Youth & Family News

West Virginia 4-H is excited to launch the virtual 2022 State 4-H Confident Speaker Series! This four-part series will prepare 4-H members to go for the gold in 4-H Presentations! Youth will have the opportunity to experience developing a 4-H presentation from start to finish with support from Extension educators and previous State 4-H Presentation Expo gold ribbon winners! Prizes will be awarded.

While thinking about ways people could get up and move more in their community during the COVID-19 pandemic, Carter Takarsh and the Clover STEMs 4-H LEGO® Robotics team members decided that their area needed a Little Free Library®. Their community of Fraziers Bottom is far away from any of Putnam County’s public libraries. In addition to building and installing a Little Free Library at the intersection of three subdivisions in the community, Takarsh planned to provide starter books for the library.

Many residents have to leave the comfort of their home, neighbors, friends, and most of their personal belongings when they move into a nursing facility to receive care. The Pleasants County 4-H teen leaders wanted to ensure that the residents know that they are valued and acknowledged for their roles in the community. The teens made a case for friendship with residents by bringing a small source of comfort to those who may need a helping hand.

"Give what you can. Take what you need." That is the motto of the Blessing Box that the Denim & Dirt 4-H Club saw a need for in their local community. A Blessing Box is a mini-pantry stocked with canned vegetables and proteins, personal care items, paper items, kid-friendly non-perishables, and special seasonal treats.

Every nine minutes, someone is diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. The five-year survival rate is only 10%. Pancreatic patients and survivors need hope. Stephanie Santilli's family was impacted when her uncle passed away from pancreatic cancer in 2007. He truly appreciated homemade items that were given to him. Santilli wanted to give others hope, so she stepped up to coordinate the "Purple Scarf of Hope project."

In 2018, a new 4-H council circle was built at Holly Gray Park in Braxton County. Two years later, the new benches in this campfire circle were still bare wood. Drina Kearns saw a need to clean, stain, and seal the benches to keep the structure maintained for coming years.

Aleynah Miller saw a need in her community. "Camp Frame has been around for a long time, and it is very near and dear to many of those in Berkeley, Morgan, and Jefferson county. Camp Frame is a place that we can all go and be ourselves with friends that we have made there that will last a lifetime. With that being said, some of the buildings are getting old and need a little 4-H love to help fix them up."

Are you a motivated 4-H member who likes to create mobile videos and speak in front of a camera? West Virginia University Extension Service is taking the lead on developing video-based learning experiences focused on climate change and we need your help!

West Virginia 4-H is excited to kick off virtual 4-H Special Interest (SPIN) clubs for 2022. These virtual 4-H SPIN clubs will focus on different topic areas and will last between four to six sessions. Additional virtual SPIN clubs will come online throughout the winter, so stay tuned for more February and March clubs!

For the past two years the West Virginia 4-H All Stars have generously funded to eleven mini-grants for West Virginia 4-H teens/teen leader groups to assist in the planning and completion of a community service project through the My Hands to Larger Service 4-H Project.