Celebrating Memories of 2017 USPS-525-100
EXTENSION CONNECTION
VOLUME LXXXXVIIII No. 1
JANUARY 2018
Share Your Favorite 2017 Memory and Photo! How did Cornell Cooperative Extension Sullivan County shape your memories of 2017? Tell us and we will include your memory in our 2017 Annual Report “scrapbook” to be mailed out soon. Send by:
January 15, 2018
Email to: nas96@cornell.edu Or, Mail to:
CCE Sullivan Attn: Annual Report 64 Ferndale-Loomis Road Liberty, NY 12754
*Please keep your memory to 2-3 sentences so we can include everyone’s story. Thank you!
Cornell Cooperative Extension Sullivan County Staff Share Their Favorite Memories
“Young adults taking the time to go through a long term leadership training and putting in the work to make progress in their lives is inspiring as an educator.” –Sean Welsh Energy & Consumer Educator
“The CRC and Alzheimer’s Association were impressed and moved by so many dedicated caregivers who shared their touching stories during our ‘giving thanks’ circle.”
“CCE offered an alternative to unhealthy candy for children looking for a fun snack, with Frankenstein apple treats donated by local orchards and designed by staff!”
“County Legislator Alan Sorensen played guitar for over 200 folks at our popular farm-fresh chicken barbeque and auction! Local food was prepared in the CCE Catskills Kitchen.”
–Bonnie Lewis RN Dependent Care Educator
–SueAnn Boyd Healthy Schools Coordinator
–Michelle Lipari Agriculture Educator
“It’s been a pleasure getting to know and work alongside the MG Volunteers. One participant who couldn’t make it graduated via FaceTime- welcome to 2018!” –Dayna Gaeta Community Horticulture Program Coordinator
8 Tips for a Happy, Healthy 2018 1. Find Your Motivation & Have a Plan Get clear about what you want, and then use that to inspire you throughout your journey. If you were to go on a long road trip, you wouldn’t just jump in the car and go. If you did, you’d arrive hungry, tired, and fatigued. That’s the same way you’d feel if you jumped into a whole new lifestyle with no planning. Outline the changes you want to implement and decide how you’ll fit them into your schedule. 2. Make Goals Goals help measure progress. If you don’t know where you want to end up, you won’t really know how to get there. When making your goals, make SMART goals: Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, and Timely. For example, a SMART goal would be: “I will walk for 15 minutes 3 days for one week”. Or, “I will prepare one new healthy recipe each week for the month of January”. 3. Track What You Eat Looking closely at what you eat is often an eye-opening experience. You don’t have to do it for the rest of your life, but it is a great habit to start. Tracking will help you tweak your diet so that you can still enjoy foods you love without sabotaging your weight loss or healthy eating efforts. 4. Use Reliable Resources It may be tempting to try a fad diet, but these are usually unrealistic, difficult to maintain, and sometimes even dangerous. Instead, find a reliable source of information to help you understand nutrition! Cornell Cooperative Extension offers a number of tools and resources, or you can consult a registered dietitian (RD) in your area. An RD is specially trained and can give you tips to help you achieve your specific goals. 5. Eat Breakfast Every Day & Fill Up on Vegetables Eat a big healthy breakfast as early as possible. It will give you more energy, lead you to make healthier choices during the day, and keep you feeling full so you eat less later on. For lunch and dinner, vegetables are filled with nutrients, water, fiber, and very few calories. If you fill half of your plate with vegetables, you’ll get fuller faster and cut down your calories without feeling deprived. Use herbs and spices to jazz up vegetables instead of using butter and/or salt to flavor them. 6. Get your zzzzzzzz’s. People who get healthy amounts of sleep (at least seven hours a night) have an easier time maintaining a healthy weight. There are a lot of reasons: First, when we’re sleep-deprived, we tend to eat more overall and eat food that’s less healthy — in part because sleep deprivation reduces activity in the brain’s frontal cortex, where our rational decision-making (e.g., choosing to exercise, choosing healthy foods and practicing portion control) happens. Sleep deprivation also affects the hormones ghrelin and leptin. Lack of sleep increases ghrelin levels (which leads to hunger and influences the body to use less energy and retain more fat) and decreases leptin, a hunger-controlling hormone. 7. Know Your Debits & Credits It’s important to understand monthly spending patterns and to budget accordingly. This entails creating a personal income statement to identify revenues and expenses, and a balance sheet to determine financial worth. Just looking at spending by category can help plan for future expenses. Understanding the difference between a need and a want and carving out money for emergencies will help, too! 8. Take It Slow A major mistake many people make when trying to tackle a resolution is trying to do everything at once. Instead, spend a few weeks trying to achieve 1-2 goals at a time. Remember: You want to make permanent changes, and these will take time. Be prepared for lapses; it’s a normal part of the process, no one is perfect! Sources “New Year, New Start.” Rush University Medical Center. Accessed December 27, 2017. https://www.rush.edu/health-wellness/discover-health/newyear-new-start. “New Year’s Resolutions: Four Tips for Financial Success in 2014.” Ashford University. Accessed December 27, 2017. https://www.ashford.edu/about/ media-room/press-releases/new-years-resolutions-four-tips-for-financial-success-in-2014. “10 Tips to Help You Achieve Your New Year’s Health Goals / Nutrition.” / Nutrition. Accessed December 27, 2017. https://www.fitday.com/fitnessarticles/nutrition/10-tips-to-help-you-achieve-your-new-years-health-goals.html.
Happy new year, friends! I hope you all made it through the year’s first snow fall and the holiday stretch safe, sound, cozy, and loved. For many, it’s a time of rest, reflection, and rejuvenation; and well deserved! I’m sure you noticed this month’s “magazine” is a bit on the light side. We’ve been working hard to pull together the highlights from 2017 and wanted to be sure we got the stories just right before publishing 1,000 copies. If you have an Extension story to tell, there’s still time! Send us your highlights, CCE Sullivan achievements and testimonials, and special photos by January 15 for a chance to star in the 2017 Annual Report, to be published in the February Extension Connection! A few neat notable items to mention now: • The Sullivan County Legislature voted to increase CCE Sullivan’s county allocation for the first time in ten years! THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU to the Legislature for recognizing Extension’s important work in the community, and to our constituency for your support in those efforts! • CCE Sullivan received TWO letters from Governor Andrew Cuomo last month, recognizing our efforts to expand 4-H afterschool programs in Monticello and Fallsburg, and the outreach we’re doing around the county to improve health in Sullivan County. • Nearly 200 people joined us at New Hope Community to celebrate CCE Sullivan’s 103rd Annual Meeting. CCESC board, staff members, and partners in wellness recognized more than 20 volunteers, businesses, and community partners for their commitments to service and health in 2017 • The October, November, and December enrollment and direct mail campaigns raised more than $4,000 which helped us work with Superior Surfacing Systems through Thanksgiving to replace the crumbling sidewalks around the Extension Education Center, and repair and repave the parking lot around the critical access points to the building, improving accessibility for individuals with disabilities. If you have a chance, stop by to check out their beautiful work! We’ll keep making our “asks” throughout the year so we can finish the rest as soon as possible. There’s lots more to share but I want to hold off until next month’s Annual Report. There, you’ll also meet CCE Sullivan’s 2018 Board of Directors, which is welcoming six new members! We’re really excited about the diversity of experience and skill sets that will carry us into the future. In closing, I enjoy having this space to write to you folks each month. It gives me an opportunity to give you a peek into some of the strategic, behind-the-scenes things that contribute to keeping CCE running; a way to speak directly to you about why I think Extension work in Sullivan County is so valuable; and most importantly, a way to say how grateful I, and our team are to each and every one of you, our constituents, for sharing this community with us. Until next month, stay warm and enjoy each other’s company! Warm Regards, Colleen Monaghan, Executive Director, cm638@cornell.edu
imes you just “Moo! Somet d time with a have to spen kid again!” cow and be a naghan, –Colleen Mo ector ir Executive D
The Extension Connection (USPS-525-100) is published monthly for $25.00 enrollment by Cornell Cooperative Extension Sullivan County, located at 64 Ferndale-Loomis Road, Suite 1, Liberty, NY 12754-2903. Entered at Liberty, New York, as a periodical class matter. Acceptance for mailing at special rate of postage provided for in section 412, Act of February 24, 1925. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Extension Connection, 64 Ferndale-Loomis Road, Suite 1, Liberty, NY 12754-2903.
Get Social with Us in 2018 Facebook @CCESullivan
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Twitter @CCESullivan
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an Upcoming Programs at CCE Sulliv Jan 1-Jun 30 Jan 10-Feb 14 Jan 12 Feb 4 Feb 7 Feb 9 Mar 5 Mar 31 Apr 12 Apr 19 Apr 26 May 20 Jun 3
Ongoing
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4-H Horse & Livestock Photo Con
s at Action Toward Independence
Living Healthy, Living Well Serie
6:30—8:00 pm
4-H Animal Science: Poultry! 4-H Regional Horse Conf. 2018
12:30—3:00 pm
at CCE Orange Cty (Snow: Feb 11)
12:00—2:00 pm
agement (Snow: Feb 22)
12:00—3:00 pm
CRISP Invasive Species ID & Man
4-H Youth Dog Program (Snow:
Feb 16)
al Design (Snow: Mar 6)
Intro to Permaculture & Ecologic
5:30—7:30 pm 10:30 am—12:00 pm
p
Just Prune It! Tree Pruning Worksho
lity Assurance Certification
4-H Youth Vet Science: Youth Qua
6:00—7:30 pm
rgency & Rescue
6:00—7:30 pm
al & Basic Pet First Aid
6:00—7:30 pm
Barrel/Composter Pick-Up Day
10:00 am—2:00 pm
4-H Youth Vet Science: Equine Eme 4-H Youth Vet Science: Small Anim Master Gardener Plant Sale & Rain
6:30—8:30 pm
s, Jeffersonville
ic, Stone Wall Farm Multi-Species Showmanship Clin
1:00—3:00 pm
-Loomis n Education Center on 64 Ferndale Extension Sullivan County Extensioregistration is required. Sorry, no refunds. tive pera Coo ell Corn the at ed. Paid preAll workshops held otherwise indicated. Space is limit Road in Liberty, NY 12754 unless office, or by mail. in e, onlin it; cred or k, chec , Payment is accepted in cash