Laura Haddon Cherokee County 4-H Youth Development Agent
Ms. Ruppe’s 2nd grade class from Draytonville Elementary enjoyed their visit to Sarratt Farms for 4-H Down on the Farm Day.
Cherokee County 4-H hosted its first annual “Down on the Farm Day” event for all the second graders in the county. Laura Haddon and Christopher LeMaster wrote a grant in the spring of 2021 and received $1,000 to cover the cost of transportation for the public schools within the district. After meeting with school district staff, the date was set for Friday, April 1, 2022.
2nd graders had hands-on opportunities to learn where their meat and milk come from.Ben Sease from SC Farm to School shared about mushrooms and earthworms.
Almost 600 second grade students (public, private, and charter) attended the event hosted at Sarratt Farms in Gaffney. Children rotated with their classes through six stations where they learned about different areas of South Carolina agriculture. Stations included strawberries, earthworms, sunflowers, pigs, cows, and a combine! County extension agents from across the Upstate, teachers and students from the ag classes at Cherokee County’s Institute for Innovation, SC Ag in the Classroom, and SC Farm to School all helped to give the students hands-on knowledge about farming in our county and state.
Students from Cherokee County’s Institute for Innovation’s FFA helped the 2nd graders plant sunflower seeds.
The goal of this event was to connect youth to the source of their food and fiber and develop in each one an appreciation for South Carolina agriculture. For many of the students, this was their first time ever seeing a cow, a pig, or even stepping foot on a farm! It was an adventure they will always remember.
Rabbit Judge, Julia Waddell, presents Jason Connors and his Mini Rex rabbit, Gene, with the Grand Champion Ribbon.
On Friday, March 11th and Saturday, March 12th Cherokee County 4-H hosted its first annual spring livestock show event. Fifty-seven youth from three states braved the rain, wind, and freezing temperatures to show off the hard work they have put into raising and training their livestock. Market hogs, beef cattle, and rabbits were exhibited over the course of the two days. Our distinguished judges were John Barnes (hogs and cattle) of Wilson County North Carolina and Julia Waddell (rabbits) of Inman.
Laura Haddon, Chris LeMaster, and Peter Wilkins recognized Robert Blanton for his hard work and dedication to the youth of 4-H and specifically to the Cherokee County 4-H Spring Livestock Show.
Friday night was the Market Hog Show. Youth showed their hogs in showmanship and market classes. In showmanship youth were divided into age groups and judged on how well they were able to present their hog and exhibit its best traits to the judge. Anna Barrett Penland, of Laurens, won the belt buckle for top Junior Showman and Langley Vernon, of Anderson, won the belt buckle for top Senior Showman. Market classes were determined by the weights of the hogs. The top pig from each weight class was chosen by the judge and held over to compete for Grand and Reserve Champion Market Hog. Grand Champion Lottery Market Hog went to Cade Simpson of Anderson and his pig, BBQ. Jack Dill of Jonesville received Reserve Champion Lottery Market Hog for his pig Uno. The Open Market Hog Grand Champion was Anna Barrett Penland and her pig Slushie, while Reserve Grand Champion Open Market Hog went to Carley Tolbert of Franklin County Georgia and her pig Trigger.
Judge John Barnes recognizes the Beef Showmanship winners.Jonathan Felipe was presented with a $1,000 check for his Supreme Champion Heifer.
The competitions continued Saturday morning with beef cattle and Saturday afternoon with rabbits. Once again, the youth were judged on their knowledge of their animal and ability to present their animal in a way that would display its best traits. Belt buckles were awarded to Lillian Wilkins of Blacksburg for top Cloverbud Beef Showman, Josey Tolbert of Franklin County Georgia for top Junior Beef Showman, Jonathan Felipe of Habersham County Georgia for top Intermediate Beef Showman, and to Hailee Campbell of Enoree for top Senior Beef Showman. The winner of the Rabbit Showmanship Belt Buckle was a Senior Showman, Jason Conners of Van Wyck.
After the showmanship competitions were completed, the animals were divided by breeds and judged by how closely they conformed to the standard for their breeds. A top animal was chosen for each breed of cattle and held over for the Supreme Champion Heifer competition. At the end of the day, Jonathan Felipe and his Simmental heifer, Woodlawn Splendid, were awarded the $1,000 check and title of Supreme Heifer for the show. The Best in Show of the Rabbit breeds was awarded to Jason Conners and his Mini Rex rabbit, Gene.
Cherokee County 4-H also presented a Herdsman Award to one youth in the Market Hog Show and one youth in the Beef Show. This award was given to two young men who demonstrated a positive attitude, a diligent work ethic, and a willingness to help others during their time at the show. Andrew Jewell of Gray Court was awarded the Swine Herdsman of the Year and Ross Arthur of Union was awarded the Beef Herdsman of the Year. In addition to a beautiful plaque, each young man was awarded a cash prize of $250.
Cade Simpson showing his market hog.
This show would not have been possible without the support of our community. Cherokee County 4-H wishes to thank all 37 of our sponsors who made it possible for us to award over $10,000 in cash prizes to the youth for their hard work. Chick-fil-A of Gaffney and Firehouse Subs of Gaffney provided us with concessions to raise money for our 4-H Scholarship Fund. Mr. Bill Sarratt and his staff at Sarratt Farms prepared their facilities for our use. Mr. Peter Wilkins, Mrs. Karen Allen, and countless others were instrumental in all the behind the scenes work that goes into organizing a livestock show. A special award was given to Mr. Robert Blanton to recognize him for his hard work and dedication to the youth of 4-H and specifically to the Cherokee County 4-H Spring Livestock Show.
Laura Haddon Cherokee County 4-H Youth Development Agent
Hands-on learning about watersheds at this summer’s 4-H Nature Camp.Cloverbuds use their hands for larger service by making thank you cards for the veterans living at The Palmetto Patriots Home in Gaffney.
Cherokee County 4-H stayed busy all summer! We continued to provide programming to the five Boys and Girls Clubs of the Upstate locations in Cherokee County. Programs included Healthy Lifestyles lessons, STEM activities, and Ag in the Classroom experiences for first through fifth grades. Our partnership with the Boys and Girls Clubs is invaluable!
We also hosted day camps and workshops. Our first day camp of the summer was Nature Camp. It was offered to a total of 25 youth each Friday in June and covered a different topic each week. This year the topics included Watersheds, Birds, Aquatic Wildlife, and Tree Identification. The camp was hosted with the help of Duke Energy and Cherokee County Soil and Water Conservation District. Each of the participants had fun and gained a greater appreciation for the natural resources in our county.
4-Hers enjoyed interacting with a variety of animals at Animal Science Camp held at Cherokee County’s Institute for Innovation.
The Cloverbuds (ages 5 to 8) enjoyed a camp all to themselves as they learned about the opportunities 4-H has to offer. They had fun with STEM, Healthy Lifestyles, Natural Resources, and Community Service activities centered around a theme for each day of camp. The themes were Patriotism, Butterflies, and My Plate. At the end of the week, we were able to provide the residents at Palmetto Veterans Home in Gaffney with red, white, and blue cards thanking them for their service to our country.
4-H partnered with the horticulture teacher at Cherokee County’s Institute for Innovation to host a succulent workshop for teens and tweens.
One of our most successful day camps took place in July at the Cherokee County Institute for Innovation. The agriculture teachers partnered with 4-H to host an Animal Science Camp for 20 youth. Campers learned how to restrain animals safely, give injections, and bandage and suture wounds. We had special guests from Latti-moo’s Farm and the Humane Society of Cherokee County. The youth brought donations of food, bedding, and cleaning supplies to share with the animals at the Humane Society and made pumpkin dog treats and recycled t-shirt toys too!
Volunteers from the American Sewing Guild helped 4-Hers learn basic sewing skills. The pillowcases were donated to a local nursing home.
The Summer Workshops for Tweens and Teens included planting succulents and basic sewing skills. The American Sewing Guild of the Upstate provided the supplies and expertise needed for the sewing workshop, while we continued our partnership with the Institute for Innovation for the succulent workshop. The youth that attended enjoyed learning new skills and developing a new hobby!
Community partnerships were the key to our summer successes! We appreciate all those who helped us make the best of Cherokee County better!
Newberry County 4-H recently wrapped up their summer programs for 2022. The goal for this year was to introduce local youth to some vintage skills in hopes that they would enter their creations in a local fair. This would benefit both the fair, with more entries and from a younger audience, and it will allow the youth the opportunity to win ribbons and premium monies.
We started the summer with a 3-day hand quilting class taught by a local artist and with many fabulous donations from a local quilt shop, Quilt Werks. Six girls learned basic hand quilting skills and completed a lap quilt to take home.
Next, our Mixing and Making in the Kitchen camp introduced youth to food processing and preservation. It was a long, tiring day but 9 youth made and canned blueberry jam, processed peanut butter, made butter and butter milk to go in our homemade biscuits, start refrigerator pickles, decorated pie tops and made ice cream in a bag. All in a day’s work!
By July, we were ready for a more laid-back camp. We partnered with Fairfield County 4-H to offer a camp in Jenkinsville, on the county line. Our Pioneer Ways Day Camp introduces youth to life on the frontier: what they wore, how they traveled, what they ate, how they played and more. We did sneak in a little technology with the original ‘Oregon Trail’ computer game, which was a hit. However, the rest of the day we played pioneer games, made butter and hard tack for a snack, built a ‘log’ cabin out of pool noodles, made a journal and quill to write with our freshly produced blueberry ink. It was an eye-opening day.
Our final camp of the summer was a STEM day where youth were introduced to computer coding and robotics. Youth learned about different computer languages and used a program called Scratch to animate their names. However, the big hits of the day were programming different types of robots to do different tasks.
As we close out the summer, we are looking towards the new 4-H year which beings in September. This year we are excited to bring back a few clubs that haven’t meet since before COVID, in addition to clubs that started during the shutdowns. Stay tuned to keep up with all of our opportunities. Fore more information on Newberry County 4-H contact 4-H Agent Alana West at awillin@clemson.edu or 803.768.8442.
Clemson University Cooperative Extension hosted the 2022 Southeast Dairy Youth Retreat July 10 to 14. The annual youth retreat rotates through five of the Southeastern states including Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Virginia. The week is full of farm tours, non-farm tours, workshops, and other learning opportunities for youth interested in Dairy. The retreat is open to youth from the ages of 6 to 19 who are interested in learning more about dairy cattle and the dairy industry and meeting youth from across the Southeast with those same interests.
This year’s retreat was headquartered in Clemson, SC at the T Ed Garrison Arena. 75 youth and adults from Alabama, Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia had the opportunity to participate in hands-on dairy foods and meats workshops, tours of the Clemson Blue Cheese and 55 Exchange Ice Cream processing sites, learning sessions, and a skill-a-thon contest to test their knowledge of dairy and animal agriculture. Also included in the retreat was a variety of farm tours and recreational events. The group toured the Clemson dairy, beef, and sheep farms, Milky Way Farm, Happy Cow Creamery, and the Roper Mountain Science Center.
The summer months have been busy in Saluda county as livestock & forage producers have worked tirelessly harvesting hay and silage and weaning their fall-born calf crop. As we transition into the fall, we begin preparing our clientele for new challenges they may face. The Saluda County Cattleman’s Association held a meeting on September 6th to prepare producers for controlling fall army worms. Clemson Extension Agent Brian Beer gave a detailed presentation on army worm identification, scouting tips, and control options. Over 90 producers were in attendance for the meeting.
The Saluda County 4-H Livestock shows will take place on September 14th and 15th at the Central Milk Producers Show & Sale Arena. Both will be well attended as youth from across South Carolina exhibited their prize show animals.
For over 120 years, 4-H Youth Development has engaged youth with high-quality developmental settings with an emphasis on academic motivation and success, social competence, high personal standards, connection, personal responsibility, and contribution to others through leadership and civic engagement. The 4-H Thriving Model is the theory of change for positive youth development in 4-H. The model illustrates the process of positive youth development in 4-H programs by connecting high-quality program settings to the promotion of youth thriving.
The Regional 4-H PYD Champion Network consists of 4-H professionals from Land-Grant Universities (LGUs) across the five Extension Regions. Clemson University Cooperative Extension is proud to support Patricia Whitener as a champion for SC 4-H and part of the southeastern regional working group. Her focus as a thrive champion is on capacity-building efforts for 4-H professionals and volunteers with both Clemson University and SC State. Her focus is on promoting a consistent, correct, and complete understanding of positive youth development throughout the state and region.
Patricia has received $25,000 through a competitive distribution of Extension Innovation funding to further the implementation and adoption of the 4-H Thrive model. This will be accomplished through PYD capacity building with 4-H professionals and volunteers, leading to improved PYD programming, and stronger and clearer program impact. Ultimately the aim of the thrive sessions is to educate and empower 4-H professionals and to secure the position of SC 4-H as a regional leader in positive youth development programming through delivering professional development, developing effective professional development evaluation, and supporting quality program implementation standards. The impact of the initiative is widespread. Research demonstrates youth programs must be done well if they are to make a positive difference in the lives of youth. Long-term outcomes of quality Developmental Context (i.e., 4-H programs) are academic or vocational success, civic engagement, employability and economic stability, happiness, and wellbeing.
Food Systems and Safety Agent Alex Thompson Hosts a Canning Demonstration
Food Systems and Safety Agent Alex Ryan Thompson is helping to educate Upstate South Carolina residents on a range of food safety topics. As a part of the Food Systems and Safety program team with Clemson Cooperative Extension, Alex Ryan Thompson hosts home canning workshops covering all forms of canning. Types of canning boiling water bath, pickling, jams and jellies, and pressure canning. These workshops are hands-on experiences where participants will learn about the process of canning, the scientific principles behind canning, and how to identify research-based canning recipes. Canning workshops are hosted by Alex across the Upstate. No previous canning knowledge is required to attend these workshops. For the most current schedule of upcoming workshops and to register, visit the Food Systems and Safety team page here:
Testing a pressure canner gauge. Photo Credit: Misty Galloway
Upstate South Carolina residents who own pressure canners can also reach out to Clemson Cooperative Extension to have their pressure canners inspected and their dial gauges tested for accuracy. The Food Systems and Safety team recommends having pressure canners inspected and dial gauges tested annually to ensure safe pressure canning. Contact your local Extension office to schedule an appointment to have your pressure canner checked.
Furthermore, the Food Systems and Safety Team hosts ServSafe Food Handler and Manager trainings and can proctor ServSafe examinations for Upstate South Carolina residents. If you or someone you know needs ServSafe training, contact your local Extension office to schedule training or an examination.
Whether you want to know if your leftovers in the refrigerator are safe to eat or want to start a food business, the Food Systems and Safety team with Clemson Cooperative Extension is here to help!
Contact: Alex Ryan Thompson Food Systems and Safety Agent Clemson Cooperative Extension 352 Halton Rd Suite 302
Rural Health and Nutrition Agent, Melissa Bales, discusses the nutrients in tomatoes and peppers.
Growing Health is a program that was developed by the Greenville County Rural Health and Urban Horticulture Agents to help beginner gardeners in Greenville learn to grow their own vegetables and incorporate these vegetables into a healthy diet. In order to help beginner gardeners learn about vegetables that can be grown throughout the year, Growing Health is presented in accordance with the growing seasons – spring, summer, and fall. Those who participate in the program receive information and growing materials to take home.
Participants in the July Growing Health program learned how to grow their own herbs, how to create their own herb blend, and how to make herb water.
So far, the program has been a great success with 6 participants returning from the original class on tomatoes and peppers to the most recent class on herbs. Participants in the program have reached out to show their thanks for the program in addition to showing off their successful plants. The program will continue through next year. We also would like to thank the State Farmers Market on Rutherford Road for their support in allowing us to continue to come back to their site to offer the program!
Melissa Bales, Rural Health and Nutrition Extension Agent
Horticulture Agent, Mary Vargo, demonstrates different areas of a tomato plant.
Small-scale poultry producers will get hands-on experience in processing their birds for meat.
Finding a facility to harvest and process your livestock is a challenge for producers of any scale. This challenge has been exasperated by labor shortages and increased local meat demand. Fortunately, an exemption for small-scale poultry producers allows them to harvest and sell their meat.
Many South Carolinians bought poultry during the pandemic as a hobby and our call volume regarding poultry harvest and processing has certainly increased. To safely and humanely process chicken requires hands-on training. This can be a complex skill and is certainly not something you’d try to handle “virtually”.
Through an extension innovation grant, we have secured funding to put together a mobile processing unit. This consists of an enclosed trailer that houses the necessary equipment to teach producers on-farm the proper practices of processing. We are still outfitting the trailer but have planned its first two outings. We will use the mobile processing unit at a “train the trainer” meeting and then will offer a poultry processing workshop to the public on November 11th. The goal of the mobile processing unit is to educate producers of any size on humane harvest, efficient processing, safe food handling, good marketing practices, and even some good cooking recipes.
I anticipate a busy fall with livestock shows, cattlemen meetings, and our extension workshops. Thank you for your support of Clemson Extension.
For over 120 years, 4-H Youth Development has engaged youth with high-quality developmental settings with an emphasis on academic motivation and success, social competence, high personal 
standards, connection, personal responsibility, and contribution to others through leadership and civic engagement. The 4-H Thriving Model is the theory of change for positive youth development in 4-H. The model illustrates the process of positive youth development in 4-H programs by connecting high-quality program settings to the promotion of youth thriving.
