Iowa 4-H Alumni & Friends

Our 4-H alumna of the month, Cheryl (King) Pence, was a 4-H member in Hardin County. She attributes her good public speaking skills to having to get up in front of other kids in her club to do a talk and a demonstration. “Getting up in front of the other members was terrifying at first, but the members made me feel right at ease,” said Pence who believes that her early training made her feel more comfortable with public speaking today. When Cheryl was a 4-Her, there were girls 4-H clubs and boys 4-H clubs. In girls club, she took part in sewing, cooking, and home improvement. One time she even represented her club at the county level as Best Groomed Girl, which is similar to today’s clothing events. She showed beef in the boys clubs which she loved immensely. “I had many first place winners, and in my last year of   4-H, I had the Grand Champion steer. What an honor! ” said Pence. Through these projects she learned the hard work it takes to care for animal...

This summer we will be welcoming 1,100 4-H’ers back to camp where they will have the opportunity to explore, have fun, be creative, and learn! Before the first group of campers arrive, we must raise $15,000, through our new campaign “Beds for Heads,” in order to purchase new bunk beds for Oak Lodge. We are excited to use Oak Lodge this year because that means more campers! Each set of wood, steel reinforced bunks costs $1,000 and includes mattresses, ladders, and safety rails. We're asking camp supporters to help us reach this goal and secure these beds for our campers' heads! In order to reach our goal we have a special way of fundraising. Each week, Iowa State University Collegiate 4-H and Alumni volunteers make calls to donors to raise funds to support the efforts of the Iowa 4-H Foundation. This on-going fundraising effort raises vital dollars to support programs and opportunities for Iowa's 4-H’ers."It is a great way for me to give back. As a 4-H alum from ...

Proud. That is how our April Alum of the Month, Renae Drey, describes herself when talking about 4-H. Renae is a proud first generation 4-H member and volunteer.  She was involved in County 4-H programs, State 4-H Council, State 4-H Conference, National 4-H Conference, and National 4-H Congress. “All of these experiences have given me the opportunities I could have never imagined possible,” Renae said. Renae started 4-H to try new things because she always asked herself, “Why not?” At first, Renae took on many different projects but ended up narrowing down to four of her strongest areas, Citizenship, Leadership, Communications, and Consumer Management. She earned a State 4-H project award for three of her four project areas.  In seventh grade, Renae completed her first citizenship project, by leading her 4-H club in making fleece blankets for a local nonprofit organization. After that first project, Renae’s passion for leading was ignited. During her freshman yea...

Giving the Gift of Grain   If you ask Eastern Iowa farmer Steve Tubbs why he donates through the Gifts of Grain Campaign his response is a simple two words, “Why not?” For him, donating to Iowa 4-H through this simple campaign is a no-brainer, and in his opinion it is the easiest way for farmers to donate funds to the Iowa 4-H program.  “4-H is something I believe in,” said Tubbs. “It’s a family tradition passed down to each generation, so we’ve had a family member in 4-H for the last four generations.” This family tradition is even carried out through his grandkids who are located in the heart of Iowa’s capital city, the most urban location in the state. “4-H is a lot different now than when I was in it, which I would say is a good thing,” he said. For Tubbs, his 4-H story focuses on the memories in club shows and 4-H camp. It is because of these experiences, as Tubbs explains, that he is an Iowa 4-H Foundation donor. “Then, and still today, the 4-H program has been a...

The Iowa 4-H Foundation would like to send a big THANK YOU to everyone involved in making the 2014 Iowa State Fair a success! Thank you  to all fair-goers who stopped by the 4-H Builidng to see this year's State Fair exhibits from all 100 4-H counties. Over 3,900 4-H projects were on display with hundreds of communication projects (working exhibits, educational presentations, ect.) were staged and judged during the 11 days of the fair. All created by the best Iowa 4-H'ers!   Thank you to all the passionate alumni that stopped by the Iowa 4-H Foundation booth to enter our drawing for a T.V., to take a #4Hselfie, or to talk to a member of the Iowa 4-H Foundation team! Thank you to the supporters, donors, and sponsors of the Iowa 4-H program who helped fund this year's Iowa State Fair! Thank you to the volunteers who judged, arranged, organized, and dedicated their time to the Iowa    4-H program for the last 11 days! Thank you to the I...

It's time for all 100 4-H counties in Iowa to show the nation why Iowa 4-H is #1! We want to see you at the 4-H pig show, you washing your cow, you cooking in the kitchen for your food and nutrition project! We want camp, 4-H friends, and county fair selfies! Share with us YOUR 4-H story with a selfie and use the hashtag #4HSelfie! Share your selfies with us on Facebook , Twitter , Instagram or email iowa4h@iastate.edu and we will share our favorites! Share with us your 4-H Selfie... and we'll show the nation why Iowa is the #1 place for 4-H!

For Carter, 4-H was something he couldn't wait to do...until his best friend Spencer, left, was old enough to join. This means Carter didn't join Iowa 4-H until the fifth grade. "Looking back it was a really strange reason for me not to join," Carter said when looking back on his reasoning. "My sister was in an all girls club, my best friend was younger, and I was just so scared of starting this thing called 4-H all on my own." Even missing an entire year didn't hold him back from taking full advantage of Iowa 4-H. Carter went on numerous trips through 4-H including one to Chicago with students across the state, he participated in every 4-H and extension council locally, and went on to become the Top 4-H'er of Franklin County in 2011. Besides 4-H leaders and extension staff Carter said one of his biggest influences in 4-H was his mom. "She was not a 4-H member, but when my sister join it didn't take long for her to become a firm believ...