaprogram.org.

Here is a video from YQCA on registering for an instructor lead training. If you have any questions, please let me know. 

We have added points to the 4-H Activity Sheet for attending the in-person YQCA trainings.

Kansas State Fair and Kansas Junior Livestock Nomination Informational Zoom Sessions

If you will be nominating livestock to show at the 2024 Kansas State Fair or Kansas Junior Livestock K-State will be hosting two Zoom sessions to help answer questions about that process. 

We will be hosting two Zoom sessions this spring to go over the state livestock nomination process. This will be an additional resource for families to use as a guide when completing their state livestock nominations. The session will open with a presentation of general information regarding nominations and requirements. Then, we will transition to logging into the ShoWorks system and doing some live examples of creating exhibitor accounts, submitting animal nomination entries, uploading documents, purchasing DNA envelopes, and printing the correct receipt to mail with your signed DNA envelopes. We’ll go through the process, step-by-step, as well as answer questions.

All market animals, of any breed or sex, and commercial breeding females must be nominated to be eligible for the Kansas State Fair Grand Drive and/or KJLS. Additionally, ALL meat goats must be nominated.

You must register by noon on the Friday prior to the zoom meeting to receive the link and attend the meeting. Sign up using the highlighted links below. The zoom link will be emailed to those who register on the Friday prior to the meeting. Both sessions will be recorded.

The beef session will be hosted on Monday, April 8, at 7:00PM. We will cover nominating market beef and commercial breeding heifers, as well as share some reminders for those planning to exhibit registered breeding heifers.

Beef Nomination Zoom Registration Link – https://kstate.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_1BoEcmPtU6wtn4W

The small livestock session will be hosted on Thursday, May 9, at 7:00PM. We will cover nominating market and commercial breeding swine, sheep, and meat goats.

Small Livestock Zoom Registration Link - https://kstate.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_6rOuK4hYlbuoaWO

Wild Horse 4-H Camp!

The year Wild Horse 4-H Camp will be held June 11-13 at Silver Maple Campgrounds. Registration is open! The registration fee will be $125 per camper. The Kingman County 4-H Council will have a $50 camp scholarship available to 20 members. Members will have to submit a paragraph telling why they would like to go to camp and how camp will benefit them as a 4-H member. Campers must be ages 7-12 to attend 4-H Camp. If you are interested, please complete this registration form. The Scholarship form can be found here. Registration and scholarship forms are due on May 1. 

If teens are interested in being camp counselors, please complete and return an aplication. Counselors need to be 14 and over. Counselor training will be held on June 10-11. A counselor application can be found here.

Club Corner

The Hawk Club met on March 11, 2024,7pm at the Livingston’s Community Building. The play members showcased their “Stone Soup” play at the beginning of the meeting. Veronica Zeigler led the Pledge of Allegiance and 4-H pledge. Members answered the roll call question “My favorite cartoon character.” Luke Zeigler led the song “Head, shoulders, knees and toes”. Veronica Zeigler led the parliamentary procedure. Abigail Fitch led the recreation game “Freeze Tag”. Shirley Boos, the leader, encouraged the members to bring donations for the Fair Raffle at the next club meeting. The club decided to work at the Mill Race Garden on April 27 at 8:30 AM as a part of their community service project. The leader reminded the members that the Family Fun Night will be on March 17 at the VFW hall. Vaishu Kamesh presented her demonstration about “How Are Crystals Formed”. Faith Zeigler demonstrated the process of making her “Zucchini Nut Bread”. The next meeting will be on April 8, 2024 at 7pm.

-Shri Sai Vaishnavi Kamesh

Reporter for the Hawk 4-H club

In December, Vinita 4-H members held a bake sale and soup supper as a fundraiser at Cheney’s Come Home for Christmas. The club also donated chapstick and lotion to residents of the Golden Age Home in Cheney.

In January, club members held a project fair showcasing previous projects they have taken to the fair. This helps members gain ideas of new projects they might want to explore.

For February, Vinita members began preparing for 4-H days and held a Valentine’s gift exchange.

In March, there were 22 Vinita 4-H members that participated in the club skit and a total of 32 Vinita entries at County 4-H Days, with several entries receiving Top Blue and advancing to Regional 4-H Days!

Addisyn Hudson

Vinita Club Reporter

The Whispering Willow 4-H Club held our monthly meeting in March at Livingston Community Center. Our Club will be holding a Bake Sale on Friday, March 29 at Citizen’s Bank of Kansas. Come visit us that morning for your Easter goodies!!

We played a fun game of “Find the Leader” led by the Arnold Family. Hayden Wood shared his talk from Club Day about the study of bones and Ethan Wood shared his talk about RC airplanes. 

We also had many members who took part in Club Day. We received our ribbons from that event. 

Our next meeting will be held on April 14^th at noon in the park, and you can contact the Extension Office if you are interested in joining our club.

Joe and Sam Thimesch

Whispering Willow Club Reporters

This year I would like to share club highlights each month in the 4-H newsletter. If club reporters would like to email me a short paragraph about what your club is doing each month, I will include that here! Please email that to me at mthimesch@ksu.edu by the 20^th of each month.

Record Book Round Up!

Section Five: Project Leadership

This month we are looking at Section Five of the Project Report Form. This section is where you include the leadership you have accomplished within your project. This needs to be specific to the project that you are applying for. I know that each club does a bunch of leadership activities, but if it can’t be related to your project, don’t include that here. But with a little creativity, so many events can be related to a project. So, what can go here? Leadership is anything that teaches others about your project work. This would include teaching a group something. You can teach at school, a club meeting, a project meeting, Sunday School, or the library. This area also includes organizing or coordinating an activity. So, if you organize and plan a project meeting, include that here. If you coordinate a time that all members of your club get together to work on a specific project, include that here. Do NOT include leadership that occurred as part of performing a community service activity. Providing primary

leadership to a community service effort should be reported in Section 6.

4-H Council Information

The next 4-H Council Meeting will be held on May 20 at 7:00 at the Extension Office.

State Events

4-H Shutterbugs at Botanica Gardens, Wichita

The State Photography Committee will be holding a photography workshop in Wichita, Saturday, April 27 at Botanica Gardens. Doors open at 9:00, workshops begin at 9:30 and will conclude at 12:00. Committee members will be available to teach all aspects of photo composition, using a smart phone for photography, pan blurs, troubleshooting, Camera modes for new members, tricks with light and outdoor photography. These sessions are a little different than what will be taught at the Shutterbug event in Garden City.

Please have members bring a smartphone or a camera. There will also be cameras available to check out during the workshop, members are asked to bring their own SD card so they can take their photos with them when the workshop is over. There is no charge for the workshop, but we ask that you please register so we can contact participants in case of inclement weather or last-minute changes.

Registration Link: https://kstate.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_3C2RtLIsRWxPVNs

Spring Into Volunteering

The Kansas Association of 4-H Volunteers is hosting "Spring Into Volunteering" on Saturday, April 20 in Salina, Kansas on the K-State Campus. Registration will begin at 9 a.m. and the day will conclude at 3 p.m. Fee includes materials, snacks and lunch. 

Flier/Schedule

Registration Link - 

Fee $20 - Take to your local Extension Office

Deadline to Register: April 5

Wanted Host Families for 2024

Looking for fun and excitement this summer? Host a new friend from Japan in your home this summer, July 23 – August 15. Kansas 4-H International Exchange Programs are offering hosting opportunities for 35-40 families this summer. Host families are needed who would be willing to host a Japanese boy or girl. The Japanese youth will be between the ages of 12 - 16. Our responsibility is to make host family assignments matching each delegate with an American same-gender host sibling as soon as possible so that families and exchange delegates can communicate and get to know each other.

Any Kansas family with children aged 10-17, who is interested in the Japanese culture, may host. A separate bed is required, but not necessarily a separate room from the host sibling. Delegates are 100 percent medically covered with 4-H insurance and bring their own spending money. They can go on host family vacations, camping trips, or join their host sibling for summer camps and the county fair. The focus is everyday family life.

Interested families can complete the application at https://www.states4hexchange.org/apply/host/ to start the process. The Japanese Delegates personal information forms arrive in February.

If you have further questions, please call Pam Van Horn, Kansas 4-H Japanese Exchange Coordinator, at 785-826-8917, or e-mail pvanhorn@ksu.edu.

4-H Discovery Days - 2024

Kansas 4-H Discovery Days is planning to be in-person on KSU campus June 5-7th, 2024. 

When: June 5-7th, 2024

Who: Youth ages 13-18 before January 1, 2023 are invited to register

Cost: $225 - Some class sessions may have additional fees associated

Registration: Open HERE @ 12:01am on March 20, 2024

Discovery Days participants will be included in a special recognition event honoring the State Project Award Winners. This event will be held in the K-State Student Union on the evening of Thursday, June 8th and will include an evening social and entertainment. More details to follow!

Discovery Days objectives: 

• Help youth learn new ideas, techniques, and skills they can use personally and in their 4-H clubs or groups and communities
• Give youth in-depth training through hands-on educational sessions from content and youth development experts
• Prepare youth to make informed decisions about their careers and college path
• Enhance personal growth by giving opportunities to develop responsibility, confidence, independence, accountability, problem-solving, decision-making, and time management skills
• Help youth meet new people and make new friends from different places and with different backgrounds from across the state
• Provide an opportunity for youth to experience the K-State campus and its wealth of resources
• Develop college and career readiness skills which prepare participants academically and socially for a successful transition to college and life as an adult

K-State to offer animal sciences leadership academy this summer

Kansas State University is now taking applications for a four-day leadership academy for high school students who have an interest in the livestock industry and related careers.

The Kansas State University Animal Sciences Leadership Academy is an intensive four-day educational experience designed to enhance the leadership skills and animal science knowledge of students in grades 9-12.

This is the 15th year of the academy, hosted by K-State’s Department of Animal Sciences and Industry in Manhattan and set for June 5-8. Applications are due April 15, and can be found at asi.ksu.edu/KASLA.

Mike Day, head of K-State’s Department of Animal Sciences and Industry, said the academy’s goal is to develop young leaders within the livestock industry and prepare them for a successful future in the field.

“Each year, (K-State’s animal sciences department) looks forward to hosting the selected group of youth for the KASLA program,” Day said. “This program is a great opportunity for future agriculture leaders to visit campus to get an inside look at the opportunities our department and the agriculture industry provides. This program helps build the future of the livestock industry and we appreciate all the industry stakeholders and companies that contribute to the program to make it a success.”

The academy is sponsored by the Livestock and Meat Industry Council, Inc.

The program’s itinerary features interactive workshops, tours and faculty mentor time with animal science professors. Industry leaders will also join the participants frequently to share their knowledge and expertise.

Throughout the week, participants will work in teams to evaluate current events within the animal science industry and educate others. This experience will culminate with team presentations and a closing reception on the final morning.

Organizers say only 20 students will be accepted for the 2024 session to ensure individualized attention from counselors, professors, and industry leaders. Participants will stay on campus in university housing with program staff for the duration of the event.

Transportation to and from the event is the responsibility of the participant, along with a $50 fee to reserve his or her space. The fee is only due upon acceptance and not at the time of application. LMIC generously provides all other sponsorships.

For more information, contact academy director Sharon Breiner at sbreiner@ksu.edu or 785-532-6533.

Other Extension Programs

Kingman County Health Coalition Fun Day

On April 10 from 3:30 to 6:00 pm join the Kingman County Health Coalition to build a hopeful future together. All of the fun will take place in the Health Department/Extension Office parking lot on the corner of Sherman and Spruce in Kingman. This event is in honor of Child Abuse Prevention month. The Kingman County Health Coalition invites families out for an afternoon of fun, brought to you by organization in our community who are here to support Kingman County families. There will be crafts, a bounce house, face painting, a Story Walk in Depot Park, Tornado Sno Shaved Ice, and the Lightning McQueen Car! 

Mineral Supplement Selection Meeting

Join us on Thursday, April 18 at 7:30 am in the back room at Jeri’s Kitchen for a Mineral Supplement Selection Meeting. This meeting will feature Justin Waggoner the Associate Professor/Beef Systems Specialist with K-State Research and Extension. He will be discussing selecting the right mineral, common misconceptions or myths, and mineral antagonists. Please RSVP for this event my April 15 by email to gschnei@ksu.edu or calling 620-532-5131. 

Tractor Safety Training

Kingman and Harper County Extension Offices will once again be teaming up to present the 2024 Tractor Safety Training. This event will be held in Harper on Thursday, May 23 from 8:30 to 4:30. Participants will have pre-work to be completed before the in-class session to cut down on our actual classroom time. Please sign-up early so youth can get started on their homework. Contact the office or gschnei@ksu.edu for more information.

Dates to remember

April 1 YQCA Training 7:00 pm

April 8 YQCA Training 7:00 pm

April 9 Kingman County Extension Council Meeting 5:30 pm

April 10 Health Coalition Fun Day 3:30-6:00 Extension Office Parking Lot

April 18 Mineral Supplement Selection Meeting 7:30 am at Jeri’s Kitchen

April 21-27 National Volunteer Week – Thank you to all of the Kingman County 4-H Volunteers!

April 23 Extension Office Closed due to Agent Training

April 24 Livestock Committee Meeting 6:30 pm

April 25 Extension Office Closed in the AM due to Agent Programming

April 27 Small Animal Weigh-In 7-9 at Fair Grounds

If you have questions regarding the information in this newsletter, please contact me at:

Kingman County K-State Research and Extension Office

Melissa Thimesch

125 N Spruce

Kingman, KS 67068

620-532-5131

mthimesch@ksu.edu

K-State Research and Extension is committed to providing equal opportunity for participation in all programs, services, and activities. Program information may be available in languages other than English. Reasonable accommodations for persons with disabilities, including alternative means for communication (e.g., Braille, large print, audiotape, and American Sign Language) may be requested by contacting the event contact Melissa Thimesch two weeks prior to the start of the event at 620-532-5131 or mthimesch@ksu.edu. Requests received after this date will be honored when it is feasible to do so. Language access services, such as interpretation or translation of vital information will be provided free of charge to limited English-proficient individuals upon request.

Kansas State University Agricultural Experiment Station and Cooperative Extension Service

K-State Research and Extension is an equal opportunity provider and employer.