Iowa 4-H Alumni & Friends

County fairs are now in full swing across the state of Iowa! Fair time around Iowa means food, fun, family, friends, animals, exhibits, competitions, royalty, concerts and so much more! Iowa 4-H members from all across the state prepare their projects, exhibits, and animals to head to their fairgrounds. Fairground crews work around the clock to clean up the venue and make sure that it is in tip-top shape for opening day. Board and committee members add the final touches and details to all events to make sure that everything runs as smoothly as possible. They really dedicate all of their time to making each county fair the best it can be, and I am sure that I am speaking on behalf of all 4-H members when I say this, but I really appreciate all of their hard work! One of the many things that I love about Iowa is that each fair is different and unique in its own way. Each fair has its own attributes that makes it one-of-a-k...

In response to a question posed by a volunteer, we thought you might be interested in knowing what is being done to help the local county Extension staff transition to a new Extension structure in Iowa. Here is the response from Joe Leisz, Executive Director of the Iowa 4-H Foundation. I read the editorial from the Register and have had the opportunity to attend two of the listening sessions where extension director Jack Payne discussed the budget situation, background, and decisions that were made. I've also had the chance to visit with many of our County Extension Education Directors and Area Extension Education Directors -- this is a rough time personally for many of them and anything we can do to listen and help and provide personal support is important to do. Our 4-H Foundation, under the leadership of our president, Dennis Goering, and trustees like Rozanne King and Barb Determan (among others) took the lead to limit the budget cuts dealt to 4-H, and they are continuing with ...