4-H Clubs Awarded Funds

July 18, 2013

LINCOLN, Neb. — The Governor's Agricultural Excellence Awards, created in

1996 and sponsored by the Nebraska Investment Finance Authority, were presented to 25 4-H clubs during the PASE/Life Challenge Event at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln July 1.

The award is designed to recognize accomplishments of the members of a

4-H Club based on community service projects, service learning and collective individual accomplishments in agriculture-related project areas.  After a review of their proposal, the successful clubs each received a $500 stipend to fund their projects. No state tax dollars were used in the program.

"NIFA is proud to continue this tradition of supporting 4-H in building youth leadership for communities and agriculture," said Tim Kenny, NIFA's executive director.

The 4-H Club award winners and their counties were:

– Arthur County Achievers and Believers Club: The club plans to build a cement pad at the Arthur Country Grade School. Their goal is to build a large area that elementary school kids can play basketball, jump rope and play during recess.

– Greely County's Bees and Butterflies 4-H Club: The club would like to purchase two portable fans to be used in the livestock barns during the county fair. With these fans they can keep all animals cool during the hot August temperatures.

– Cedar County Junior Leaders: They would like to plan a CPR and First Aid certification class so that when they are assisting with 4-H activities or going about their daily lives, they have the necessary skills to help people in distress.

– Central Banner 4-H Club: The club would like to do a community-improvement project that will enhance the fairgrounds by installing a new watering trough, adding new hoses and valves for wash racks, and putting up new signs around the fairgrounds for visitors.

– Cheyenne County's Homesteaders 4-H Club: The club plans to offer training, leadership, and learning opportunities for the members in robotics. They want to learn the applications of robotics programming in agricultural and industrial fields by building and programming Lego robotics kits and participating in local and regional competitions against other 4-H teams.

– Colon Hustlers 4-H Club, Saunders County: The club would like to raise funds to purchase an Automated External Defibrillator. An AED is used in cases of life threatening cardiac arrhythmias which lead to cardiac arrest.

– Country Bumpkins of Douglas-Sarpy counties: They would like to fund a youth development program that encourages career development for 4-H youth to pursue a career in the agriculture industry or a career in the natural resources industry.

– Diamond Willow 4-H Club, Buffalo County: They plan to plant flowers around the fairgrounds. The will put banners with each flower pot that shows what 4-H stands for and what the pledge is.

– Equines Unlimited 4-H Club in Douglas and Sarpy counties:  The club wants to create a summer long program that incorporates the motto "Helping Others Realize Super Equines." One part of the program will educate 4-H youth members on safety and other horsemanship skills. The second part involves promoting horses at the 4-H Festival of Fun Sarpy/Douglas County day campus and will involve the youth and our most docile horses in leadership activities.

– Fair and Square 4-H Club from Saline County: The club plans to fix the broken benches in our fairgrounds or replace the benches that are beyond repair to allow 4-Hers to learn about safety in cutting wood and the basic principles of angles and building.

– Hadar Handy Helpers from Pierce County: The club would like to improve the Pierce County 4-H building by cleaning the lattice shelves and display cases, and by painting them.

– Holt Country's Horses Unlimited Club: The club plans to donate 100 Easter baskets to kids in the Bright Horizons domestic abuse shelter. The baskets will include stuffed animals, health and beauty items, such as brushes and toothbrushes, and eggs, toys and candy.

– The Knox County Knockouts: The club would like to pay for two new trees to be transplanted from a tree farm to the Knox County fairgrounds. The club wants to do their part in helping the fairgrounds committee improve the fairgrounds.

– The Lively Livestock Club from York County: The club plans to improve their community of Benedict's public landscape area.

– Loup Valley from Sherman County: The club plans to expand their Children's Barnyard at the Sherman County Fair. They would like to add a TV/dvd player, along with agricultural education DVDs, as well as new agriculture books and art supplies for the AG ART Center, along with an incubator and chick eggs.

– Nance County Hot Shots: The club wants to build handicap accessible parking on the grounds of the Nance County Veterans Memorial located in Fullerton. The 4-H Club members will assist in the site selection and preparation for the proposed parking area.

– Pleasant Dale 4-H Club, Cedar County: The club wants to paint and number the stalls at the beef/dairy barn at the county fairgrounds. They will purchase paint and other supplies to spruce up the building as well as two new wheel barrows and shovels to add to the supplies used during the fair to keep the barn clean.

– Stanton County's Purple Ribbon Club: The club plans on putting together first aid kits for the Stanton County Fairgrounds. The will make about ten kits that will be weather proof, and some will be mobile.

– Sandhills Saddles and Spurs, Grant County: The club would like to hire a professional American Quarter Horse Association approved horseman/clinician to come to Grant County and present a clinic on the working cow-horse event. They would like to offer the clinic to 4-H members as well as to the public.

– Seward County's Staplehurst Livestock Club: The club would like to purchase an automated external defibrillator for the Seward County Fairgrounds.

– Wayne County Teen Supremes: The club would like to develop informational animal agricultural displays for the fairgrounds. These displays would contain facts about the species exhibited at fair and pictures of animals and possible career choices related to them.

– Webster County Junior Leaders: The club plans on working in conjunction with their county fair board to renovate and make additions to their current 4-H exhibit hall, as well as installing heating and air, insulation, new wiring and lighting, and new restrooms.

– Western Nebraska 4-H Shooting Sports, Scotts Bluff County: The club has expanded its program to include all shooting disciplines and has begun the process of opening a range open to all 4-Hers. All money generated will be used for the youth and put back into the program.

– Morrill County's Western Trails 4-H Club: The club is planning on holding three workshops to help show new members on how to be successful with their chosen projects. Proposed workshops are a market animal clinic, cooking/food decorating clinic, and an arts and crafts clinic.

– Wildcats from Stanton County: The club plans to help the Stanton Garden Club with a Downtown Beautification Project. They will plan flowers with the Garden Club in existing pots that are located in the downtown area.