Clinton County Connection

Transcription

1 IOWA STATE UNIVERSITY EXTENSION Clinton County Connection What s Inside: Swine Weigh-In 4-H Skating Party Charlotte Locker Tour/ Evaluation Fruit Sales Livestock Judging Bird/Small Animal Swap Volume 2, Issue 23 Upcoming Events February 1: 4-H Scholarship Applications due to State 4-H Office 5: Cattle & Swine Clinic BHC, Kewanee, IL (8:00 a.m.) 12: Schlecht Hatchery Poultry Clinic (1:30 p.m.) 12: Charlotte Locker Tour/Carcass Evaluation (9:00 a.m.) 13: County Council Meeting (5:00 p.m.) 18: Fruit Sale Order Forms due to Club Leader 20: 4-H Roller Skating (12:00 p.m. - 2:00 p.m.) 24: Youth Committee Meeting (7:00 p.m.) March 1: Dorothy Klindt Memorial Scholarship due to ISU Financial Aid Office 10: Fruit available for pick up until at least 5:30 p.m. in DeWitt 11: Fruit available for pick up until at least 5:30 p.m. in DeWitt 12: Charlotte Locker Tour/Carcass Evaluation (9:00 a.m.) 19: County Fair Swine Weigh-In (9:00 a.m. -11:00 a.m.) 20: County Council Meeting (5:00 p.m.) 21: Leaders Training (12:00 p.m. & 6:30 p.m.) 26: 4-H Basketball Tournament April 16: Exotic Bird/Small Animal Swap (7:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m.) May 7: Sheep Weigh-Ins 15: Deadline for new 4-H members to enroll 15: Livestock ID Forms due to Extension Office Dates to Remember June 28-30: Iowa 4-H Youth Conference July13-17: Clinton County Club Show August11-21: Iowa State Fair February 2011

2 Page 2 Clinton County Connection Charlotte Locker Tour and Carcass Evaluation The Clinton County Youth Committee will be sponsoring a tour and carcass evaluation at the Charlotte Locker. There are two opportunities to attend this event: 9:00 a.m. on February 12 th or 9:00 a.m. March 12 th. The owner/manager will explain how he runs his business and then meat specialists from Iowa State University will be on hand to evaluate beef and swine carcasses, demonstrate where certain cuts of meat come from on a carcass, and explain how to grade and measure loin eyes and back fat. These events are open to all Clinton County 4-H and FFA members, leaders and parents. Please view this as an opportunity to increase your knowledge of your projects and improve your judging skills. New 4-H Member Enrollment Deadline The enrollment deadline for returning 4-H members is January 31 st, but new 4-H members may enroll until May 15 th. If you know of anyone who would like to join 4-H please have them contact the Extension Office or your club leader. 4-H Basketball Tournament - Save the Date Start thinking about putting together your teams for the annual 4-H basketball tournament. We are planning on having the tournament on March 26 th. Watch for more details in the March newsletter. Leaders Training Dates Set The spring leaders training will be on March 21 st at 12:00 p.m. and at 6:30 p.m. A light meal will be provided. All 4-H leaders are required to attend one of these meetings. Please call the Extension Office at to reserve your spot. 4-H Roller Skating Party The Clinton County Youth Committee has scheduled a 4-H Roller Skating Party. All 4-H members, Clover Kids, family members, leaders, and volunteers are welcome. 4-Her s are encouraged to bring a friend that is not a member as well. When: Sunday, February 20 th from 12:00 p.m - 2:00 p.m. Where: Roller Den Skating Rink in Camanche. Cost: Admission is free. Skate rental is $1.00 per person.

3 Clinton County Connection Page 3 Intermediate Fruit Winter Sales - Escape Important Bash Information! December 29-30, 2008 Sign-Up by December15 th We will Swim be at selling the YMCA, MinnTex ride fruit a party again bus, this watch year to movies boost and your stay 4-H clubs funds and the Clinton up all County night 4-H Endowment Fund. Eighty percent of your profits will go towards your See club enclosed and twenty flyer percent for more will information go to the 4-H Endowment. The Extension Office will be sending out all of the necessary forms to the club leaders. Order forms have been sent out to leaders and selling can begin right away. If your club does not meet at the beginning of the month, please contact your leader and find out when you can pick up your order form from them or pick one up at the Extension Office. 4-H members need to begin selling right away and sales will continue through the 18 th of February, when they will be due to your leaders. Leaders need to have the forms turned in to the Extension Office by February 21 st. Fruit will then be delivered to DeWitt on March 10 th and should be picked up that day or the next day, and delivered promptly to your customers. Fruit will be available for pick up until at least 5:30 p.m. on Thursday and Friday. Fruit must be paid for when ordered, and make checks payable to the Clinton County Extension Office. Please make sure you are knowledgeable about the product. Take a look at what fruit and how many each box has to offer. Remind customers that fruit is part of a healthy diet and that each sale will benefit 4-H in Clinton County. Note that each order form has a spot to sell beef sticks and string cheese as well. Also all of the fruit is grown here in the USA from California and Texas. If you have any questions, please call the Extension Office at Happy Selling! Cattle & Swine Clinic at Blackhawk College Become A Master of the Show Ring. This is a great educational opportunity for kids showing cattle and hogs. This will be held on February 5 th, at Blackhawk Community College, Animal Science Pavilion, in Kewanee, IL, registration begins at 8:00 a.m. The day will be broken into specie segments starting with hogs. The experts will be covering daily care and management, clipping, fitting, feeding and showmanship. Lunch will be provided with great door prizes. To make your reservation please go to or call Kim Lewis at (319)

4 Clinton County Connection Page 4 Intermediate Winter FSQA Escape Information Bash FSQA December stands for 29-30, Food 2008 Safety Quality Assurance. This program helps 4-H producers understand their role in producing food, and helps them make wise, ethical decisions Sign-Up by December15 related to food production. If you th exhibit the following project(s) you are required to be FSQA Swim certified: at the YMCA, Beef, Bucket ride a party Bottle, bus, Dairy, watch Goat, movies Swine, and Sheep, stay Rabbit (if it is not a pet project), up all night and Poultry. You MUST become FSQA certified to exhibit your animal See at enclosed the County flyer Fair for or more the Iowa information State Fair. -Youth 9 11 years of age must re-certify annually by attending a youth FSQA education program. -Youth years of age and years of age can certify and recertify annually by attending a youth FSQA education program OR can test out at the appropriate age level for their age bracket. To test out, contact the Extension Office and set up a time to take the test at our office, or take the test following any of the training sessions. Once certified by a test, the youth is not required to recertify until the next age bracket is reached. The FSQA training dates will be set soon. Watch your mailboxes for more information. More FSQA information and the FSQA manual can be found at Livestock Judging Training Any 4-H member interested in participating in meat animal livestock judging training should contact the Extension Office by March 1 st. We will be starting training workouts the last half of May. Training will involve swine, sheep, beef (market & breeding) and oral reasons involving each species. Two to three workouts will be held each week until the County Fair. The judging contest at the Clinton County Fair will be used to determine the Senior and Junior 4-H teams that will represent Clinton County in the State 4-H Livestock Judging contest. Participation in all workouts is not mandatory but attendance at as many workouts as possible is encouraged. We also need a list of volunteers in the county who have beef, swine and sheep we can use for workouts. Anyone wishing to donate the use of livestock for the training sessions please contact the Extension Office.

5 Page 5 Clinton County Connection Schlecht Hatchery Poultry Clinic Schlecht Hatchery is offering a poultry clinic on Saturday, February 12 th at 1:30 p.m. The clinic will provide a judges perspective on raising, selecting, preparing and showing your poultry project. Rex Felts, President of Eastern Iowa Poultry Association and county fair judge and his wife LeAnn will provide some insight on what it takes to place your birds well at the Club Show. RSVP by January 30 th by contacting: Schlecht Farm & Hatchery: or poultry@schlechthatchery.com. Dubuque Fighting Saints Hockey Have your 4-H club come together and cheer on the new Dubuque Fighting Saints Hockey team in Dubuque, Iowa. Enjoy discounted group rates, special fan experiences, and a great hockey game. Call Saints account executive Spencer Radabaugh at or for more details. GO SAINTS!!! County Fair Swine Weigh-In Swine weigh-ins will take place on March 19 th from 9-11 a.m. at the Central DeWitt High School. All pigs weighed in at that time must be under the maximum weight of 50 lbs to be eligible. All swine must be ear notched before they arrive. The new ag building is not as large so large gooseneck trailers will not be able to back in and have the door close. Look for information in the March newsletter about the State Fair Swine Weigh-In. Eastern Iowa Exotic Bird and Small Animal Swap There will be an Exotic Bird and Animal Swap on April 16 th from 7:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. at the Jackson County Fairgrounds in Maquoketa, Iowa. There will be all kinds of buying and selling of small animals and birds at this event. This is a great opportunity to buy birds and animals for 4-H projects. There is a cost of $3 per person to buy or sell. For more information, call Laurie Marx at or Chuck Holdgrafer at or at iowabirdswap@gmail.com. There is also a website at

6 Clinton County Extension Office 400 East 11 th Street DeWitt, IA Phone: (563) Fax: (563) Clinton County Extension Staff Bob Owen - Regional Education Extension Director Vacant - Youth Development Program Specialist Andrea Ryan- Youth and Families Educator Vacant - County Youth Coordinator Jessica Lester- Office Assistant Cathy Winchester- Office Assistant Office Hours Monday: 8-6 Tuesday-Thursday: 8-4:30 Friday: 8-3 The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) prohibits discrimination in all its programs and activities on the basis of race, color, national origin, gender, religion, age, disability, political beliefs, sexual orientation, and marital or family status. (Not all prohibited bases apply to all programs.) Many materials can be made available in alternative formats for ADA clients. To file a complaint of discrimination, write USDA, Office of Civil Rights, Room 326-W, Whitten Building, 14th and Independence Avenue, SW, Washington, DC or call