Union County 4-Her’s had a blast at 4-H camps this summer. Junior 4-H Camp was held June 4-8 with a record of forty Union County 4th-6th graders attending. This was a large increase in attendance over past years. Junior High 4-H Camp was held July 9-11 with five Union Countians attending, including two teen leaders. Both camps are held in Greeneville at Clyde Austin 4-H Center, Monday through Friday annually.
In June, Ross Richnafsky left his own ducks, birds, chickens, snakes, and other animals to care for animals at Anderson County Hospital. For five weeks, Ross traveled to Clinton and that is where he met Smokey. The vet diagnosed Smokey with Canine Parvovirus. So Ross helped with the treatment of fluids and antibiotics as well as performing a variety of other tasks related to the various animals at the clinic. But Smokey taught Ross that animal owners do not always share his concern for animal care. Unfortunately, the owner removed Smokey before treatment was completed.
4-H is a Learn By Doing club, and there are many 4-Hers doing just that over the summer. Proudly, Union County kicked off the beef and sheep showing season at the County and Region Beef and Sheep Expo on June 25th with great participation. The shows were held at Chilhowee Park in Knoxville, June 25-27. Several beef classes were shown including weigh steers, commercial heifers, and registered heifers. For sheep there were registered and commercial ewes and market lambs. There were contests such as skillathons and county-group-of five.
UT Extension Union County shares history with many folks across Union County through memories of childhood involvement in 4-H, farming, seeding, canning, sewing, and more. Over the years our county has seen some admirable Extension Agents. The agents are true leaders that invest time and love into their careers and communities. Currently there are two agents on staff locally, Shannon DeWitt, agriculture, 4-H, and County Director, and Rebecca Hughes, family and consumer science and 4-H.
Union County Farmers Market kicks off the 2018 season 9 a.m. Saturday, May 5, in Wilson Park, and this year is shaping up to be the best yet.
March is a special month for Extension offices across our great state as we celebrate Extension Month. Extension is an outreach of the University of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture providing a gateway to education and research-based information for county offices in all ninety-five counties across Tennessee. In cooperation with Tennessee State University, UT Extension works with farmers, families, youth, and communities to improve lives by addressing issues at local, state, and national levels.
Union County 4-H greatly thanks the community for tremendous response to the 4-H Friends and Family Campaign. The campaign was launched by the Tennessee 4-H Foundation to provide county 4-H clubs with an opportunity to grow funds, gain new support, and increase awareness of 4-H. Union County joined the movement, and with overwhelming donations from patrons in the county, raised funds towards a goal to grow the county’s established endowment fund.
Allison Baugh, Knoxville, Tennessee native, is a senior at the University of Tennessee, majoring in Agriculture, Leadership, Education, and Communications (ALEC) and minoring in Plant Sciences. She is a graduate of Knoxville Catholic High School and the youngest coming from a family with much experience at the University. Her older brother was a Forestry graduate in 2016. Also, her mother, from Spring City, and father, from Chattanooga, are both UT Alums. Allison anticipates graduating as a part of the May 2018 class.
The Union County 4-H Hog Club headed to the state competition last weekend, a truckload of middle schoolers, high schoolers, and the hogs they spent the fall and winter raising. The Hog Club has been going strong since 2014, teaching students valuable skills from animal care to public speaking.
Folks like to complain about “kids these days” with their heads in their phones all the time, but would you believe that the impetus for starting the Hog Club was a teenager? Union County’s UT Extension Agent Shannon DeWitt said it started as a little bit of a love story.
It is the time of year when we are counting down days until Christmas, finalizing shopping lists, spreading tinsel, and tying bows. As quickly as December sneaks up, June peaks around the corner. As we transition from snowflakes to sunshine, Union County 4-H is preparing for the upcoming 2018 4-H Camp! This December we have a special stocking stuffer that would be the perfect surprise for that special child, grandchild, niece or nephew that has it all.