Clay County 4-H

Now is the time to re-enroll in 4-H Online (https://v2.4honline.com/#/user/sign-in) for the 2025/2026 4-H Year! It doesn't matter whether you joined 1 week ago or you have been in the program for 8 years, EVERYONE must reenroll every year! So if you are a volunteer, Cloverbud, or a 4-H member please follow the link above and get you and your family reenrolled so we can have a GREAT 2025/2026 4-H year!

This also is the best time for our friends to join us in 4-H! If you have friends or family that are not yet enrolled in 4-H this is the most opportune time to sign up, or for them to reach out to the office for more information!

Attached you will find the Awards Guide. All award applications can be found online at the County Extension website https://www.claycountysd.org/extensionoffice4h.cfm

South Dakota 4-H volunteers are essential to the mission of our program. These caring adult mentors bring forth many skills and hours of dedicated service each year to help strengthen the lives of young people. If you were a volunteer in the 2024-2025 4-H program year, thank you so much!

South Dakota 4-H volunteers serve one-year terms, renewable indefinitely so long as both parties (i.e., typically the volunteer and lead county 4-H professional) wish to continue the relationship. The returning volunteer indicates this interest by re-enrolling in 4-HOnline after October 1st. At this point, the returning volunteer’s status is “pending.” In most cases, the lead local 4-H professional will quickly approve and the 4-HOnline status will then say “active.” This signifies the renewal of the relationship for the 4-H year ahead.

If the lead local 4-H professional does not wish to continue the relationship or wishes to discuss role restrictions or alterations, they will communicate this to the volunteer. Each year, a few 4-H volunteers are not renewed for service.

Reminder: All returning volunteers need to indicate their interest in returning. The preferred renewal date is before December 31(or other local program preferred date), but required before volunteers are allowed to do any 4-H programming or events and before September 1st. Otherwise, should they wish to return at a future time, they will have to re-start the volunteer process from scratch and pay a $75 lapsed background check fee.

Interested in becoming a new volunteer this 4-H year? Contact Laurie or Rali at the office anytime, preferably before April 1, to learn more.

The South Dakota Crunch Off is an annual statewide event celebrating Farm to School efforts, local agriculture, and promoting local producers. The event is also part of a multi-state competition to achieve the most per capita “crunches” into local produce, nuts, popcorn, and meat. Last year we had over 6,500 crunches and we are hoping to surpass that this year, but we need your help!

How the Crunch Off works:

1. Identify a "crunch" team - this can be a 4-H club, or it can be your family, a child's classroom/school/daycare, a sports team, a church group, a book club, etc. Any group, big or small, can participate!

2. Find a local food you want to eat (fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, popcorn, meat). The "crunch" or bite can be as simple as taste testing an apple slice or having a full apple. Local foods can come from a garden, farmer's market, apple orchard, or any other local food producer. The local food can be purchased or donated.

3. Crunch together! Eat your local food item before October 31st.

4. Register Your Crunches: https://extension.sdstate.edu/event/south-dakota-crunch. Registering those crunches is important to make sure they get counted for our South Dakota team!

Beyond crunching into local produce, you can also help support the effort by sharing the event with your community, local schools, churches, daycares, senior centers, and more!

First YLL event of the new 4-H Year in Lincoln County

October 1 - Beginning of the 2025/2026 4-H Year

October 1 - 4-H Online Enrollment Opens

October 3 - Record Books and Award Applications are Due

October 5-11 - National 4-H Week

• October 5 @ 6pm - Ambassadors Decorating Cars for 4-H Week at the 4-H Center

October 8 - 4-7pm - Ladies Night at Runnings

October 15 & 16 - 5-7pm - Help with Lions Club Pancake Days

October 18 - Lincoln County Livestock Skill-A-Thon

October 31 - 4-6pm - Trunk or Treat at the Vermillion Public Library

Office Hours Monday through Friday 8-5 (closed over noon hour)

Rali Sykes

4-H Administrative Assistant

Email: clay.county@sdstate.edu
Website: https://www.claycountysd.org/extensionoffice4h.cfm
Location: 515 High Street, Vermillion, SD, USA
Phone: 605-677-7111
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/share/g/19jWQKEPVq/