New Member Enrollment Deadline is May 1, 2007

4-H members will be able to add/drop projects up until June 1st. After that date, no more changes will be allowed. Please ask your leaders for your Exhibit Registration Forms for Fair. These forms need to be turned into the Extension Office by JUNE 1st.

The 2007 4-H Program Book is now available! Please check with your leader if you have not received yours yet. This book will also be available online later this month at our county website:

www.extension.uiuc.edu/winnebago

Public Presentation & Performing Arts Sign up is due to Extension

Office by May 1st.

Judging will be on Sunday, May 20th at the

Winnebago County Farm Bureau.

On Sunday, May 20, 2007 all judging will be done for your Public Presentation and Performing Arts projects. Public Presentation Judging will begin at 2:00 p.m. and Performing Arts will begin immediately after or at 4:00 p.m. (whichever is later). Check-in times are 15 minutes before.

You must be enrolled in the Communications Project of Public Presentation or Performing Arts Project to participate. A description of both the public presentation and performing arts projects are below:

Public Presentation

Formal Speech–Formal Speeches (without props or aids) must be 4-6 minutes in length and done by an individual member. Formal speeches provide information to the audience.

Illustrated Speech–Illustrated Speeches (with visual aids) must be 4-6 minutes in length and done by an individual.

Extempore Speaking–Exhibitors must be present 45 minutes before their assigned time to select their topics. Topics will relate to events of state, national or international importance. Exhibitors will draw three topic options for their speech from a large number of topics. They will immediately select one of these three topics for their speech. Participants will have 45 minutes to prepare a 4-6 minute speech. Resource materials are the responsibility of the exhibitor.

Demonstration–Demonstrations may pertain to any topic except Food/Nutrition (which will be done at the Food Demo judging in July). Demonstrations may be presented by an individual or a team of 2. Exhibitors are responsible for furnishing all equipment and supplies needed. Demonstrations must be 8-10 minutes in length.

Oral Interpretation–May be humorous or dramatic interpretation, oratorical declamation, prose reading or verse reading. Material may be read or memorized. May be done by an individual or a team of no more than 3 members. Interpretation must be 4-6 minutes in length.

Original Works–Member may present any type of original works (i.e. comedy, storytelling, original poetry, radio segment, etc.) May be done by an individual or a team of no more than 3 members. Works must have been written by one of the team members. Segment must be between 4-6 minutes in length. Original work presentations are designed to entertain an audience.

Performing Arts

Theater Arts I, Play the Role–Exhibit one of the following items: Portfolio of activities completed during the current year, OR a Display illustrating a drawing/photograph of a clown character created by the exhibitor, OR a Display illustrating a picture story developed by the exhibitor.

Theater Arts II, Become a Puppeteer–Exhibit one of the following items: Portfolio of activities completed during the current year, OR a Display on the history of puppets or puppetry in different cultures, OR display a puppet created by the exhibitor, OR display a story wheel and play adapted or written for puppets.

Theater Arts III, Set the Stage–Exhibit one of the following items: Portfolio of activities completed during the current year, OR a Display that includes sound, props and costume charts appropriate for a selected scene from a story or play (limit of 8 items), OR display a scenic design model to depict a scene from a script, OR a Display illustrating a character with make-up drawn or colored in. Include a photograph of a person wearing the make-up and information on the character's personality or part in the play.

LIVE Performance (Theater Arts I, II, or III)

(No State Fair Opportunity for Live Performance)

Exhibitor will perform a live performance (song, skit, musical instrument, etc.). All performances must be "G" rated. All live performance members will be required to sign up for a performance time on stage during the County Fair in August–(Not be judged–just to entertain and have fun!).

REGISTRATION FORMS FOR BOTH PUBLIC PRESENTATION AND PERFORMING ARTS MUST BE TURNED INTO THE EXTENSION OFFICE BY MAY 1ST.

CAKE, COOKIE & CUPCAKE DECORATING CONTEST

Will be held at 3:00 p.m. on Tuesday, July 10, 2007 at the Extension Office. Please see attached signup sheet for more details. Sign up is due at the Extension Office by June 1st.

FAIR DATES FOR 2007

Winnebago County Fair–August 14-19, 2007

Illinois State Fair–August 10-19, 2007

The Winnebago County Extension Office will be CLOSED on Monday, May 28th for the Memorial Day Holiday.

If you are showing beef, sheep, swine, dairy, horses or goats at either the Winnebago County Fair or The Illinois State Fair, you need to take an online ethics training. This training is available at the following website:

http://qaec.extension.uiuc.edu

You will need to complete this training BEFORE July 1st if you are showing beef, sheep, swine, dairy or goats. You will need to complete this training BEFORE June 9th if you are showing horses. Please call the Extension Office at (815) 986-4357 if you have any additional questions.

Nasco will be presenting their annual Showing & Grooming Clinic on Saturday, May 12th starting at 8:30 a.m. in Fort Atkinson, WI.

Sheep, beef and dairy demonstrations will be held. Lunch will also be provided by Nasco, but you need to sign up in advance. Please call Nasco direct at 920-568-5600. They are located at 901 Janesville Avenue, Fort Atkinson, WI.

4-H'ers planning to participate in the Swine Carcass Barrow Show this year must contact Rich Beuth at (815) 247-8641 to have their swine weighed by May 15th.

Times are being confirmed for the Beef, Swine & Lamb Carcass Evaluation at Fair. The tentative dates for BOTH beef and swine are Wednesday, August 8th for the live weigh in and Friday, August 10th for the carcass evaluation. A confirmation of the exact times will be announced in the next newsletter. If you have any questions, please contact either Ralph Koning (BEEF) at (815) 979-1829 or Rich Beuth (SWINE/LAMB) at (815) 247-8641.

The premium books and entry forms are available now via the State Fair Website: www.illinoisstatefair.info. Click on participant information and from there you can find the Premium Books.

Listed below are the final locations for the 2007 Illinois State Fair weigh-in dates for lambs. These are the ONLY locations that 4-H and FFA members can weigh sheep that will possibly be shown at this year's state fair. Extension staff, Vocational Agricultural instructions and local volunteers will be manning each location.

Exhibitors will need to pay for the electronic ID tags on site. They should plan to bring along a check made out to the University of Illinois; cost of the tags are $2.00 each.

For information on directions to the sites, contact the individual listed below for each specific location.

Locations

Contact Person Date(s) & Time

Coles County Fairgrounds, Charleston

Linda Foster 217-345-7034 May 5, 10:30 a.m.-Noon

Jefferson-Franklin Co Fairgrounds, Ina

Justin Sexten 618-242-9310 May 5, 9 a.m. - Noon

Hugh Moore, Jr. Farm, Jerseyville

Amy Roady 618-576-2293 May 5, 9 a.m. - Noon

Monroe County Fairgrounds, Waterloo

Susan Hayden 618-939-3434 May 5, 11 a.m. – Noon

Black Hawk East College, Kewanee

Rich Knipe 309-792-2500 May 12, 9 a.m. - Noon

Bond County Fairgrounds, Greenville

Jen Jenne 618-664-3665 May 12, 10 a.m. - Noon

Grundy County Fairgrounds, Morris

Dan Jennings 815-397-7714 May 12, 9 a.m. - Noon

Illinois State Fairgrounds, Springfield

Chris Anderson 217-782-4617 May 12, 9 a.m. - Noon

Interstate Center, Bloomington

Don Meyer 309-663-8306 May 12, 9 a.m. - Noon

Western Illinois University, Macomb

Dean Oswald 309-836-3366 May 12, 9 a.m. - Noon

On Saturday–May 19th, the Winnebago County 4-H & Extension Foundation is sponsoring their 3rd Annual Walk-a-thon. The walk-a-thon will be held at Main Street Square in Roscoe from 9:00 a.m.–1:00 p.m. There will also be a pie and plant sale held at the same time/same location. The 4-H Foundation is looking for donations of pies and plants. Please either contact your 4-H Leader or call the Extension Office to sign up today. The deadline for sign up is May 1, 2007.

There will be a Federation Meeting on Wednesday, May 9th at 5:00 p.m. at the Extension Office. All 4-H members 14 and older are invited to attend. Please call the Extension Office at (815) 986-4357 to sign up. Sara Dady, our new 4-H Federation Youth Advisor will be heading up the meeting.

We will be having Pizza & Pop and begin planning for fair events this year.

All current 4-H Ambassadors are strongly encouraged to attend.

The 4-H Bowling Tournament was held on Sunday April 15, 2007 at Viking Lanes and was attended by 90 bowlers and their families! The Centerville Knot Ketchers 4-H Club led by Tammy Wakeley did a great job organizing and running the event. Donation collections for the event were spearheaded by the Steffenhagen Family (a new 4-H family this year). Enough donations were collected to allow every single 4-H member an opportunity to go home with a prize. Thank you Jeanine, Kelsi & Niki for all your extra efforts! Also, thanks to Rachel Medearis for taking on the task of keeping the tally board numbers straight! The following 4-H'ers were honored as the tournament winners:

Jr. Jr. Division (Ages 5-8) Destiny Sawtelle

Jr. Division (Ages 9-13) Hailey Bardouski

Sr. Division (Ages 14-19) Bobby Campbell

In order to promote 4-H and let the public see how much fun 4-H is, we are again offering each Winnebago County 4-H Club the opportunity to have a club booth in the 4-H Building during the County Fair this year. This is a great time to show pride in your club and demonstrate the fun activities and events in 4-H. If your club is interested, please contact Stacy at the Extension Office for more information 986-4357.

Share Your Harvest With The Hungry

Donate your extra produce to the hungry. While planting your own gardens this year, consider planting an extra row to feed the hungry. Donations are collected at the following times and locations:

U of I Extension Office–4311 West State Street Mon-Fri 9 am - 4 pm

Rock River Valley Pantry–1080 Short Elm Mon-Fri 9 am - 4 pm

July – September

OSF St. Anthony (Roxbury Rd. across the St. from Rockford Gastroenterology)

Starting July 17 Tuesdays 5 pm - 7 pm

Edgebrook Farmers Market

Starting July 18 Wednesdays 10 am - Noon

Main Street Square Roscoe Farmers Market

Starting July 19 Thursdays 10 am - Noon

Donations Benefit: Local Pantries & Soup Kitchens

TO LEARN MORE ABOUT THE PLANT-A-ROW PROGRAM–PLEASE CALL THE EXTENSION OFFICE AT (815) 986-4357.

FORESTRY WEB SITE–http://forestryjudging.nres.uiuc.edu

ROCKETRY KIT INFORMATION–www.rocketryonline.com

OTHER AEROSPACE WEBSITES:

www.spacecenter.org

http://www.kids.gov/k_space.htm

http://kids.msfc.nasa.gov

www.hq.nasa.gov

www.spaceconnection.org

www.spacecamp.com

4-H–"Your Bridge to Reality" is the 2007 Winnebago County 4-H Theme. This theme will be used in the Club Banner Contest and Window Display & Bulletin Board Contest this year.

All clubs are invited to create banners which will be judged at Fashion Revue at Cherryvale Mall on Thursday, July 19th. After judging, these banners will be on display in the 4-H Building at the Winnebago County Fair.

Banners will be judged based on the following criteria: Size (large & easy to see), Appeal (eye & attention catching), Originality (be creative), and 4-H Information (clear message about 4-H in a positive manner). Banners will be due at the Extension Office by July 1, 2007. Please use the attached form to submit your entry to the Extension Office.

CLUB BANNER CONTEST

BANNERS TO BE USED AT FASHION REVUE & AT FAIR

• CLUB:
• CONTACT NAME:
• PHONE #:

THE THEME THIS YEAR IS:

"4-H–Your Bridge to Reality"

FORM DUE TO EXT. OFFICE–JULY 1ST

A FREE summer camp for current high school freshman, sophomores and juniors who are interested in pursuing a health-related career in college will be held Friday, June 8, 2007 through Sunday, June 10, 2007. It will be held at Northern Illinois University in DeKalb, IL. Students will be housed in an adult-supervised residence hall on campus. This is a great opportunity for youth to learn current information about the broad array of careers available in the health professions, and especially Northern Illinois. For more information, take a look at the camp website: http://ilrhpguide.com/camp.cfm.

The 2007 Illinois 4-H Leadership Convention (ILC) is scheduled for June 28-30 at the University of Illinois Champaign/Urbana campus. This convention runs from Thursday–Saturday. High school aged 4-H delegates will stay in college dormitories and experience a portion of college life during the event. Workshops for this year's event will focus on leadership skills that youth need to excel in their local community and school activities.

This event is open to ALL Illinois high school teens, including incoming freshmen for the fall of 2007. Youth must be 14-18 years of age (inclusive) by September 1, 2007 in order to participate. 4-H membership is NOT required–4-H members can invite other friends to come along. Adult chaperones must be age 21 or over and are required to be screened by the University of Illinois Extension's Volunteer Screening Procedures.

Registration materials will be available online in March at: http://www.4-h.uiuc.edu/events/annual004.html. The Extension Office should have registration information by the end of February. Scholarships for first-time attendees may be available through the Illinois 4-H Foundation.

The 4-H Cat Show date is set for Saturday, July 28, 2007 at the Winnebago County Fairgrounds in the St. Mary's Building.

All 4-H'ers intending to show a cat at the fair this year must attend at least one of the cat clinics being offered at the Extension Office.

CAT CLINICS will be held at the Extension Office – Please bring your cat with you to these clinics. Vaccinations will NOT be available at the clinics, but your cat does need to be current on all shots by the time of the Cat Show on July 28, 2007.

CAT CLINIC at Winnebago County Extension:

June 21st at 7:30 p.m.

Please call the Extension Office at 986-4357 to sign up.

All youth intending on showing swine at the Winnebago County 4-H Fair must attend a PQA Clinic by June 1st to become Youth PQA Certified.

PQA certification is required EVERY year!

If you have not been able to attend one of the clinic workshops, please call the Extension Office and make arrangements to come into the office to take the training online at the office. REMEMBER–THIS TRAINING MUST BE DONE EACH YEAR AND MUST BE COMPLETED BY JUNE 1ST.

The 4-H Dog Show is set for Sunday, July 29, 2007 at the Winnebago County Fairgrounds–Building 2.

All dog lease forms are due to the Extension Office by May 1st. If going to State Fair–Ownership papers, photos and State Entry Forms are also due then.

4-H Dog Class Informational Meeting

Monday–May 21, 2007

6:00 p.m. Machesney Elementary School

DOG CLASSES AT MACHESNEY

ELEMENTARY PARKING LOT

6:00–7:00 P.M.–OBEDIENCE

7:00–8:00 P.M.–SHOWMANSHIP

JUNE 4, JUNE 11, JUNE 18, JUNE 25, JULY 2, JULY 9,

JULY 16 AND JULY 23, 2007

DOG SHOW REHEARSAL DATE TO BE ANNOUNCED

FREE TO A GOOD HOME:

Dwarf snow white male bunny rabbit. The bunny is about 2 years old and weighs 2 lbs. It is potty trained and comes with it's own cage. He could make a nice 4-H project.

Please call Vicki Kuhl at (815) 218-0963 for info.

State 4-H Dairy Judging Contest

Date: Tuesday, June 19, 2007

Contact: Dave Fischer: 618-692-9434, dfischer@uiuc.edu

State 4-H Livestock (Beef, Sheep, Swine) Judging Contest

Date: Tuesday, June 19, 2007

Contact: Rich Knipe or Dan Jennings: 815-3977714, djjenning@uiuc.edu

Warren County Livestock Judging Contest

Date: Saturday, June 9, 2007

Contact: Lynn Shimmin: (309) 426-2955

State Poultry Contest:

Date: Tuesday, June 19, 2007

Contact: Ken Koelkebeck: 217-244-0195 or kkoelkeb@uiuc.edu

WINNEBAGO COUNTY 4-H HORSE SHOW is scheduled for Saturday, August 4, 2007 at the Winnebago County Fairgrounds. If your horse is leased, you must turn in your lease agreement and 2 photos to participate in the Winnebago County 4-H Horse Show. Deadline is May 1, 2007. Helpers will be needed on the day of the show to assist with trophies, ringmaster and setup. Please contact Lori Campbell at 335-7027 if you can help.

If you are planning to show at the State 4-H Horse Show, all members must turn in their registration forms, lease agreements and 3 photos (one from each side and the front) to the Extension Office by May 1, 2007.

COGGINS TEST FOR HORSES: All Illinois equine 12 months and older participating in an advertised equine event–a show, rodeo, exhibition, trail ride or horse fair that is posted or media promoted, shall be accompanied by a negative test for equine infectious anemia/E.I.A. (Coggins/Elisa) conducted within one year. This includes all horses being sold, traded or leased within Illinois.

Also remember that any horse taken over a state line must have a valid veterinarian health certificate as well as the above papers. This permit is available by calling the Illinois Department of Ag at (217) 782-4944 and are issued at no charge 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Please visit www.horsemenscouncil.org for more information.

State 4H Horse Judging Contest

Date: Tuesday, June 19, 2007

Time: 11:00 – Noon Registration; Noon-3:30 pm Contest

Location: Stock Pavilion, UI Champaign/Urbana campus

Cost: None

Other Info: Rules & Registration Card. Additional information available at Illini Horsenet

Contact: Debra J. Hagstrom, M.S. – hagstrom@uiuc.edu

Congratulations to Kelsi Steffenhagen, Brandin Medearis, Donnie Czyzyk and Jen Wakeley for competing in the recent Livestock and/or Dairy Judging Contests held in Jo-Carroll County. It's wonderful to see such a fine group of 4-H'ers representing Winnebago County!

Trophy donor letters will be going out soon and we are in need of donors for livestock classes as well as non-livestock classes.

All 4-H members are encouraged to suggest possible new trophy donors each year. Trophy donations are $20 each and are available to sponsor a wide variety of projects.

If you'd like to make a trophy donation or know of someone who would like to help support 4-H, please call the Extension Office and let us know. We will gladly send them a trophy donation letter.

NATIONAL VOLUNTEER WEEK

April 15-21 was National Volunteer week. We would like to say a big THANK YOU to all of our volunteers. You are special people whose dedication, knowledge and skills make a difference. Thank you for caring and giving so much of yourself. We truly appreciate everything you do! SPECIAL THANKS TO OUR CLUB LEADERS AND HELPERS FOR ALL THEIR HARD WORK THROUGHOUT THE YEAR!

Burritt Winners - Barb Frampton

Centerville Knot Ketchers - Tammy Wakeley, Julie Roberts, Carrie Asner

Guilford Gainers - Alice Hallin, Marlene Strohman

Harrison Hotshots - Judi Schmeling, Andrea Saladino

Machesney Pilots - Susan Schumacher

New England Banner - Kathy Palmer

North Main Rustlers - Janet Pollock

Northern Stars - Jane & Jon Lang, Ellen Zarnick

Owen Blue Bonnets - Elizabeth Carlson

Rockfordettes - Kelly Schafer

Seward Determination - Teresa Hill, Jan Mitchell

Stars Stripes & Clovers - Alan & Mary Ann Arenson, Bill & Sherry Teeters

Tri River Tryers - Sandy Tucker

Winnebago Wide Awakes - Shannon Lapp

ADDITIONAL VOLUNTEERS

We also have a number of club and project committee volunteers in addition to our 4-H leaders who serve a very important role in the Winnebago County 4-H program:

Ralph Koning, Rich Beuth, Tim Strathman, Paul & Sue Keller, Janice Klever, Mac Camac, Brian Lyons, Stan Phelps, Dennis Cross, John Sohner, Philip Summers, Robert & Sue Kinney, Shelly Hershberger, Candy Bartholomew, Dennis Freedlund, Barbara Madison, Warren & Vicki Lyford, Rebecca Stegmair, Craig Hackl, Sam DiRaimando, Ed Specht, Kathy Crandall, Linda Winche, Brian Reusch, Laura Walton, David Tucker, Tom, Robert & Keeta Jo Bemis, Lori Campbell, Ray & Sue Heinke, Fred Hoople, Dan & Deb Hamilton, Trina Bloom, David Nosbisch, Alan & Tim Barry, Connie & Kirsten Gleasman, Nina Ward, Bonnie Brown, Bonnie Gesin, Wanda Kloster, Mary & Marissa White, Peggy Slater, Char & Stacy Mayland, Ellen Zarnick, Bert & Debbie Carlson, Don Sughroue, Wayne Lyford, Roger Larson, Kathy Spataro, Ivan Winche, Gary Shedd, Phil Mathieu, Dave Weber, Debbie Sohner, Ben & Darcy Dolan, Gene Kaeding, Gayle Haab, Karen Freudenberg, Chris Michaelis, Kris DalSanto, John Bomgarden, Ray Laube, Derek Watts, Trevor Olson, Sid Moate, Joel Sharp, Gary & Jeannie Walton.

There are many more volunteers who lend a hand whenever needed without being a 4-H leader or serving on a committee. To all our wonderful volunteers – A GIANT THANK YOU!