It’s hard to resist the opportunities for growth that are the foundations of 4-H.
Keep in mind that 4-H is the largest non-formal youth educational organization in the U.S., reaching more than 6.5 million youths every year.
The Blaine County branch of University of Idaho Extension Service wants you to know that 4-H means summer fun for local kids. 4-H summer programs adhere to the organization’s motto of “making the best better,” by using your head, heart and hands for overall health.
4-H summer camps offer experiences giving young people growth in four areas—positive identity, social skills, physical and thinking skills, positive values and spirituality. You don’t have to be a 4-H member to participate. The annual fee for 4-H enrollment is only $15.
Many young 4-H members will be hard at work on their projects for the Blaine County Fair Aug. 7-10 in Carey.
Projects run the gamut from archery, citizenship, cooking and scrapbooking, to quilting, baking, horses, cowboy poetry and leadership. There are weekly club meetings through the summer where leadership and community service are emphasized.
The county fair itself is preceded by the Blaine 4-H County Horse Show on Friday and Saturday, Aug. 2-3.
Regarding the 4-H projects themselves, program organizers are open to trying new projects if someone has an idea and a willingness to follow through with it. Here’s a sampling of the 4-H summer for 2013. Call 788-5585 weekdays for more details.
Wildlife Day Camp June 1
Start the summer by attending the 4-H “Wild about Wildlife” Day Camp Saturday, June 1 from 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Hayspur Fish Hatchery off U.S. 20 near Picabo.
Morning classes and afternoon stations include talks on Hayspur history, fish identification and habitat and fishing tackle. It’s a day filled with fun workshops featuring sportsmen.
Wildlife Day Camp is geared toward youth 8-13, but children ages 5-7 accompanied by an adult and also older youth up to age 18 may also attend. You don’t have to be a 4-H member. Parents and families are encouraged to join in and must pre-register.
Pick up your registration form at the Blaine County Extension Office. Cost is $12.
4-H summer camps
Be sure to check out the 4-H outdoor camp offered for kids ages 8-13 (grades 3-8) at the Central Idaho 4-H camp 18 miles north of Ketchum.
- June Summer Camp for ages 8-13 on June 17-19 features hiking, campfires, a scavenger hunt, fishing, talent show and karaoke, and fun workshops at the Central Idaho 4-H camp. Cost is $120.
- 4-H Overnight Horse Camp from Thursday through Saturday, June 13-15 is an outdoor experience for ages 8-18 at Blaine County Fairgrounds in Carey. Cost is $60.
Young people camp under the stars and ride all day with clinics, trail rides, Dutch oven cooking, leather crafts, cowboy poetry, shooting sports and campfires. You can bring your horse, but you don’t need to.
Pick up application forms at the Blaine County extension office, across from the Blaine County offices. Call 788-5585.
Don’t have a horse? Join 2 Hearts North
Love horses? Don’t own a horse? Want to hang with a horse?
Join up with a second-year University of Idaho Extension program called the 2 Hearts North 4-H Club.
Youth ages 8-18 are invited to adopt a horse for the entire summer or bring your own. Kids learn to care for, love and ride horses that have been trained to be child-user friendly. Cost is $300 per child.
Two Hearts North is located in the mid-valley area of the Wood River Valley at Heatherlands. Call Blaine County Extension at 788-5585 or Amy Federko at 720-7381.
Idaho Teen Conference
Travel to an entirely different part of Idaho and learn leadership skills during the 2013 Teen Conference June 10-14 on the University of Idaho campus in Moscow.
Invited are youth who have finished grades 8-12, with adults as chaperones. College-age young adults may attend as college staff members.
Participants stay in university dorms, eat at the cafeteria and, according to the brochure, “survive without sleep for much of the week.”
Cost is $275 for youths and $200 for adult chaperones who register and pay before the May 15 regular registration deadline. Visit 4h.uidaho.edu for details. Or call 208-885-7700.
Idaho Military Family Camp
For an eighth year, University of Idaho Extension and Operation Military Kids are offering a weekend Military Family Camp in July at the Central Idaho 4-H Camp north of Ketchum. The camp meets the needs of Idaho National Guard and Reserve personnel (individuals and families) from all branches.
Enjoy wagon rides, campfires, fishing, family competitions, shooting sports, archery, arts and crafts, cooking, flag ceremonies and skits. Priority goes to military families. Teen counselors are being sought, according to program coordinator Linda Gerber.
Visit operationmilitarykids.org, email omk@uidaho.edu, or call 208-334-2328 or 334-2332.
The Blaine County Fair celebrated 100 years of 4-H during its 2013 run last August in Carey. Here, 11-year-old Audra Mary shows her sheep entry Cosmo en route to a red ribbon. Photo by Willy Cook
