Saturday, October 15, 2011

The Apple of our Eye

 Below is the report filed by club reporter Kierin Hatcher.  It is an update of the Dirty Rascals Junior Master Gardener 4-H club's last meeting.

Friday, October 14, 2011

Going All the Way to the State Fair

There were rides, cotton candy, games and families everywhere. It definitely had all the signs of the North Carolina State Fair. For some lucky 4-H members it, was much more, it was the pinnacle of animal science competitions.
Benjamin Herndon travelled to the state fair with his parents, lambs, goats, and turkey. This is not Benjamin's first time at the state fair but it is his first time showing turkey's. According to the state rules the turkey's much weigh at least 20 pounds to compete (not an easy task when you get your turkey in August). Wellington, Benjamin's turkey, weighed in at 44 pounds. Not exactly light when you think about it. Especially when you have to get your bird out of a cage, carry it upside down to the waiting area, wait with it (mind you Wellington waited quite patiently with his feet on the ground and did not waddle anywhere) then carry it in and keep it from flapping away while you sit on a hay bale. Benjamin was in heat 5 of the competition and out of 15 other competitors came in third in his heat. That is an incredible accomplishment especially for someone who has not raised turkey's before.
While the turkey show was going on, so was the goat show. Unfortunately Benjamin was in heat 8 of the goat show which happened at the same time he was showing his turkey. Thanks to Angela Shaver, the Cumberland County 4-H Agent, Benjamin's goat still made it in the ring. Sarah Maske was kind enough to show Benjamin's goat for him. Although his goat didn't place as high as his turkey, Benjamin was reminded what a wonderful group of 4-H members there are showing. In other organizations people would not step up and help out, but 4-H is different. Our youth step up and help each other everyday, that is one of the things that makes this organization stand out from the others.
Also competing in the goat show was Santiago Acuna-Robinson. He placed second and fourth with two of his goats. That qualified him to compete in the champion drive. Although he did not take home grand or reserve this year, watch out because he is one of the most improved showers this year and may come home with the state honors sooner rather than later.
Congratulations to all our 4-H members who competed on the state level. Job well Done!

Thursday, October 13, 2011

Stregthening Families, The Introduction

 
 Strengthening Families is a program developed by Cooperative Extension in Iowa.  The seven week program allows families with children between the ages of 9-14 to work together to strengthen communication, give them tools to talk about tough subjects, and bring the families together in those sensitive tween years.  
  Tonight we started our series with three families which have five children.  Traditionally on the first night we have dinner, break into two groups (adult and youth), and start breaking the ice and learning about the program.  After the breakout session the families come together to practice using the tools they received during the breakout sessions.  As part of that we played human knot and other team building games to make sure everyone had a chance to start working together.
  Thanks to United Way funding we are able to offer this program annually for free to families.  If you would like more information about this program please contact Christy Strickland, Family and Consumer Science Extension Agent at (910) 671-3276.   

Tuesday, October 11, 2011

An Apple a Day...


  We just started back to school and already the Dirty Rascals Junior Master Gardener 4-H Club is talking about grades.  This time it isn't school grades, it's grading something you might give to your teacher...apples.  Kerrie Roach, the Horticulture Extension Agent joined the group for their October meeting with a whole bushel (or at least bunch) of apples.  September and October are known as the months for apples.  What you may not know is that the prettiest apples may not be the best apples.
  So to learn how to grade apples and learn what makes a good apple it is necessary to touch them, look at them, squeeze them, and of course eat them.  Although going in there were those who knew that a Granny Smith or Red Delicious would be their favorite just because that is always what they eat, learned something new today.  The youth had to write down their top apple picks based on looks, touch or squeeze and then taste.  There were a lot of ewwhhh yucks when it came time to taste some of the apples, just because the taste was not what they expected.  So based on that when they looked back at their judging sheets, what fruit they thought might get the best grades, didn't.
  After the lesson, there were an awful lot of apples left, so out came the fruit dips and the apples were consumed.  While they were consumed the club members learned how to grow an apple tree from the seeds in the apple.  the club also caught up on 4-H news and got ready for their upcoming field trip.

Monday, October 10, 2011

Introducing the All Around All Stars!

It is exciting to make the announcement about a new club and I think it is fair to say this new club is more colorful than all of our others. The organizational meeting for the All Around All Stars 4-H Arts and Crafts club took place tonight. Club Leader Jessica Drake has tons of volunteer help for this club, and just wanted to pull our youth together for a little creative fun. "I am really excited about this club and the opportunities for our youth to explore arts and crafts that they have not done before and give them an opportunity to express their creative side," said Drake.
The beginning of the club meeting was filled with the usual, filling out forms, setting a schedule and picking out a club name. Several names were solicited from the group including; "The Snack and Juice Club", "The Mighty Superheros", "The Imaginators", "The Crafty Crafters", and even "The Cut-Ups". In the end the members voted for. "The All Around All Stars 4-H Club" and that is how they will be referred to forever more.
After taking care of the paperwork and club name it was time to get down to business. Bookmarks and water bottles were waiting to be decorated. With each youth getting down to business with glue sticks and really neat cutouts creative bookmarks were conceived. They were so neat, and adorned with 4-H, ribbons and squiggles it just makes you want to sit down with a bottle of water and read a book so you can use it all.
The club adjourned their first and very successful meeting until next time. They have decided that they will meet the first Thursday of each month at the 4-H office. The meetings will begin at 5:30 pm and will last an hour to an hour and a half. If you are interested in being a part of this club please contact the 4-H office at (910) 671-3276.

Sunday, October 9, 2011

Let's Be Fair About It....


 The Robeson Regional Agricultural Fair is a great place for 4-H and North Carolina Cooperative Extension to showcase our agricultural roots as well as the impact of research of the land grant universities on the present and future generations.  With agriculture being the number one economic indicator in the county and Extension working with people across our county to improve the health and well being, local food system, and future of our citizens here, what a better place to highlight those accomplishments than at the Robeson Regional Agricultural Fair.  The fair is the largest event in the county drawing people from across the state.  
  This year there were a variety of areas where you could see extension, including some newly made posters to highlight the history of the organization.  Through the bee keepers association display, Master Gardener association display, and the 4-H clover, activities, and members all over the fairgrounds, you can see the strong partnership between the fair and Cooperative Extension.
  In the 4-H fair booths this year competition was stiff.  We had 13 booths set up in our area and a ton of competition between the clubs.  With the theme of "4-H is..." our clubs had the opportunity to highlight what they are doing and educate others.  Just for setting up the booth our clubs received money that will go be used to support their club activities.  This year Spiritual Generations, Voices in Praise, Young Leaders, Inspirational Youth Leaders, United We Stand, Dirty Dozen, Dirty Rascals, Horsin' Around, and the St. Paul's 4-H Pony club from Robeson County set up their fair booths.  Although there was a lot of hard work on behalf of the members and volunteers on each of their booths and a little trash talk between the volunteers, overall everyone pitched in to help each other and set out a great display of the diversity of 4-H projects going on in our community.  When it was said and done the Dirty Rascal Junior Master Gardener Club ended up with second place while the Dirty Dozen Shooting Sports ended up with First place and best in show.  The area with the fair booths also highlighted the impacts of 4-H over the years and showed the focuses of 4-H now.
  Also highlighted this year were youth in our 4-H animal science shows that took place the week of the fair.  Our 4-H members also entered a variety of items in the home exhibit section from artwork and photos to crops, canning, and crafts.  We had several members who participated in the youth events including the Fair Pageant, step show, three point shoot out, cheer leading contest, talent show, chicken bog cooking contest and steak cook off.  Although the fair for 2011 has wound down consider entering the fair next year.  the dates for the 2012 Robeson Regional Agricultural Fair are September 28-October 6.  For more information about the fair please check the website at www.robesoncountyfair.com.  
 
   

Saturday, October 8, 2011

There is No Bull About This...

The last 4-H Animal Competition each year at the Robeson County Fair is a mooving experience.  That's because it is time for our heifer and steer show, probably the largest animals we have at the fair and the one's you don't want to get underfoot with.  This year was one of the largest shows we have had in our history and we were excited to have so many participants.
As will the other shows this one is broken down into showmanship and then a market heifer show, and a market steer show.  Since we do not have scales at our fairgrounds large enough to weigh the animals we separate them into divisions based on the age of the animal.
We had one cloverbud showing this year, Noah Beeson who took home a trophy and a five dollars.  In the Junior I division which is made up of 9-10 year olds McKenzie Beeson took home the white ribbon while Mary Vorder-Breugge took red, and Hannah Horne went home with the blue ribbon.  In the Junior Division 2 which is made up of 11-13 year olds the competition was just as stiff.  Madison Adams walked away with third place, Eugenie Vorder-Brugge took home second, while Wyatt Kendall took home the blue ribbon.  The judge had a difficult time with the senior division.  With eight competitors vying for the first place ribbon our showmen were doing their best to get and keep the judge's attention.  When it was all said and done Sable Scott went home with first place, followed by Austin Cameron in second, and Elizabeth Mintz took third.  The division was rounded out by; Kacie Beeson, Brittany Needham, Anthony Bullard, Kana Hayashi, and David McInnis.
When it came time for the market show we were able to split the heifers into three divisions.  Below is how the divisions broke out.
Born 3/1/2011-4/28/2011
Beeson, McKenzie with Ernie
5
Hayashi, Kara with Angie
4
Needham, Brittany with BlueQ Forever Lady
2
McInnis, David with BlueQRita 1312
3
Mintz, Elizabeth with Pistol (8540)
1
Beeson,  Kacie with Dumbo
6
Born 12/5/2010-05/30/2010
Vorder Brugge, Mary with Zia
3
McInnis, David with Moonlite Grace
4
Beeson, Kacie with Mrs. Caloway
6
Beeson, McKenzie with Jessie
8
Horne, Hannah with Ruby 5
Kendall, Wyatt with 012X Caramel
2
Vorder Brugge, Mary with Tori
1
Scott, Sable with Annies Calf 
7
Born 3/1/2010-11/2/09
Vorder-Bruggee, Eugenie with Queenie
2
Mintz, Elizabeth with Tori (T24)
1
Kendall, Wyatt with 27 Brownie
5
Cameron, Austin with Double C9/18
3
Adams, Madison with CC 9/24
4

When it came time for the grand champion drive the top winners from each division were invited into the ring.  Elizabeth Mintz with Pistol, Mary Vorder-Brugge with Tori, and Elizabeth Mintz with Tori were vying for the top spot.  After a great deal of comparing and looking Elizabeth Mintz with Tori took grand champion which meant Eugenie Vorder-Brugge with Queenie was in the ring to vie for reserve Champion.  However it was Tori with Mary Vorder-Brugge who took reserve.
After the Heifer show it is time for the Steer Competition.  Steer are male cattle that have been castrated.  this year there were four compeititors that compeated in one division.  The break down looked something like this:
Bullard, Anthony with Buster
4
Vorder Brugge, Mary with Gawain
1
Hayashi, Kana with Bo 
2
Beeson, Kacie with Bullseye
3
When it was over with since there was only one division Mary Vorder Brugge with Gawain took grand champion while Kana Hayashi with Bo took reserve champion.
Congratulations to all our competitors on a job well done. 

Lots of Kids


  The second biggest animal show day at the Robeson Regional Agricultural Fair is the second Saturday with the livestock shows.  We start as the fair opens with the lamb shows and move on to find the beef.  This year we had almost 30 youth with 53 lambs participating in this year's competition.
  As is common with the animal shows we started with the cloverbuds, our 5-* year olds who are not competing against each other, rather gaining experience in the ring.  Showing their stuff of in this category were; Hunter Mercer, Shane Kendall, Colbey Matthis, and Tate Naylor.  Each showman took home a trophy and $5.  
  In our next category of 9-10 year old showmen Chasen Matthis took home the white ribbon, Roxie Long came in second, and Wyatt Kendall took home the blue ribbon.  Hannah Long rounded off this division taking home a participation ribbon for her work.  In the 11-13 year old age division there were two showmen.  Hannah Carter came in second, and Robeson County's own Benjamin Herndon came in first place.  The senior division was fraught with competition.  When it was said and done Dalton sells came in first place, Samantha Naylor took home the red ribbon, and Tanner Riegel placed third.  Rounding out the age division with participant ribbons were Emmerald Layton, Brittany Truesdale, and Cole Mullis.
  After the 4-H showmanship competition is the 4-H market lamb show.  In this division the lambs are divided into divisions by weight.  This year the lightweight division was 73-117 pounds, and we had 11 competitors.  the division looked like this when we got done:
Last Name                   First Name                       Lamb Name                             Weight     Place
Long Hannah
Lily
739
Long Roxie
Dillinger 90 8
Matthis Chasen
Spiderman
108 5
Truesdale Brittany
Wanda 110 4
Kendall Wyatt
Tweety 111 2
Layton Emmerald
Betty Sue 112 6
Riegel Tanner
Cash 113 1
Sells Dalton
Flossie 116 3
Carter Hannah
Mattie 117 7
After the lightweight division we moved on to the middle weight division.  This year there were nine competitors with lambs weighing from 118 pounds up to 128 pounds.  When the judge was done, this is what this division looked like.
Last Name                   First Name                       Lamb Name                           Weight        Place
Mathis Chasen
Batman 118 9
Sells Dalton
Darel 118 2
Layton Emerald
Lane 119 6
Kendall Wyatt
Stomper 120 1
Carter Hannah
Bolt 121 5
Mullis Cole
Wade 122 3
Riegel Tanner
Earl 127 8
Kendall Wyatt
Skittles 127 4
Truesdale Brittany
Tuff 128 7
There is only one division left and it was made up of our largest lambs.  This year there were nine  competitors in the heavy weight division where the range of weights is from 118 to 128 pounds.  When the judge was done with this tough division the rankings looked like this;
Last Name                   First Name                      Lamb Name                            Weight       Place
Naylor Samantha
369 130 1
Truesdale Brittany
Ellie 130 5
Carter Hannah
Candie 131 8
Herndon Benjamin
Betsy 133 3
Herndon Benjamin
Alcibiades 135 6
Naylor Tate
6 136 7
Kendall Shane (CB)
Mario 139 2
Riegel Tanner
Sallie 146 4
Layton Emerald
Callie 152 9
After the heavy weight division it was time to chose grand and reserve champion.  To do this the judge brings the first place winner from each division into the ring and chooses Grand Champion.  In the ring were Tanner Reigel with Cash, Kendall Wyatt with Stomper, Samantha Naylor with 369.  Walking away with the Grand Champion trophy was Wyatt Kendall with Stomper.  Stepping into the ring was Dalton Sells with Darel to compete for reserve champion.  When the judge took a good look at all the the lambs Samanth Naylor with 369 walked away with the trophy and $50 prize.

Thursday, October 6, 2011

Judge Us, We're Just Hanging Around

Thursday afternoon at the Robeson Regional Agricultural Fair is a traditional agriculture type of day. It is the day when the FFA youth get out early and have a chance to take part in tractor driving and pulls as well as Poultry Judging.  Poultry judging has nothing to do with a trial and jury, it has to do with grading chickens and eggs in a variety of forms.  Teams of two, three and four people compete in 6 areas to see which team has the overall best score.  The areas are past production hens, oral reasons, breakout eggs, interior eggs, cut up chicken pieces and carcass quality.  If you don't know what is going on in the livestock building you will not understand why we cut up chickens, or have whole cooking chickens hanging up from the tops of the holding pens in the show ring.  But for the youth who took part this year, it was a lot of fun and a great learning experience.
  This year we had 90 youth, from three counties, who signed up to participate in the Junior and Senior Divisions combined.  Those 90 youth made up 21 different teams.  After an hour in the rotation of stations and not being able to talk to each other a group of volunteers worked diligently to judge all their sheets and we came up with the following winners:  In the junior division which is made up of 9-13 year olds in the individual competition, Rebbecca Murray came in third, Amelia Murray second and Alexandria Evans first.  In the junior team division the one and only team competing, the Cumberland County team of Emily Neville, Rebbecca Murry, Amelia Murry, and Mary Ellen Collier took home the first place trophy.
  It got heated in the senior division as two members of the 4-H/FFA state team took home individual trophies.  Jackie Cunao took home the third place trophy while Rosie Diaz, who had the highest individual score of the competition took home the first place trophy.  Both Cunao and Diaz were on the state 4-H poultry team.  Morgan Jackson took home the second place trophy.  In the senior team division the competition was on.  Third place went to the Super Heroes team from St. Paul's FFA made up of Malcolm Hill, Rodney Harrelson, and C.J. Braden.  The second place trophy went to the Super Gansta Ninja team from St. Paul's High School FFA made up of Morgan Jackson, Keri Kinlaw, and Triston Chagolla.  The top team of the competition with an average score of 413 was the combined 4-H/FFA poultry judging team made up of Dustin Nance, Rosie Diaz, and Jackie Cunao.  Congratulations to all of our winners this year!  

Wednesday, October 5, 2011

Let's Talk Turkey

No one laid an egg at this competition, but we all did learn a great deal. For example did you know it is possible to give a turkey a bath and even blow dry it? There is always a first time for everything at the Robeson County Fair and this year that was our first.
We started the poultry show with our laying hens. First up was Lee Pate in our cloverbud age division. The purpose of the show is to allow youth to be comfortable showing their birds, answering questions and seeing who raises the best bird. In the cloverbud division it is all about trying something new and learning. This was Lee's first show and being that it was noncompetitive he received a trophy and cash award for his hard work. In the Junior Division, which is made up of youth between the ages of 9-13 we had two competitors. Justin Lowry took home the red ribbon while Benjamin Herndon was able to take home the blue.
From laying hens we moved on to broilers. Broilers are meat chickens versus laying hens which are raised to lay eggs. Lee Pate raised a great broiler chicken in which he was able to once again receive a trophy and cash award. Benjamin Herndon was our only other competitor and placed first with his broiler.
From there it was time to talk turkey. That's right we had a turkey show. Benjamin Herndon is the first to raise a turkey for Robeson County 4-H in more than 5 years. His turkey, which weighed about 35 pounds was checked by the judge, Robbie Mills, who seemed rather impressed with Benjamin's efforts. Benjamin received first place for his turkey and a cash award. Also because turkeys can not go home due to biohazzard issues, he received premium money for his efforts.

Monday, October 3, 2011

Those Wasically Wabbits!

Traditionally the first Monday of the Robeson County Fair you can see 4-H members hopping to it in the livestock building to show their rabbits. The 4-H rabbit project is part of the animal science program. This year 13 youth raised rabbits and 7 showed off how hard they had worked by bringing their rabbits to the fair.


According to our rabbit judge Glen Privette the hard work was evident. In years past Glenn has said his job was not so difficult because of the range in quality of the rabbits. This year however he said he definitely earned his check because picking between a first and second was really difficult. He said in several cases it came down to how clean their paws were, thus how clean each competitor kept their rabbit pen.

Up first in the show was the cloverbud division. These are our 5 to 8 year olds who show non-competitively. This year only one cloverbud showed at the fair. Maggie Underwood with her rabbit, Mr. Lucky Brown Spots entered the ring (with a little help from one of our 4-H volunteers) for her first ever show. She and the judge talked about Mr. Lucky Brown Spots, she held him in place, petted him and the judge looked him all over and congratulated her, with a trophy for a job well done.

In the Junior 9-10 year old division it was a head to head battle between Buttercup, Tierra Locklear's rabbit and Maxine, Elizabeth's Albright's rabbit. Both girls entered the ring showing poise and control of their animals. It was obvious that both rabbits were used to being handled and they were wonderful little bunnies for the judge. After going back and forth several times, checking for things like ear mites, fur condition, and size the judge asked both girls some questions. Then he was back to the rabbits again trying to determine a winner. It took him several minutes of back and forth to declare Tierra Locklear and Buttercup the first place winners while Elizabeth and Maxine took second.

In the Junior 11-13 age division it was a whiskers difference between each of the competitors. Three young ladies with their rabbits took to the ring for this age category. Terri Lowery and Pepper, Brionna Locklear and Old Yellow, and Destinee Lowry with Flower heated up the show ring even more. After several minutes of examining rabbits, talking with the competitors, and even the rabbits the judge looked at our 4-H Agent and said, "This is another really good group of rabbits and you are making it tough on me this year. I wish I could give them all blue ribbons." Alas he was forced to place these three and finally was able to determine that Terri Lowry with Pepper would take home the blue ribbon, Destinee Lowry and Flower would take home the red, while Brionna Locklear would walk away with white.

After such a tough division it was a pleasure to move on to the last age category, the Seniors who are between the ages of 14 and 18 years old. Anthony Bullard entered the ring with a black and white rabbit, that we kid you not, had a Mohawk. The rabbit did not have a name but during this part of the show Livestock Agent Michelle Shooter determined that we should call the rabbit Oreo, and we think it will stick with her. Anthony and the judge talked all things rabbit, the judge looked Oreo up and down and declared Anthony the blue ribbon winner.

It was an exciting night for everyone as they took a group photo then collected their winnings. Congratulations to all our youth for their hard work. Tomorrow night at the Robeson County Fair will be the hog show starting at 7 pm in the livestock building.

Sunday, October 2, 2011

Join the Revolution

It's funny how this works. Every year during the fair we celebrate a national event, National 4-H week. All over the country special events take place to celebrate this youth development organization with alumni from across the world. Here in Robeson County, the County Commissioners issue a proclamation declaring it National 4-H week. We also celebrate at the fair highlighting our youths accomplishments in animal science, club work, talent, arts and crafts and much more.
This year we also unveiled the new logo that will be used in all of our upcoming marketing, as well as our theme for the upcoming year. Join the Revolution of responsibility highlights the accomplishments of our youth while encouraging them to continue their community service and volunteer work.
Please join us at the Robeson County Agricultural Fair this week as we celebrate our youth and all that 4-H is in this county. If you would like more information about 4-H or being part of a club please call our office at (910) 671-3276 or contact Aggie Rogers, 4-H Program Associate at Aggie_Rogers@ncsu.edu.

Saturday, October 1, 2011

Showing by the Hair of their Chinny Chin Chin

The first animal show of the Robeson County Fair is the 4-H Youth Goat Show. This year after animal check in, it was time to concentrate on one of the largest shows not only of the Robeson County Fair, but the circuit and the state. This year we had more than 60 youth participants with almost 100 goats. That lead to some great competition. We started the event with showmanship. This is where the youth enter the ring (based on age) and are judged for their showing abilities. First off was the cloverbud division. The cloverbuds are 5-8 year olds who have the opportunity to show, but are in a noncompetitive age division. Each child receives a trophy for their efforts. This year showing in the cloverbud division were: Eli Maske, Taylor Chappell, Braxton Butler, Kane Butler, Tyler Gerald, Alex Chappell, Madison McInnis, and Noah Beeson.

Competing in the Junior 9-10 age division were; Faith Thompson, Delani Reep, Savannah Chappell, Coleman Berry, Liberty Cooper, Abigail Hamilton, Grace Fehlman, Eddie Deberry, Thomas Smith, and McKenzie Beeson. After being in the ring and talking with the judge Eddie Deberry walked away with the white ribbon, McKenzie Beeson received the red ribbon, and Savannah Chappell took home the blue ribbon.

In the Junior 11-13 age division the competition got even tougher. Competing in this age division were; Cara Smith, Kayla Butler, Alana McQueen, Kristi Reep, Peggyann Kennedy, Madelyn Chappell, Benjamin Herndon, Michaela McInnis, Brianna Hamilton, Jordan Carroll, Davis Moye, Zac Gerald, and Jaylyn McNair. When the dust had settled in the ring Cara Smith took home third place, Benjamin Herndon took home second, and Michaela McInnis took home the blue ribbon.

The competition multiplied in the senior age division of 14-19 years old. Literally multiplied. Competing in this round were; Grayson McQueen, Morgan Rockwell, Sarah Maske, Nathan Ezzell, Santiago Robinson-Acuna, Dixie Acorn, John Ronald Walton, Jeremy Fehlman, Morgan Huneycutt, Brandon Coats, Sarah Best, HenriAnna Joyner, RayAnn Eldridge, Skyler Powell, Penny King, Sebastian Gomez, Miguel Ortega, Kacie Beeson, Austin Wilson, and Wesley Lewis. After competing in a crowded ring, Dixie Acorn walked way with third, Morgan Honeycutt took home the red ribbon and John Ronald Walton took home the blue.

The fun wasn't over yet. Our cloverbuds got a chance to go back into the ring for extra practice with their very own show. Then it was time for our older 4-H members to take on the market goat show. In this show goats are shown based on their weight. There are three divisions; lightweight, middleweight, and heavyweight. This year the lightweight division was made up of goats weighing between 37 and 69 pounds. We had 25 competitors in this division; Liberty Cooper with Jackson, Eddie Deberry with Piedmont, Thomas Smith with Izzy, Abigail Hamilton with Mudflap, Clara Smith with Boo Boo, Grace Fehlman with Gibbs, Jaylyn McNair with Kirby, Eddie Deberry with Flower, Kristi Reep with Red, Coleman Berry with Elliot, Kacie Beeson with Moon Pie, Kayla Butler with Billy Bob, Dixie Acorn with Winchester, Zac geral with Buddy, Morgan Rockwell with Walker, Delani Reep with SweetBabyRay, Savannah Chappell with Toby, Michaela McInnis with Apache, Madelyn Chappell with Eeorye, McHaela McInnis with Pebbles, Teresa Fehlman with Nighmare, Jeremy Fehlman with Dawn, Sarah Maske with Munchkin, McKenzie Beeson with Cora, Grayson McQueen with Hershey, Santiago Robinson-Acuna with Road Runner. After all the action settled down in the ring the judge had a tough decision. In the end Zac Gerald with Buddy took home the white ribbon, Michael McInnis with Apache took home the red ribbon, while Santiago Robinson-Acuna with Road Runner took home the coveted blue ribbon.
In the middle weight division there were 34 competitors. The goats weights ranged from 71-89 pounds. The competitors in this division were; Kristi Reep with Piere, Michaela McInnis with Sunshine, Brandon Coats with SlingBlade, Madison McInnis with Pixie, Eddie Deberry with Nibbler, Morgan Rockwell with Texas Ranger, Kane Butler with Happy, Coleman Berry with Stampede, Alayna McQueen with 1704, Faith Thompson with Fireball Nathan Ezzell with 1756, Abigail Hamilton with Blossom, HenriAnna Joyner with Steve, Michaela McInnis with Chiingy, Morgan Honeycutt with Pickles, John Ronald Walton with Jimmy, Santiago Robinson-Acuna with Phoenix, Benjamin Hernodn with Trafalgar, Peggyann Kennedy with Spunky, Brianna Hamilton with Wags, Sebastian Gomez with Pablo, Rayann Eldridge with Billy, Kayla Butler with Bocephus, Santiago Acuna-Robinson with Chico, Dixie Acorn with Muzzle Load, Jordan Carroll with Gunsmoke, Morgan Honeycutt with Drewster, Madelyn Chappell with Baby-loo, Taylor Chappell with Chewy, Abigail Hamilton with Specs, Faith Thompson with Cracker Jack, Coleman Berry with Phineas, Sarah Maske with Strawberry, Dakota Clark with Jethro, and Dakota Clark with Lee. In the market shows we do not allow cloverbuds to show however they can get an older showman to show their goat for them, and in the case of a showperson have more than one goat in the same market division we do allow that person to find a subsititute showperson to show the goat in the ring for them. When it was all over with Abigail Hamilton and Specs took home third place, Dakota Clark with Jethro took home second, and Dakota Clark with Lee took home first place.
Next up, heavy weight division. This division had 29 compeititors with goat weights ranging from 90-140 pounds. Compeititors in this weigh division included; Dalton Sells with Darel, Nathan Ezell with Doe, Davis Moye with Rhino, Sarah Best with Weezy, Savannah Chappell with Honeydew, Nathan Ezzell with 1697, Madelyn Chappell with Cooperhead, Coltin Caldwell with Fred, McKenzie Beeson with Butterscotch, Grayson McQueen with 1705, McKenzie Beeson with Vallie, Wesly Lewis, John Ronald Walton with No. 1, Austin Wilson, Brianna Hamilton with Revolution, Jordan Carroll with Fancy, Quindon Rackley with Dirty Harry, Skyler Powell with Shady, Thomas Smith with Vanilla, Kacie Beeson with Mollie, Dalton Sells with Pistol, Jordan Corrol with Supersport, Brianna Hamilton with Caution, Noah Beeson with Minnie, Jordan Carroll with Loretta, Dixie Acorn with Bullet, Grace Fehlman with Nevada, Clara Smith with Chocolate, Michaela McInnis with Roxie, and Eddie Deberry with Annabelle. When it was all said and done Madelyn Chappel and Cooperhead walked away in third place, Dalton Sells and Pistol took home the red ribbon, and Dalton Sells with Daryl took home first place.

It was then time for the grand and reserve champion drives. The first place goats from all three weight divisions were brought into the ring. Dalton Sells with Daryl took home the grand champion trophy while Dalton Sells with Pistol (the second place goat brought in after grand champion was chosen) took home reserve Champion. Congratulations to all of our 4-H winners!!!

After the official 4-H show we have the adult and youth meat goat breeding show. This show is for does and bucks, with the goats being shown by birth date. This is a very popular show with many of the 4-H members staying on to participate. Below is the list of competitors, with their goats, and the placings in this show.

Percentage Doe

Born after 4/1/11-6/30/11
Moye, Davis with Haley's Comet, 1
Evans, Pam with Jeanie, 2
Fehlman, Teresa with V (0018), 5
Fehlman, Jeremy with Alexis, 4
Deberry, Eddie with Flower, 3

Born after 1/1/2011-3/31/2011
Robinson-Acuna, Santiago with Phoenix, 4
Hamilton, Brianna with Revolution, 3
Hamilton, Abigail with Blossom, 6
Moye, Davis with Trixie, 1
Walton, John Ronald with FSW Zinger, 5
Fehlman, Teresa with The Nitemare, 9
Fehlman, Jeremy with Dawn, 8
Honeycutt, Morgan with Hollywood, 2
Deberry, eddie with Nibbler, 7
Smith, Cara with BoBoo, 11
Smith, Thomas with Izzy, 12
Beeson, Kacie with Moon Pie, 10

Born after 10/1/10-12/31/10
Ezzell, Nathan with Doe, 1
Honeycutt, Eric with Sahara, 2

Born after 4/1/10-9/30/10
Honeycutt, Eric with Brownie, 3
Evans, Alex with Sally, 1
Evans, Ashley with Marvelous, 2

Born after 9/1/09- 3/31/10
Beeson, Noah (CB) with Cora, 6
Beeson, McKenzie with Vallie, 5
Moye, Davis with Yellow Bell, 1
Honeycutt, Morgan with Abracadabra, 2
Smith, Cara with Chocolate, 3
Smith, Thomas with Vanilla, 4

Born after 8/01/08- 8/31/09
Walton, John Ronald BRGF Star, 4
Walton, John Ronald with Daisey Mae, 3
Walton, John Ronald with TJD1 Rachel, 2
Crumpler, Christy with Ruby, 1
Fehlman, Grace with Nevada, 6
Honeycutt, Morgan with Lady Gaga, 5
Beeson, Kacie with Mollie, 9
Beeson, McKenzie with Butterscotch, 7
Beeson, Noah (CB) with Minnie, 8

Before before 8/1/08
Crumpler, Kevin with Dori, 1
Crumpler, Christy with Firefly, 3
Crumpler, Christy with Starlight, 2
Evans, Pam with Trixie, 5
Evans, Terry with Sissy, 6
Honeycutt, Morgan with Magnolia, 4
Debrry, Eddie with Annabelle, 8
Deberry, Susan with Isabelle, 7

Grand Champion Davis Moye with Yellow Belle
Reserve Champion Davis Moye with Trixie

Full Blood Doe

Born after 4/1/11-6/30/11
Rockwell, Morgan with Isabelle, 3
Evans, Alex with Peaches, 4
Evans, Joyce with Isabelle, 1
Honeycutt, Eric with Tater, 2

Born After 1/1/2010-3/31/2011
Carroll, Jordan with Fancey, 1
Simmons, Scott with Rose, 2

Born After 10/1/10-12/31/10
Rockwell, Morgan with Houdinni, 4
Carroll, Jordan with Loretta, 1
Walton, John Ronald with FSW Twinky, 2
Honeycutt, Morgan with Big Red, 3

Born After 4/1/10-9/30/10
Evans, Joyce with Lollipop, 1
Evans, Alex with Patches, 3
Evans, Pam with Abbygail, 2

Born After 9/01/09- 3/31/10
Rockwell, Morgan with Ginger, 2
Walton, John Ronald with FSW Morgan, 1

Born After 8/01/08-8/31/09
Honeycutt, Eric with Spot-O-Gold, 1

Born Before 8/1/08
Rockwell, Morgan with Cloe, 5
Rockwell, Morgan with Daisy, 6
Dial, Earnest with Galaxy, 2
Evans, Ashley with Gracie, 4
Evans, Pam with rebecca, 7
Huneycutt, Morgan with Lola, 3

Grand Champion is Davis Moye with Daffidill
Reserve Champion is John Ronald Walton with Morgan

Full Blood Bucks

Born after 4/1/11-6/30/11
Evans, Alex with Brutus, 1

Born after 9/1/09- 3/31/10
Dial, Earnest with Mr. BoJangles, 1

Born after 8/01/08- 8/31/09
Dial, Earnest with Bud Light, 1

Before before 8/1/08
Dial, Earnest with Bud BadBoy, 1
Evans, Richard with Treebrand, 2

Grand Champion is Tommy McPhail with Budlight
Reserve Champion is Tommy McPhail with Bad Boy Bud

Friday, September 30, 2011

Who's the Fairest of them All?

Today marks the opening of the 66th annual Robeson Regional Agricultural Fair. It also marks the unveiling of all the hard work our 4-H members and volunteers have done with the club fair booths. Over the last few years there has been increased competition in this wonderful fundraising opportunity for our clubs. This year there were 13 booths in the 4-H area that answered the question...."4-H is...?". For each of our clubs 4-H is a little something different, which is hard for some people to understand. You see the concept of cows and cooking still are strong images when people see the clover. However I think our clubs did their best to illustrate the different attributes of 4-H.
This year the clubs that set up booths included: Bladen Ambassadors, Dirty Dozen 4-H Shooting Sports Club, Dirty Rascals Junior Master Gardener 4-H Club, Horsin' Around 4-H Horse Club, Inspirational Youth Leaders, Spiritual Generations, St. Paul's 4-H Pony Club, Super Clovers, United We Stand, Voices in Praise 4-H club, and Young Leaders. Over the past few years the fair booths have gotten very competitive. While it is a good spirited competition we must admit that that the creativity and quality of the booths has really increased as well. "I would say several of these booths are state fair quality booths," said Cathy Graham the Robeson County Extension Director. That is one of the things that made it hard for our judge this year. He spent more time trying to determine a winner in the 4-H booths than the other two areas combined. He narrowed it down to three, then two. Then he judged all the booths and came back to put on the ribbon for the best overall booth. When it was said and done the Dirty Rascals Junior Master gardener 4-H Club took second place for their thriller, spiller filler booth while the Dirty Dozen 4-H Shooting Sports Club took first and best overall for their fired up on safety booth.
St. Paul's and the Lumber River Federation FFA booths also took first and second in the FFA division. Congratulations to all of our booth winners at the fair!
Booths aren't the only place to see 4-H members at the fair. You can see some of their handiwork as part of the crafts, crops and art exhibits. Starting Saturday you will be able to see their hard work at the fair for those who raised animals. 4-H Animal check in starts at 8 am in the livestock building. Our first 4-H show of the season will begin at 2 pm.

Wednesday, September 28, 2011

Growing Communities


Robeson County Farmers have the opportunity to make a difference for Robeson County 4-H youth and Volunteers. Once again this year Monsanto is rewarding farmers and supporting agricultural education through their Growing Communities program. Eligible farmers have the chance to win $2,500 dollars that will go to a local nonprofit of their choice. Entrants must be 21 years or older and actively engaged in farming a minimum of 250 acres of corn, soybeans and/or cotton, or 40 acres of open field vegetables, or at least 10 acres of vegetables grown in protected culture. Entrants must reside in eligible counties where a minimum of 30,000 acres of corn and/or soybeans and/or cotton and/or vegetables are planted each year (Robeson County is an eligible county). Farmers who were eligible and/or participated in the program in 2010 may also make an application for 2011 if they meet the eligibility requirements.
To register all a farmer has to do is go to Monsanto's Grow Communities web site and register. If you know an eligible farmer please ask them to register and choose Robeson County 4-H as their benefactor. Farmers have until November 30th to register.

Saturday, September 17, 2011

Focusing In on the Fair

The Dirty Dozen 4-H Shooting Sports Club met to finalize their fair booth plans. As part of their meeting they painted objects that would go in the booth, planned the spacing and what supplies might be needed for the youth to bring to finish off their booth. The plans for this club's booth are also top secret. So top secret as a matter of fact that we could not take photos of the plans for the blog post.
Also as part of this meeting the club members were required to give a speech on shooting sports. Each member did a impromptu speech which ranged on topics from safety to rifle mechanics, and even the benefits of different shooting positions. After receiving feedback from their club leaders Larry Russ and Peggy Monk the group finished up the details of their fair booth props and then adjourned.
The next club meeting will be held on October 28th at the Robeson County Fair Grounds starting at 4:30 to set up their fair booth.

Tuesday, September 13, 2011

Thrilling, Filling, and Spilling into the Fair

The Dirty Rascal Junior Master Gardener 4-H Club met this evening and went over their top secret fair booth plans. Now no one privileged to the plans is allowed to say too much but I can say they talked about thrilling planters, information that will fill your life, and plants that will spill over to make a statement. We were also told that fiber optics and woodworking projects will be included. Club leaders Ms. Messy Missy and Mrs. Tanya also worked with the youth on their special containers for planting.
After all the plans and container review there was time to be crafty. Mrs. Tanya had special 4-H crafts that she handed out to everyone. Each person got a chance to make a 4-H Christmas Ornament and a beaded 4-H key chain. The craft art kits are from oriental trading and were a lot of fun to make. Our older youth help the younger ones with any of the details that involved fine motor skills.
The club's next meeting will take place at the Robeson County Fairgrounds as they get ready to do their booth. That meeting will take place September 28th starting at 4:30 pm.

Monday, September 12, 2011

Special Election Called



As you may remember in August we held elections for County Council Officers and Volunteer Leader Officers. However a motion was made to table the meeting for County Council Officer elections to a later date. Today is that later date and boy, did our youth get the job done.

Christian McRae, was President-Elect and help run the elections for this year. Korina Pittman and T'Asia Shelby had already submitted their nomination forms for Secretary and Reporter so we needed to come up with a Parliamentarian and President-Elect for the coming year since Christian will become President. Nominations were opened from the floor and Dillon McCartney was nominated for Parliamentarian and Shabreya Vample and Justin Moore were nominated to run for President-Elect.

The ballots went out to each club with members present and Christian with a guiding volunteer hand counted the votes. When it was all over with Christian McRae will be the incoming President, Shabreya Vample will be President-Elect, Korina Pittman will be Secretary-Treasurer, T'Asia Shelby will be reporter and Dillon McCartney will be the new Parliamentarian. Our new officers will be inducted as part of the 4-H Youth Achievement event on December 2nd.

They will have orientation held on October 24 at the 4-H office at 6:30 pm.

Thursday, August 25, 2011

It's a Wonder Our Teens had Fun

Volunteer service. That is one of the things we try to stress as part of our 4-H program. It is important for our youth to give back to their community and realize they are serving as a role model for younger youth who will one day follow in their footsteps. This summer we had four teen volunteers that we recognized; Chris Bullard, Megan Hurst, Korina Pittman and Santiago Acuna-Robinson. All four youth spent days and weeks of their summer working with other youth and volunteering (granted in a couple of cases they might have been voluntold) for various projects. Of course, they do not expect payment or reward for their efforts so that makes it especially nice when we can offer them something to say thank you for their help.
The teen volunteer retreat location was a secret. It was top secret as the teens tried to bribe their 4-H Agent with Diet Coke, hugs, undying grattitude and other spendiferous things to learn the final destination. However they would not learn the secret destination until we walked through the front doors of the most wonderful place we have gone yet.
We loaded our van up and pulled out just before ten. After a leasurly drive to Mrytle Beach we hunted for a destination lunch spot. Joe's crabshack seemed like the perfect location to scan the tourist attractions and check out all sorts of fun places. Little did our teen volunteers know that our table overlooked our destination spot and they worked to figure out where we were going. Things such as ice skating, zip lines, and sky diving were all mentioned. After a few photos and an filling lunch (but not too filling becuase as we told them, they were going to be active after lunch) we loaded back up and headed towards the main attraction.
Aggie and Shea Ann pulled a few more bluffs on the teens before heading into one of Mrtyle Beach's newest attractions, Wonder Works. Wonder works is a hands on science fun palace, or as they term it an amusement park for the mind. It includes activities such as an indoor ropes coourse, laser tag, and an adreline package. What our youth didn't know was this was not only a retreat for them to learn and have fun but we were using them to determine if this would be a good spot for our Bio-tech day camp. At the end of the day I can tell you they gave it a resounding two thumbs up and asked if they could come back.
Some of the things we experienced were super natural. We started in a hurricane wind tunnel where our youth donned safety glasses before experiencing hurricane force winds and had to hang on or they would have been tossed against a wall. From there they experienced the 360 bicycles. These extreme machines would rotate them up and over if they peddled hard enough. Santiago and Korina's efforts got them around not just one time but two. There were examples of levers and pullies attached to seats. As you sat in them you were expected to pull yourself up. It sounds and looks easier than it is, especially if you don't have the right set up on the pullies. There were grip machines, virtual air hockey, video walls, jumping meters, pitching machines, and so much more. All of that was just on the first floor.
Our youth were so excited about laser tag that they skiped over the next floor and went straight to the top level. There they played laser tag and braved the indoor ropes course that ran along the rather high ceiling in a rather large room. They were attached to steal beams and could chose which way to go and what obstacles to face. Unfortunatley that is all the time we had as we had to drive home to meet waiting parents. Needless to say our teens were exhausted but had a wonderful time, learned something and knew that their volunteer efforts were appreciated. We hope that they will continue to volunteer with 4-H and give back to their community in the future.