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Ohio 4-H Youth Development

Ohio State University Extension

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Ohio 4-H Highlights: October 2021

  1. Thank you for supporting Ohio 4-H!

    A group of 4-H supporters on pedal carts at Leeds Farm.

    The 24th annual 4-H Celebration of Youth: 4-H Leading the Way was a special and unique evening, bringing in over $137,000 for Ohio 4-H Youth Development programs. More than 220 4-H supporters joined us for this year’s celebration, the first at Leeds Farm in Ostrander. This year’s event was an evening of fun-filled fall activities on the farm.

    The National 4-H Conference was in the spotlight when this year’s event concluded with auctioneer Johnny Regula seeking $1,000 sponsorships to send Ohio 4-H teens to the conference in Washington, D.C. Over $10,000 in pledges were received to support Ohio’s delegation to attend next year’s conference.

    The program at Celebration of Youth.Ohio 4-H leads the way in positive youth development. Proceeds from the Celebration of Youth will support innovative programs at the county and state. A special thanks to this year’s sponsors for their support and dedication. Visit our Celebration of Youth page for a list of sponsors and join us next year!

    Photos from this year's event can be viewed at the photo gallery.

  2. 4-H tent at Farm Science Review

    Two youth at the Farm Science Review doing the Bio-Security Challenge.

    Despite the cold and rainy temperatures, 4-H hosted over 500 youth with STEM activities at this year’s annual Farm Science Review. 4-H professionals and teens helped youth experience STEM in agriculture through hands-on challenges, experiments, simulations, and interactive games.

    This year’s tent featured:

    • Ag Bio-Products Challenge: Youth learned about Ohio’s two major crops, corn and soybeans, and put products from those crops to work to make ag-bio products, including polymer bouncy balls and soy ink. A group of people work on the Ag Bio-Products Challenge.
    • Bio-Security Challenge: The focus was on zoonotic diseases, and youth completed a management task with stuffed animals (pig, cow, lamb) and used a light box to discover how germs are spread.
    • Water Quality Challenge: The importance of protecting our water resources was highlighted as youth evaluated 10 water samples and determined which were suitable for consumption.
    • Ag Safety Challenge: With copper foil, batteries, and LED lights, participants learned about electric circuits and created a Farm Safety Hazard Alert paper circuit
    • DNA Sequencing Challenge: Youth created their own DNA sequencing bracelet to better understand genetics and the ability of crops to resist disease or herbicide application.Two men operating a small drone.
    • Hi-Flying Drone Challenge: Drones play an important part in today’s agriculture, and youth had the opportunity to fly a mini-drone in a controlled setting. 
    • Precision Ag Sprayer Challenge: Youth engineered a flight pattern for a drone to apply herbicide to a crop field based on data and utilizing line-following bots.
    • Food Packaging Challenge: Products need to safely transport from farm to market, and here youth engineered a prototype for a four-pack egg carton and tested their design’s abilityTwo boys working on an activity. to protect the eggs from breakage. 

    This year, two boys who were attending with an exhibitor in another building came back over and over again to participate in the activities. They just couldn’t get enough of the hands-on learning in the Ohio 4-H STEM in Ag Tent. Check out their photo as they participated in the Precision Ag Sprayer Challenge! 

    A group of girls doing the precision ag sprayer challenge.

  3. Ohio 4-H Award Recognition applications now available

    A group of award recipents.

    Each year at the Ohio 4-H Conference, we recognize the amazing 4-H volunteers and alumni who are vital to the success of our program, but we need your help. Consider nominating someone you know for one of the following:

    • Friend of 4-H Award
    • Community Service Award
    • 4-H Hall of Fame Award
    • Innovator Award
    • Meritorious Service Award
    • 4-H Alumni Award

    A complete description of awards and the applications are at ohio4h.org/about/ohio-4-h-conference. Recipients will be honored on Saturday, March 12, 2022, at the Ohio 4-H Conference.

  4. Faces of Ohio

    Jeff piloting a helicopter.

    Each month we highlight an Ohio 4-H alumnus. They have amazing stories to share, from their personal experience in 4-H to how they have given back to the program. This month we feature Jeff Hullinger, the lead pilot for the Nationwide Children’s Hospital helicopter EMS transport team and a Williams County 4-H alumnus.

    Hullinger got his start in 4-H in his hometown of Bryan and spent 10 years involved in the Williams County 4-H program. During his time as a 4-H’er, he took many projects, including a dairy feeder calf, beef steers, rabbits, model rocketry, remote control airplanes/helicopters, cooking, sewing, and woodworking. He attended both National 4-H Congress and National Jeff with a sewing project.4-H Conference and served as a 4-H camp counselor. While being a camper and counselor were favorite activities, Hullinger said, “Meeting new friends, traveling to new places, and learning new projects gave me great memories too.” 

    Hullinger’s 4-H experience helped him discover his passion for aviation and his dream of being a pilot. “At the age of 10, I knew I wanted to become a pilot. I just didn’t know how I would achieve that dream; I just knew I wanted to fly. 4-H helped stoke my interest in flying and learning about it. It gave me a supportive organization and network to build towards fulfilling my dream.”A boy with an RC helicopter.

    After 4-H, Hullinger continued his service by enlisting in the Marine Corps. “While a Marine, I was selected for the Marine Enlisted Commissioning Education Program. I attended The Ohio State University and received a bachelor of science in aviation management and was commissioned as an officer in the U.S. Marine Corps. I became a helicopter pilot flying CH-53E Super Stallions with deployments that took me to Djibouti, Africa; Fallujah, Iraq; Central and South America; and Helmand River Province of Afghanistan. My last duty assignment was as a presidential helicopter pilot. Now I work as an EMS helicopter pilot flying an EC145 (Monarch 1) for Nationwide Children’s Hospital. I also volunteer for Angel Flight East and LifeLine Pilots using my personal airplane to fly patients to medical treatments and appointments.”

    Not only did 4-H give Hullinger the resources to reach his goals, it also provided life skills and knowledge he still uses today. “4-H taught me to use my Jeff Hullinger headshot.HEAD to learn new skills and work through challenges. To use my HEART to be compassionate and empathetic to others, and to help others when they need it. To use my HANDS to work towards something greater, for myself and my community. And to use my HEALTH to live a clean, healthy life, to be a better me.”

    “I learned a great work ethic,” said Hullinger. “I had opportunities to exercise communication and public speaking. I was able to learn new skills and information that were not available in a school environment. There were many intangible experiences and lessons learned, and 4-H had a positive impact in making me who I am today.”

    A woman, man, and another woman.With the impact 4-H had on him, Hullinger shared this advice for today’s 4-H members. “If you have a dream of doing something you love, don’t let anything stand in your way. If you have a dream, go for it. 4-H is a great organization that can help you be better prepared to enable you to realize your dream. Do what you love, and love what you do.”

    Fun fact: You may have seen Jeff Hullinger at an Ohio State football game. He was an Ohio State varsity cheerleader from 1997–2000.

     

  5. Calendar of events

    Pumpkin with a green 4-H clover on it.

    Oct. 22, Spooktactular Whitewood (Windsor)—6 p.m. Free to all ages. Activities include a costume contest, tours of camp, trick-or-treating, arts and crafts, and lantern hikes.

    Oct 23, Camp Piedmont Clean-Up & Close (Piedmont)—9 a.m. We are looking for volunteers to help close Camp Piedmont for the year. Please call the Belmont County Extension Office if you are available to help, 740-695-1455.

    Oct. 30, Carroll County 4-H Fall Fest (Carrollton)—3:30 p.m. Activities include trunk or treat, line dancing, and square dancing at the Carroll County Fairgrounds. This event is open to the public. Donations are accepted, with proceeds going to 4-H Camp Piedmont for renovations.

    Nov. 8 and 15, Morgan County Master Gardeners Fall Educational Series (McConnelsville)—6 p.m. The Nov. 8 session topic will be lavender, and the Nov. 15 topic is food from the forest. No cost for these sessions; participants can choose to participate in all or individual sessions, and no preregistration is required. All sessions will be held at the Kate Love Simpson Library, 358 E. Main St., McConnelsville. Contact Chris Penrose, 740-962-4854, with questions.

    Nov. 13, Camp Ohio 5K Adventure Trail Run & Walk (Saint Louisville)Save the date for the annual 5K Adventure Trail Run & Walk. This is a great opportunity to enjoy 4-H Camp Ohio’s beautiful trails and is open to all ages. Register at go.osu.edu/campohio5k.

    Dec. 6 or 7, Christmas Wreath Decorate and Take (Mount Gilead)—6 p.m. Join the Morrow County Master Gardener Volunteers to learn about design and create your own beautiful Christmas wreath to take home. There is a $35 fee to attend. Please RSVP with the Morrow County Extension Office, 419-947-1070.