YWCA McLean County in search of holiday helpers!

The YWCA will again be providing over 150 holiday gifts to senior citizens participating in their Home Based Services program throughout McLean County. If you are interested in making a donation (either monetary or a requested item) or volunteering to help deliver the gifts, please contact Vicki Hightower at (309) 662-0461 ext. 265 or vhightower@ywcamclean.org.

Deadline dates:

November 30, contact needs to be made with Vicki Hightower

December 14, gifts needed at YWCA (1201 N. Hershey Rd, lower level)

December 16 – December 22, gift deliveries

Home Sweet Home/Salvation Army needs Sleeping Bags!

I am emailing you in hopes that one (or hopefully a few) of you will be able to assist the community with this need. As we have already seen, the economy has taken a toll on individuals from across the country and as such we are seeing more and more individuals in need of services. As we also know, both shelters in town are current at capacity (in regards to males) and it is anticipated that this will only continue throughout the rest of the winter. In addition, PATH is very low on hotel funds and limiting who they assist because the state (and federal government) has not given them the much needed money in months. If that weren't enough, the communities supply of sleeping bags are currently at ZERO. In previous years if both shelters were full and PATH couldn't help, at least PATH / Safe Harbor would be able to provide a sleeping bag and warm places for the night. Because of all these circumstances, I am asking, hoping, praying that you (and your friends, family, organizations, clubs, church groups, etc...) can assist the community in accumulating a supply of sleeping bags. In the past, many individuals simply took multiple old blankets and created sleeping bags from them. They do not have to be bought, but the most important thing is that individuals in this community have something for the freezing nights ahead.

I ask that you please consider this request.
Thank you very much,
Danny Sherling

nzaring@hshministries.org

The Salvation Army is expecting a 25% increase in families in need for Toys for Tots this year. Most of these will have never been part of the Toys for Tots program before. Funding losses from major corporations make a need to increase toys. Hope you will help. Please e-mail Katrina Whalen (4-H alum & Parent) at kattap2000@yahoo.com or the director is Matt Drat his e-mail is mattdrat@mac.com.

The McLean County Home and Community Education packed holiday cookies on Tuesday, Dec. 2 to send to soldiers overseas. Over 505 DOZEN cookies and goodies were brought to the Extension office at 402 N. Hershey Rd. in Bloomington. About 20 volunteers packaged the donations (cookies, candy, money, popcorn) that came from 4-H clubs, HCE members, State Farm employees, IAA employees, GFWC ILLINOIS Woman's Club of Heyworth, Bloomington-Normal Junior Woman's Club, retired teachers, and many other individuals in McLean County. 147 BOXES of cookies were mailed out this year! It costs $11 a box to ship to the soldiers. HCE appreciates any donations toward postage expenses. Send donations to McLean County HCE, 402 N. Hershey Rd., Bloomington , IL 61704. Thanks to everyone who helped to make this project so successful. If any questions, contact Leatha Poshard, 309-452-9164.

HCE Donation List

http://web.extension.uiuc.edu/mclean/4hyouth542.html

HCE Website

http://www.mcleanhce.org/

We've had 4-Hers and a 4-H volunteer do a two minute forum on WJBC our local AM radio station. Keep checking back for more links:

Monday - Reid Gramm

Tuesday - Claire Weinzierl

Wednesday - Jonathan Livengood

Thursday - Katie Sandage

Friday - Carolyn Hansen

The date for the 4-H Recognition of Excellence Awards Ceremony has changed from November 8 to November 15 at 3 pm.

The event will be held at Central Catholic High School's auditorium on Airport Road in Bloomington.

We live in a world facing critical challenges that require our collective attention and action. Young people - like all people - yearn to be a part of the solution. As an extension of the summer phase of United We Serve, the 2009 National Learn & Serve Challenge is a sustained, focused effort to promote youth civic engagement and service-learning, a hands-on teaching method that engages young people in solving problems within their schools and communities as part of academic studies and other out-of-school time learning activities.

The National Learn & Serve Challenge will kick off October 5-12, 2009 by issuing a national call to action to schools, college campuses and youth-serving organizations to commit to engaging a significant number of young people in service-learning activities that address the tough problems facing the country.

Young people-from elementary to college age-will help rebuild and renew their local or global community by using the content knowledge and skills learned in the classroom or a community-based program to create and implement innovative solutions to problems within five priority areas:

• Community renewal, including responding to the economic crisis
• Education, including literacy and keeping kids in school
• Energy and the environment
• Health and nutrition
• Safety and security

Get started today! Visit www.learnandservechallenge.org to accept the Challenge. Let us know you are ready to engage young people in service-learning in your classroom, youth group, club, school, campus, faith-based or community organization

A cool link that shows the progression of the construction of the International Space Station.

http://i.usatoday.net/tech/graphics/iss_timeline/flash.htm

Caution - if you have a slow internet connection, it may take a while to load and play.

Receive $400 for your County 4-H Program

Thanks to generous support from John Deere, a $400 award will be presented to one county from each state (and one U.S. territory) with the highest number of individual Biofuel Blast results survey submissions between October 1^st and October 30^th, 2009. The awards can be used toward the implementation and promotion of science, engineering and technology programs in your county. After youth complete the experiment, make sure that they go to www.4-H.org/NYSD to fill out the survey so your county can compete for the award!

In addition, of those who submit their results through the Biofuel Blast experiment survey, five youth names will be randomly selected to receive a 32GB third generation iPod touch. The five youth will also be able to designate a 4-H club, school classroom, or youth organization to receive one of the pictured Fuel Cell Car Experiment kits. Click here for official drawing rules.

Youth Leaders for Literacy Available to Young Volunteers Who Inspire and Encourage Reading

Youth Service America is partnering with the National Education Association to once again offer Youth Leaders for Literacy grants to children and youth, ages 5-25, who offer innovative ways to increase literacy skills and appreciation for reading among their peers. Youth can submit their applications through October 30, 2009.

Youth Leaders for Literacy will award 30 young people from across the U.S. each with $500 grants and $500 in books from the Pearson Foundation. Successful projects will be youth-led and address an established literacy need in the applicant's school or community. The projects will follow the framework of YSA's Semester of Service initiative, launching on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day of Service in January and culminating on Global Youth Service Day, April 23-25. An activity should also occur during the NEA's Read Across America Day on March 2.

Access the application at: http://tinyurl.com/neaysayll

On 4-H National Youth Science Day – October 7, 2009 – millions of young people across the U.S. will participate in a live demonstration of how organic materials can be converted to fuel to supply energy. McLean County will kick off National Youth Science day on Saturday, October 3 from 9:30 – 11:30 am. We are looking for 4-H clubs to volunteer to lead the science experiment with attendees at the museum during this time. A total of 10-15 youth volunteers and five adults are needed to assist in leading the experiment.

The experiment offers several activities to showcase how cellulose and sugars in plants can be used to create ethanol. The National Science Experiment will encourage a national youth debate to discuss the "best" biofuel based on experiment outcomes. Youth will be engaged before, during and after the experiment via several popular communication mechanisms and through the www.4-H.org web site. To download youth and facilitator guidebooks go to www.4-H.org/NYSD.

Please consider adding this activity to your list of leadership opportunities for your members. Interested members need to sign up with Theresa techamb@illinois.edu no later than September 18 --- this Friday!