MARCH MADNESS
March has been an incredibly busy month in 4H. Our community meeting had a lot going on.
The main activity was the judging board contest. This is where all of the groups and the officers make poster boards on different 4H topics. For example, “What are the four elements of a good speech,” “Which goats are best for dairy products,” “Put in order the officers at the head table from left to right.” This year we had so many boards that the meeting lasted two hours. There was also the start of our club’s biggest fundraiser which is the See’s Candy Drive. Every member does their best to sell as much of the Easter candy as possible. The club gives out a first, second and third place prize for the highest sales. We only have about three weeks to make our sales. It always seems hectic to get all of the candy delivered before the holiday. My Mom always assures us that the big chocolate bunny will not mean as much, after Easter!
REGIONAL PRESENTATION DAY
On Saturday, March 24th, the 4H Regional Presentation Day was held at the Earl Warren Showground. Normally it is held in San Luis Obispo. However, every other year, Santa Barbara County hosts it. This is always nice for the local groups that will not have to travel as far. The day started off with an unusual air of excitement. I felt like there were a lot more people signing in than at County Presentation Day. Everyone always looks very nice and freshly pressed in their 4H whites.
This year, the County did something different. It combined the presentation day with the Foods and Crafts Festival. I think that this is a good idea because it gives a lot more people a chance to participate in many activities at the same location. It also makes the event more fun, because there is more to do and look at. This year, being the reporter, I spent my free time looking at booths from other clubs. I was amazed to see the variety of foods, crafts and fundraising ideas. For example, the Los Padres 4H Citizens Project was having an Easter candy sale. They had wrapped up candy in the shape of giant carrots and were selling them. The proceeds were going to benefit the Los Padres 4H club and Goleta Scholarship Association. The booth also offered a placemat making activity. The “Happy Easter” placemats were given to the residents at the Goleta Valley Community Center for Seniors. The Center allows the 4H to use their facility for their meetings. Next, I visited the Bonita 4H Dairy project booth. Bonita was making root beer floats to raise money for its fair decorations. I thought the 50/50 floats looked the best. They were made out of orange soda and vanilla ice cream, MMMMM. The Santa Ynez Foods Group, led by local farmer, Marcie Jiminez, set up a pie booth. The group made 60 pies including, apple, blackberry, strawberry rhubarb, and cherry. The pies were small individual pies big enough to share. They sold for $6.00 each. All of the pies sold!
The 4H county Council had an excellent BBQ of, which included roasted chicken, salad, beans, and garlic bread. They were raising their own money for 4H scholarship awards. I think that it helped our pie sales because they did not have a dessert to offer!
FASHION REVIEW
I love the fashion review event. It seems that not too many people sew any more, but here you can see some very creative items. There are three different categories in the fashion review. First there is “Sew from Scratch.” The name is exactly what viewers can expect. An entry must be sewn from beginning to end using fabric, thread, and a pattern.
The next category is “Recycled Category.” This is when someone uses an old article of clothing like a pair of blue jeans and makes it into something new like an embellished skirt. The last category is “Off the Rack.” This is where the person buys an outfit for no more than $150.00, including accessorizes and then models it. There were some very talented sewers in this group.
At the end of the event, I asked Joyce Hulsebos a couple of questions. She is on the county council, and seems to do all of the set up every year, along with her daughter Alexis. I asked her “What do you think is the best part of Presentation Day for you?” She replied, without hesitation, “I love working with all of the different kids.” I then asked her what she would like to see change and she first hesitated and then replied: “I would like to see parents come with their kids and enjoy the whole day.” She also noted that she realizes that everyone is busy, but there is so much at these events for kids to benefit from. It is not an event to arrive at and then ask… “When is it over?”