Sibley County 4-H Newsletter
December 2025
On Sunday, November 2 we celebrated the accomplishments of our 4-H members and volunteers. Our 77th Annual Awards Night was held at the Sibley East High School in Arlington and hosted by the Arlington Conquerors 4-H Club. Congratulations to the following awards winners.
Ambie of Honor - Abby Willegal; Most Empowering Ambassador – Ella Doehling; Most Active Ambassador – Nicole Sievert . Top Secretaries – 1st – Kelly Willegal; 2nd – Kaelin Foster; 3rd – Kjerssa Jasinski. Top Treasurers – 1st – Lauren Schafer; 2nd – Lorelai Aronson; 3rd – Taylor Sommer. Top Reporters – 1st – Lorelai Aronson; 2nd – Grant Schauer.
Outstanding Graduates – Nicole Sievert and Rachael Dose. 4-H Scholarships – Eden Messerli and Abby Willegal. Chuck Yahnke Memorial Award – Brennir Peterson and Ella Doehling.
Adult Leader Award – Kylee Messner; Business Friend of 4-H – S.O.S. Auto Repair - Donovan Steele; Friend of 4-H – Jake Elbert; 4-H Alumni Award – Erin Wersal; Outstanding Communicator Award - Olivia Majeski.
4-H Week Displays – Arlington Conquerors, Blazin’ West Starts, Transit Trailblazers and Weeping Willows. Community Pride – Arlington Conquerors. Club with the Most New Members – Arlington Conquerors. Club of the Year Award – Blazin’ West Stars.
Thank you to the Arlington Conquerors 4-H Club for planning the event!
Reminder to Re-Enroll in 4-H Online
The next Federation Meeting is scheduled for Monday, January 26, 2026 starting at 7:00 p.m. in the Sibley County Service Center. Please plan on having EVERY club represented. The Federation delegates are the link between the clubs and the Federation. If you can’t make it, please try and find a replacement. Clubs will receive a pizza party from the federation if they are present at all 5 federation meetings November - September.
Project Meetings
Sibley Poultry Project Workshop
There will be a Poultry Project Workshop on Saturday, December 13th 5 PM - 7 PM at the Elbert Farm . At this meeting, we will explain the poultry project, including all the possibilities and discuss basic bird care. The first part of this meeting is geared towards newer poultry members. The second part will be if anyone has hatching their own bird questions. The third part will be poultry project bowl information and handing out books. This is a free event and open for grades K - 13+. Register by December 12. https://z.umn.edu/PoultryProjectWorkshop
One of Sibley County 4-H Federation goals is to strongly encourage youth to take advantage of all the great opportunities that are also available outside of Sibley County. Below is a list of a couple great opportunities that are coming up in the next couple of months. We would highly recommend these leadership opportunities. Remember, if this is your first time going, Sibley County 4-H Federation will pay for 90% of your costs and if second and beyond they cover 75%.
The Minnesota 4-H State Ambassadors are excited to invite YOU to the 2026 regional leadership workshops: Building Leadership and Understanding (BLU): Bloom into Leadership! Youth will build important leadership skills at BLU by learning about communication and conflict. They’ll explore different ways people communicate, take a fun self-assessment to understand how they handle conflict and discover tools to help them work better with others.
Youth will also participate in an impactful service session centered on this year’s statewide service project theme Disaster Relief and Emergency Response, where participants will step into action through hands-on activities, meaningful service projects and collection drives that make a real difference across communities in Minnesota.
Building Leadership and Understanding (BLU) is a youth-led workshop for youth in grades 6 and up that strengthens leadership, communication, and relationship skills. BLU will be hosted in five different locations! Four overnight and one, single day experiences:
Jan. 31-Feb. 1 - Long Lake Conservation Center in Palisade
Feb. 7-8 - Camp Victory in Zumbro Falls
Feb. 7-8 - Concordia Language Villages in Bemidji
Feb. 21-22 - Camp Friendship in Annandale
Feb. 28 - Southwest Minnesota State University in Marshall
To learn more about BLU and register visit z.umn.edu/4-HBLU.
Find Us on Facebook and Instagram
We share lots of information and important reminders on Facebook and Instagram. Many events that the state hosts are also shared to our page. Please like our page to see all these posts and updates. Search for UMN Extension Sibley County 4-H.
Events Through 4-H Online
There are many great events coming up that you can register for through 4-H online. Just log into your family profile and click on events. Check back often, items are always being added. Remember if there is a cost to the event, that the Sibley County Federation has scholarships available to reimburse a portion of the cost.
Winter Weather Check
It is that time of year, inclement weather is upon us! If the weather causes cancellations or postponements of 4-H events, listen to one of the following local radio stations: KDUZ - Hutchinson 320-587-2140 and KNUJ - New Ulm 507-359-2921. Also look for emails and check our Facebook Page. If any of the county schools are canceled or have an early out due to weather, the evening county-wide 4-H events are canceled.
Project Bowl is a long-standing program in Minnesota 4-H and the second-most attended event of the year (next in line to the State Fair). In Project Bowl, teams of 3-6 youth build skills working and thinking together while testing their knowledge in these 4-H areas: Dairy, Dog, General Livestock, Horse, Llama/Alpaca, Plant Science, Poultry and Rabbit.
Last year Sibley County had five teams in General Livestock, one Dairy team, three Poultry teams and two Rabbit teams, . We are currently forming teams and will start practicing in January for the regional and state competitions that are coming up in March and April. If you are interested in joining a team or starting up a team in one of the other project areas, please reach out to Connie or Joleen.