4-H Clover Press York County | July 2020 NEWSLETTER ARTICLES • • • • •
Summer Assistants-pg 1 4-H Is Not Closed-pg 1 State 4-H Opportunities-pgs 2 and 3 PA 4-H Clover Award Program-pg 3 Club News-pgs 4 and 5
SUMMER ASSISTANTS
My name is Taylor Grim. This fall will be the start of my senior year as a student at York College of Pennsylvania. Come May, I will graduate with a degree in Early Childhood Education. This internship has kept me busy this summer, despite the adjustments that had to be made in regards to the new virtual format. I have enjoyed myself very much, as this internship combined two of my favorite things, working with kids and agriculture. Some of you may know me from 4-H, as I’m a local to York Co. I graduated from Spring Grove High School in 2017 and spent a few years as a member of the Kiddin’ Around 4-H Goat Club. This summer I had the opportunity to create and organize a “Design Your Own Food Truck" activity, as well as work alongside other 4-H educators to create virtual camps and shows for 4-H members across PA to participate in. It has been a learning experience for me and many others this summer, but one that I will always be grateful to say I was part of. Hello everyone! My name is Jenny Ngo and I am one of the interns for 4-H this summer. Currently, I am an upcoming sophomore at Temple University, studying biology. So far this summer, I have been creating the York history scavenger hunts.
Penn State Extension-York Co. 2401 Pleasant Valley Rd., Suite 101, York PA 17402 Phone—717-840-7408 M-F 8:00 am - 4:30 pm YorkExt@psu.edu 4-H Website: https://extension.psu.edu/programs/4-h/counties/york Newsletter in cooperation with the 4-H Staff: Lisa Witmer, 4-H Youth Dev. Educator lhj5007@psu.edu Linda Spahr, 4-H Youth Dev. Educator lis4@psu.edu Pam Tracey, 4-H Youth Dev. Educator pat14@psu.edu Pam Broady, Assist. 4-H Urban Educator PXB444@psu.edu
extension.psu.edu
4-H IS NOT CLOSED
Hi folks, I know many of you are frustrated with 4-H right now and I share that frustration. I do want to try to help you understand some of the whys behind the current situation. We all need to understand Penn State University covers more than 4-H. The university has oversight over the 4-H program and must meet guidelines set by Federal and State mandates because we get funding from both State and National levels. We need to keep in mind that one county can be seeing virtually no new COVID cases while another county is seeing an alarming increase. The statistics change daily. Because the 4-H leadership team must consider ALL PA counties, the requirements for meetings may seem unfair, but it is in our best interest. 4-H staff have been involved in producing and promoting numerous virtual meetings and events. I believe that will continue at least until the new year. All 4-H staff are planning to fill out the required paperwork so clubs can meet face to face, however there is no guarantee our request will be approved. All face to face meetings will need to have an educational component and we will need to show the meeting can not be held virtually. The 4-H Center will have capacity signs for each room and our caretakers will spray down all common surfaces following events and meetings. I do not think we will be allowed to have club banquets this year, so we will need to be creative in how we recognize our members. All national and out of state events are canceled for PA 4-H youth for this year. I agree, it is a tremendous heartache for those members who are aging out of 4-H. I am hoping we can hold some type of recognition ceremony when COVID restrictions are lifted. The good news is there are lots of things we can still do virtually. There are educational games and activities we can do via Zoom meetings and we can still educate our 4-H youth while meeting the guidelines. Penn State staff have been told to work from home until at least the end of the year unless it is impossible for us to work from home. The Extension Office is open, however, you will need to wear a mask to visit and will have your temperature taken before you are allowed past the security guard. As we move to fall and winter, we will do our best to keep you all up to date and will, if possible, hope to meet with you face to face. In the mean time, be safe and remember this won’t last forever! Linda, York County 4-H Coordinator