Rowan 4-H April Newsletter

From the 4-H Agent,

Laura Allen:

Spring has sprung! I hope you are enjoying the beautiful weather and spending time outside!

This newsletter includes 4-H opportunities, save the dates, and upcoming deadlines, including (but not limited to):

-New and important information about our new office facility which is open!

-4-H Pullet Project & Broiler Project registration due by April 4 (only 4 pullet spots left!)

-County Activity Day details & registration is due by April 10 (for participation in 4-H presentations, talent & expressive arts competitions)

-Rowan County 4-H Event Grants due by April 15 (merit based grants for 4-H'ers attending 4-H events this summer/fall that have additional costs)

-Scholarships for graduating high school seniors

-Animal related (horse, dairy, livestock, poultry) judging & quiz bowl practice & contest info. Poultry Judging practice starts in May! See flyer for details!

-AIRE opportunity for teens (to qualify for national level trips)

-Beekeeping Essay Contest

-2025 Rowan 4-H Save the Dates

-Save the Dates for 2025 4-H Volunteer Trainings

-Additional opportunities perfect for 4-H'ers (including lots of camps hosted by NC State University)!

***Find all details about the above items & more in THIS NEWSLETTER!

Make sure to click "view entire message" at the end because there's more opportunities to see!

Click here for Rowan 4-H page on Facebook

Click here for Rowan 4-H page on Instagram

Making the Best Better,
Laura

IMPORTANT UPDATE ABOUT OUR NEW OFFICE:

As of April 1, the doors at the new office are officially open to the public! Below is a picture showing our main entrance. Once inside the interior of the Rowan Community Center (they are calling the interior the "concourse"), then you'll go straight, then take a right, and our ag. suite is on the left. Once inside the ag. suite lobby, we are the first door on the right.

Our phone numbers have stayed the same. The main line is 704-216-8970.

Our new address is for mailing purposes & location purposes:
Rowan County Cooperative Extension
1959 Jake Alexander Blvd. West
Suite 1400
Salisbury, NC 28147

(However, if you put this into Google maps, it takes you across the road. The county has been working with Google to get this fixed, but so far nothing has changed. If people need the address to get to the building via GPS, you need to use 1935 Jake Alexander Blvd. West...it will take you to the Board of Elections, which is at the other end of the building, but at least you're at the right building.)

For those who have lived in Rowan County a while or forever, you know this new facility as the former Salisbury Mall which was then turned into West End Plaza. They are trying to rebrand with all the changes now and the new verbiage is below:

Salisbury Mall = Rowan Community Center (RCC)
Belk = Rowan County Events Center (RCEC)
Large dome-type hallway outside of the Events Center = Barrel Hall
JCPenney = Cardinal Room
Mall interior = Concourse
Suite that includes Extension, Forestry & Soil & Water = Rowan County Agricultural Center

Upcoming Meetings

County Council: for youth ages 12-18 years old as of January 1

**If your child is 12-18 as of Jan 1 and they are interested in County Council, please email Laura to get on the County Council email list for all reminders and updates for this group!

-Next County Council meetings:
-April 15: 6-7:15 pm at the new office

PALS: These meetings are for any parent, alumni, leader or supporter of Rowan County
4-H. If you are interested in 4-H or new to 4-H, you are invited to attend these meetings as well! Please come share your ideas for 4-H and help us find ways to support Rowan County 4-H.

Next meetings
-April 4: 4-H Volunteer Social (only for officially registered 4-H Volunteers;details have been emailed to you; RSVP by April 1)

-Final Port-a-Pit planning meeting): Monday, April 14 at 7 PM on Zoom: https://ncsu.zoom.us/j/99819292346

It's time to register for our Rowan County 4-H Pullet & Broiler projects. A pullet is a young hen that is raised for egg production, while a broiler is a chicken raised for meat production. Youth can participate in one or both of these projects. These projects both culminate with a show during the Rowan County Fair in September.

Limited availability, so get registered ASAP.

Click here for all details.
Must register under "events" in 4-HOnline.

Did you know that around 77% of people experience some level of anxiety about public speaking, a fear known as glossophobia? Do you want to help your child practice public speaking starting at a young age to help conquer this fear? If so, get them registered to participate in our County Activity Day competitions!

Must pre-register in 4-HOnline "events" by April 10.

Expressive arts entries are due by 12 pm on April 22 for prior judging.

Event will be held at our NEW OFFICE on the evening of Friday, April 25.

**If you have questions or want to see some sample presentation videos to help your child prepare, email the 4-H Agent!

CLICK HERE FOR ALL DETAILS.

Rowan County 4-H Port-a-Pit fundraiser

We need ALL hands on deck to help us with this event.

Ways you can help include:

-Have your 4-H'er reach out to local businesses, schools, friends, family members, etc. to order plates. They can go in-person or call. If you need flyers printed to take with you, contact laura_allen@ncsu.edu to get some printed for you to pick up at the office!

-You as the parent/guardian can reach out to those you know to sell plates.

-Use this list of local businesses to sign up to contact them so we don't all talk to the same people. Add any businesses you know of!

-Adults & responsible teens can sign up to work at the event on May 7. Click here to sign up! We need delivery drivers, plate makers, etc.

-Order plates for you and your family!

-Share the flyer & plate ordering link on social media!

Click here for a downloadable copy of the flyer.

Click here to go directly to the ordering link.

ROWAN COUNTY 4-H EVENT GRANTS

Who can apply: Rowan 4-H members
(the 4-H'er should complete the application, not the parent)

Why apply: To help your child attend 4-H events that have costs associated with them (4-H Camp, Congress, shooting sports competitions, horse shows, etc)

Who provides this money: Our 501c3, Rowan County 4-H PALS, annually provides these merit-based grants using profit from the annual 4-H Port-a-Pit fundraiser.

When is it due: APPLY BY 5 PM on APRIL 15!

How do I turn in the application: Turn it in to Laura Allen, Rowan County 4-H Agent via scanning & emailing or drop off.

CLICK HERE to access the guidelines & application.

HORSE: If you want to stay up-to-date on all things related to the NC 4-H Horse Program, click here to sign up to receive their newsletter. Click here to access the main page for the NC 4-H Horse Program to learn more.

If interested in participation in 4-H Horse Bowl, Hippology, or Horse Judging, please look into joining the Happy Trails 4-H Club led by 4-H volunteer club leader, Maggie Boreman.

If you want to show in the 4-H District Horse Show (to try to qualify for state), then you must complete the qualifying packet and turn it in by the deadline listed in the packet.

LIVESTOCK: Rowan County 4-H will be having a 2025 Livestock Judging team and a 4-H Livestock Quiz Bowl team. Practices are happening now. The NC 4-H livestock contests will be in late July/early August. This opportunity is led by 4-H volunteer Eric Deal.

DAIRY CATTLE: 4-H Dairy Quizbowl is complete for 2025. The NC 4-H Dairy Jugding contest will be April 11, 2025. If interested in participating in 2026, contact the 4-H Agent.

POULTRY: The 4-H Poultry Judging team practices will begin soon! The contest will be July 9, 2025. This is led by the Rowan 4-H Agent & Rowan Livestock Agent.

If you are interested in participating in or learning more about ANY of these opportunities, please contact the Rowan County 4-H Agent at laura_allen@ncsu.edu.

4-H Shout Outs

Thanks to everyone who came to celebrate during our 4-H Achievement Night drop-in event on February 28. I hope you enjoyed your first-hand look at the new facility!

Congrats to the Rowan County 4-H Dairy Quizbowl teams who competed in the state competition on March 1, held in Chatham County. There were 12 junior teams in the competition and one of our teams placed 2nd in the state! The 2nd place team included: Eli Knox, Kyann Race, Anna Waller, Mary Waller and alternate Addyson Baker. Our additional team included: Tallulah Ennis, Lynlee Propst, Aislinn Watts, Rosie Wells, and alternate Lainey Plott. Special thanks to volunteer Calli Plott for leading this group and for volunteer Carolyn Ennis for assisting.

Members of the Happy Trails 4-H Club competed in the NC 4-H Hippology contests held in Raleigh on March 8. This team placed 5th in the team question and 10th overall in the junior Hippology contest! Team members included: Ava Heilig, Brooklynn Parker, Kyann Race, Addie Webster. Thank you to club leader Maggie Boreman for leading this team and for the parents/volunteers who assisted.

Congrats to the Rowan Mighty Chefs who placed 3rd out of 6 teams in the regional Dinah Gore 4-H Healthy Food Challenge. Team members included: Karlee Austin, Juliana Koenig, Charis Mailliard, and Anna Parker, Special thanks to volunteer Heather Parker for assisting with this team and the Cabarrus County 4-H office for helping them practice.

Job well done to Rowan 4-H'er John Tucker who placed 2nd in the Youth Market Turkey Show t-shirt design contest.

Rowan 4-H Volunteer Reporting for 2025

If you are registered as a 4-H Volunteer in 4-HOnline it is super important that you report your hours and contacts! This greatly assists Laura with her Extension reports every year, since your hours and contacts must be reported!

Please go to go.ncsu.edu/2025rowan4hvolunteercontacts and complete your reports. Reports are due 10 days after the end of each month (January contacts due by Feb. 10). Email reminders will be sent to those who should be completing reports. It should only take about 5 minutes!