Support the Leaders 4 Life Team - Eat at IHOP

May 26, 2011, The Travis County 4-H Leaders 4 Life Team will be at IHOP ( 14310 N I 35, Austin) from 5:30 to 9:30 p.m. 4-H families, friends and guests are invited to come out to I HOP and 20% of all ticket sales will be given to the team to sponsor their lodging costs at Texas 4-H Roundup in June.

Please invite others to come out and join the fun. If you plan to attend, please let John Riegler (JJRiegler@ag.tamu.edu)  know so that we can plan accordingly to ensure space is available at the restaurant.

Cowboy Country Bash

The annual event formerly known as the Cowboy Christmas Ball. Save the date for this year's event
August 20, 2011. Location is still to be determined. This is still the same group, with a new name and more fun!

4-H Statewide Photogrpahy Workshop

Spend a couple extra days after Texas 4-H Roundup and join us for the 4-H Statewide Photography Workshop! Learn new and basic photography techniques at the Statewide Photography Workshop! The second day will be a field trip to the antique tractor fairgrounds where we will take pictures of tractors, old buildings, people in costume, and horses.

Workshop will be held June 17-18, 2011, June 17th: 8:45am- 4:00pm (Check in: 8:00-8:45am) and June 18th: 8:30am- 12:00pm (Check in: 8:00-8:30am).  Registration is $20 for youth and adults, with the entry deadline as June 6, 2011.  For more information, schedule, and a list of presenters visit the Bell County AgriLife Extension 4-H Photography website or download the information flyer.

4-H Statewide Photogrpahy Workshop

Spend a couple extra days after Texas 4-H Roundup and join us for the 4-H Statewide Photography Workshop! Learn new and basic photography techniques at the Statewide Photography Workshop! The second day will be a field trip to the antique tractor fairgrounds where we will take pictures of tractors, old buildings, people in costume, and horses.

Workshop will be held June 17-18, 2011, June 17th: 8:45am- 4:00pm (Check in: 8:00-8:45am) and June 18th: 8:30am- 12:00pm (Check in: 8:00-8:30am).  Registration is $20 for youth and adults, with the entry deadline as June 6, 2011.  For more information, schedule, and a list of presenters visit the Bell County AgriLife Extension 4-H Photography website or download the information flyer.

4-H Barking Bash

The Bell County 4-H Program will be sponsoring a dog workshop on May 14, 2011 from 9:00am - 2:00pm with check-in beginning at 8:30am.  Registration is $30 for 4-H members, $15 for adults. 

Entry Deadline: April 18, 2011.  The event will include: Animal Photography (bring your cameras), Canine Good Citizenship practice and Testing, Costume Contest, Service Dog demonstration, Ralley Training workshop. Entry forms and more information can be found at the Bell County AgriLife Extension Dog Project website or download the information flyer.

Southern Region 4-H Seafood Cook-Off

Louisiana 4-H is hosting a Southern Region 4-H Seafood Cook-off on August 8, 2011 in New Orleans.  This is a team event, with teams made up of 2-4 registered 4-H members in the 9th through 12th grade.  Registration deadline is May 2nd, and the first 8 teams to register will receive a $500 incentive from the Louisiana Seafood Promotion and Marketing Board to assist in travel costs for the team. If interested, contact Cory at cmtalley@ag.tamu.edu

Statewide Volunteer Conference

The Texas 4-H & Youth Development Program is sponsoring a statewide volunteer training on July 29-31, 2011, in San Antonio to prepare a new generation of 4-H volunteers to lead and instruct our members. This two and one-half day conference is set to be filled with quality educational workshops, in addition to an opening session featuring a dynamic motivational speaker and a state of the 4-H program address. 

Volunteers can register for the conference on 4-H CONNECT. Registration will be open until Monday, June 20th. The conference registration fee is $120 per person and includes the educational program, two meals, as well as three refreshment breaks. 

Please promote this to your 4-H volunteers and encourage them to attend!

More information is available online at: http://texas4-h.tamu.edu/volunteers/conference/volunteer_conference.php

4-H Alliance with Anderson Bean Boot Company

The Texas 4-H Foundation is excited to announce a new alliance with Anderson Bean Boot Company. Anderson Bean Boot Company will be sponsoring the following:

• Boots for the instructors of the Summer Horse Program
• Boots for the winners of the Horse Judging Contest
• Boots for the Class Winners and also the winners of the Hi Point Awards during the State 4-H Horse Show
  

Anderson Bean Boot Company also sponsored the 2010 State 4-H Horse Show winning Drill Team when they participated in the AQHA World Show. Here is the first picture taken of the Texas 4-H Boot debuted on February 18, 2011 at the Anderson Bean Trunk Show held at the College Station Cavender's. For every boot purchased, the Texas 4-H Program will receive a royalty! The boots will be coming to your local retailer later this Spring. Plans are to also have them available for purchase at the Texas 4-H Roundup within the Trade Show area.

If you would like to receive direct mailings or e-mail offers from Anderson Bean please click here http://www.andersonbeanboots.com/4H/4H-News.php and sign up to receive the latest news about Anderson Bean and special coupon offers for 4-H participants.

County/Club Support of Silent Auction at Texas 4-H Roundup

The Texas 4-H Youth Development Foundation will be again hosting a multiple day silent auction fundraiser event during the 2011 Texas 4-H Roundup. The 2010 event was a huge success raising just over $14,000. The "I Support the Clover" Silent Auction proceeds will benefit the Texas 4-H Youth and Development Program through Roundup support and state-wide 4-H program support grants.

The next round of program support grant applications are due May 1st and the application can be downloaded at http://texas4hfriends.org/resources/program-support-grants/) through the Texas 4-H Friends & Alumni Association.

The 4-H Foundation would like to encourage the county 4-H programs to become involved in the silent auction this year and has issued a CHALLENGE. The Foundation is challenging each county and/or 4-H club to submit something(s) for the 2nd Annual I Support the Clover Silent Auction. The county/club item that raises the most funds will receive 95% of the total funds raised on that item (this takes into consideration the 5% administrative fee assessed on all donations except scholarships by the Texas 4-H Foundation). The county/club with the 2nd highest selling item will receive 70% of the total funds raised on that item, and the county/club with the 3rd highest selling item will receive 45% of the total funds raised on that item. Items may be submitted either as an overall county submission or 4-H club within a county. This will give an individual club the opportunity to raise funds direct for their club if they so chose. When submitting item(s), please note whether funds are to be for county or 4-H club, should that item raise enough funds that it is awarded one of the top three places.

You can visit the Texas 4-H Foundation's website to download a donation form and see what items have currently been donated this year. The Foundation noted that items that received the most funds last year including a pheasant hunt, HLSR rodeo suite/ticket package, signed memorabilia, artwork, and jewelry.

Please notify the Foundation office as soon as possible with details regarding the item(s) your county/club will be donating. They will then post the item(s) to their website. This is a multi-day auction. All the county/club donated items will be given equal time during the auction. Items of great value ($250 and up) will be placed on auction multi-days. So keep that in mind when submitting your items. Lower valued items will be on the daily auction.

You can bring the items with you to Roundup, however, note that the Silent Auction will open Tuesday afternoon in conjunction with the Trade Show, therefore if you will not be here until later in the week, I would recommend shipping your item(s) so you will have ample time on display. Some items may even be placed on auction during the scholarship assembly on Monday.

If you have any questions, please contact Jana Barrett at 979-845-1213 or jcbarrett@ag.tamu.edu

Poultry Institute for Youth

Please see the link below regarding the Poultry Institute for Youth Enrichment Camp. It is June 12-15, 2011. The deadline to get applications in is May 10th. If they have any questions have them contact me at jallen@poultry.tamu.edu or 979-845-1654.

Institute Information Flyer

http://posc.tamu.edu/library/youthprograms/poultryinstitute/PoultryInstitute2011final.pdf

Chef at Camp

The 4-H Conference Center announces our first “Chef at Camp” scheduled June 6-10, 2011 at the 4-H Conference Center in Brownwood. This exciting new camp features food, cooking, nutrition and FUN!!! The camp is open to youth who have completed 6th grade (spring, 2011) through age 17. The week-long camp will provide hands-on testing of recipes from yeast and quick breads to desserts of all kinds. Get in on the cupcake bandwagon, ride out with pies! Practice your best manners at a formal banquet style meal. We’ll explore all the many opportunities in the 4-H Healthy Lifestyles project and even video campers in their own cooking show. Held at the 4-H Conference Center in Brownwood, campers will be housed in the dormitories and supervised by 4-H Center Staff. When not in the Kitchen, campers will participate in camp activities such as teambuilding on the Challenge Course, relaxing in the new swimming pool or kayaking on Lake Brownwood.

It’s the best of both worlds – cooking and camping at the 4-H Center! Registration is open, but is limited to the first 40 youth. The fee for the week is $400 and covers all meals, lodging, cooking supplies and program fees. Campers will receive additional information regarding what to bring, once registered. To register, go to the 4-H Center website, http://texas4hcenter.tamu.edu/ and click on the REGISTER button either on the Home Page or under the Schedule of Events.

Please share this as you see fit.

Fashion Design Camps

Held in North Texas on the beautiful Texas Woman's University Denton campus, the Fashion Design Camp will feature design professors, graduate students, and industry professionals presenting topics that will be fun and educational for the young fashion enthusiast.  Fashion Design Camp is perfect for your teen, preteen, girls and boys! Activities will include:

• Fashion show production
• Jewelry production
• Hat making, model training
• Beginning sewing
• Beginning sketching
• Screen printing
• Denim deconstruction (both groups)
• Draping (older group)

There will also be classes on the basic principles and elements of design, fashion design, fashion shows, modeling, sketching, and color.

For more dates, details, and registration material, visit the following TWU website:  http://www.twu.edu/fashion/fashion-camp.asp

Please share this information with your Clothing & Textiles project members and leaders.

Leaders 4 Life Service Project

The Travis County 4-H Leaders 4 Life Team is promoting their service project of collecting hygiene products for the homeless. The team will compete at State 4-H Roundup in June. Conducting a service project is one of the four components of the contest and they would appreciate your help. Members are encouraged to collect items listed on the flyer and bring those to the Travis County Extension Office by May 10th. Any volunteers who will be attending the annual Travis County Youth Show Meeting, items will be collected there as well. Check out the flyer at travis4h.com ( look under the tab " 4-H Events").

Tractor Supply Paper Clover Campaign

Spring is finally here and so is the spring Paper Clover Promotion at Tractor Supply Company and Del's Feed & Farm stores! The TSC Paper Clover starts this Friday, April 15-25, at every TSC and Del's store nationwide. More information and resources can be found by visiting www.4-H.org/paperclovertoolkit.
If your local TSC or Del's store is one of the top performing stores in either its district or region, we will be sending awards to your county office. These awards help us say thank you to your local store for their efforts in supporting 4-H in your community. Additionally, the top store in each TSC/Del's region will have a presentation check to give your county to celebrate that store's support of 4-H. Each state 4-H office will be notified of their states winners after the promotion ends.

Don't forget about the spring Paper Clover Facebook Photo Contest! The first place winner will receive a $250 gift certificate to the 4-H Mall and a chance to be featured in AgriMarketing magazine. More information for the contest can be found on the 4-H Facebook page or the TSC/Del's toolkit on 4-H.org.
 Since last spring, the TSC Paper Clover promotions have raised more than $500,000 for county, state, and national 4-H programming in more than 1,000 TSC communities. We know this spring's Paper Clover can top that so spread the word and forward this message to friends, family, and colleagues!

Nellis Family Benefit

UNLOCK YOUR HEART
Attend the Nellis Family Benefit to Support
Michael and Megan Nellis’s Educational Fund

Saturday, April 30, 2011
Richland Hall

Check out the flyer at www.travis4h.com for additional information " Look under the tab "4-H Events"

Travis County AgriLife Issues Identification Forum

Travis County Residents,

The Texas AgriLife Extension Service has a rich history of providing educational programs based on community needs in Travis County. In order to make sure that the programs being planned for the future are on target, we invite your participation in an Online Issue Forum to identify critical issues that Texas AgriLife Extension could address through educational programs.

If you would like to know more about our Extension programs before taking the survey, check out our overview video:
AgriLife Extension in Travis County
(http://www.youtube.com/user/TravisAgriLife)

To participate in the online survey go to:
Electronic Issue Identification Forum
(http://eit-data.tamu.edu/IssueID/IssueId.html)

The online survey should take you no more than 10 minutes to complete, and will provide us with valuable insight into the issues facing Travis County residents. Your opinion is highly valued, so we truly hope you will take a few minutes to participate.

The online forum is currently open, and will remain open for input until midnight on May 4th. Should you have any problems with the online system, please contact the Extension office at 512-854-9600.

Thank you for taking a few minutes to help chart the course for your Travis County Extension programs.

Skip Richter
County Extension Director
Texas AgriLife Extension Service

Travis County Youth Show Annual Meeting

2011 TCYS Annual meeting is fast approaching!!  Please see below for meeting and membership information.   

 Membership Info ~~ www.traviscountyyouthshow.org

You can go online and print form and mail to TCYS office with payment OR pay online with credit card.

**Members for 2011 will receive voting rights at meeting and their meal will be free.

May 4^th, 2011

Akins High School Cafeteria

6:30PM doors open ~~ meal served at 7PM

Business meeting following meal

Presidential Student Service Award Applicaton

For those who love to earn community service hours, the Presidential Student Service Award Application has been added to the Travis 4-H Website Look under the tab "4-H Forms" The application is due to the county extension office by June 3rd. Those who apply will earn a medal and certificate and will be recognized at the Travis County 4-H Annual Achievement Banquet on August 19th.

Beef Project Workshop in Bastrop County

Jason Cleere, Extension Beef Cattle Specialist will be doing a Beef Project workshop in Bastrop County to provide members information on selection, facilities/equipment, feeding/nutrition, and early health management on Tuesday, April 19, 2011.  The workshop will be at 7:00 p.m. at the Old County Courthouse (2^nd Floor Courtroom) at 803 Pine Street in Bastrop.  Please have members RSVP by April 18^th to 512-581-7186

Sheep and Goat Workshop in Bastrop County

Taw Wayne Dunahm, Show Feed Specialist will be doing a Sheep & Goat Project workshop in Bastrop County to provide members information on selection, facilities/equipment, feeding/nutrition, and early health management on Tuesday, April 19, 2011.  The workshop will be at 6:00 p.m. at the Old County Courthouse (2^nd Floor Courtroom) at 803 Pine Street in Bastrop.  Please have members RSVP by April 18^th  - 512-581-7186.

4-H Days at Schlitterbahn

Schlitterbahan offeres group discounts and 4-H members can receive group rates on various days. Check out the link to find out more information on ticket prices and purchases.

http://www.schlitterbahn.com/nb/groups/default-youthgroups.asp