Dawn Stuckey, 4-H Youth Development – Colleton, and Hampton Counties
It’s time to start heading back to school! Do you know what that means? It’s time to start thinking about joining 4-H again. 4-H clubs will begin again in September. The 4-H club year coincides with the school year. Clubs start meeting in early September and end in May. During the summer, members have opportunities to participate in camps, programs, and projects around the state.
Hampton County 4-H participated in the Watermelon Festival’s Children’s Day at Lake Warren this summer. Festival staff estimated that three hundred children and families attended the event.
4-H Members also participated in an intergenerational program with Hampton County FCL club. Youth and adults participated in a joint meeting to discuss the advantages of different generations coming together as a team to gain an appreciation of each other while bringing mutually beneficial resources for collaboration. Cornell professor and child psychologist Urie Bronfenbrenner concluded, “Every child needs at least one adult who is irrationally crazy about him or her.” Relationships between youth and adults made a 46% difference in drug use, a 50% difference in school truancy, and a 33% difference in violent behavior. Adults receive the benefits of greater happiness and better mental and physical health. During the meeting, participants strategized ways that each could support the other’s club goals and activities. The meeting ended with adults and youth paired to make a friendship pen to remember the event.
A complete list of statewide 4-H projects can be found at the Clemson Extension 4-H website, https://www.clemson.edu/extension/4h/index.html.
More information about registering and club offerings for this 4-H Club year will be shared in September. If you want to learn more about 4-H in Hampton County, please get in touch with Dawn Stuckey (dstucke@clemson.edu) or call 803-943-3427.
Clemson University Cooperative Extension Service offers its programs to people of all ages, regardless of race, color, gender, religion, national origin, disability, political beliefs, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital or family status, and is an equal opportunity employer.
