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Go Purple to Support Military Youth

Show military youth that you care- wear purple on April 8th!

Show military youth that you care- wear purple on April 8th!

April is the Month of The Military Child! When we think of honoring our military, we often think of Memorial Day and Veterans Day.  Did you know there is also a time identified to honor our youngest heroes, military children?  Since 1986, April has been designated Month of the Military Child. This allows us to honor military children and their families for their commitment and sacrifice. In Florida we have over 51,000 military youth who deal with situations like having their parents in harm’s way when they deploy. Most people think of the color green when they think of 4-H, but on April 8th, 4-H youth and volunteers in Florida will be sporting the color purple to show support for our military families.

Imagine if someone close to you were deployed.  Would you like to see all the news reports showing bombs exploding and people shooting at each other?  How would you feel about having long and repeated separations when your parent misses important events like birthdays, holidays, school and sporting events? Would you like it if your family had frequent relocations/moves?  Every time families move, children have to make new friends, get used to new schools, and find new 4-H clubs and teams to join.

A lot of military children take these changes in stride and some even thrive on them, but it is also hard – kids have to rebuild their world every time they move.  UF/IFAS Extension and 4-H are proud to be a part of the military family working with youth centers across the nation to have some consistency for youth in these situations and who are making these moves.

Here locally we want you to join us in showing your support and to celebrate our young heroes! Participate in the 6th annual Purple Up! For Military Kids Wear purple on Friday, April 8th, as a visible way to show support and thank military children for their strength and sacrifices. Why purple? Purple is the color that symbolizes all branches of the military, as it is the combination of Army green, Coast Guard blue, Air Force blue, Marine red and Navy blue.

The goal is for our military youth to see the support of their community. Please join us in honoring these young heroes as we Purple Up! For Military Kids on April 8th! Be creative….the goal is for military youth to see the support in their school, youth groups, and the community! If you don’t have or own a purple shirt wear a purple ribbon, tie, headband etc. Just show your support and let our youth know we care about them! Can’t make the 8th then do something another day in April. We would like to encourage you to take pictures of your group wearing purple and share them on social media. If you are willing to share then e-mail them to us.:bay@ifas.ufl.edu or post photos to Facebook and tag us https://www.facebook.com/bayifas/ or comment and add your photo.

Florida 4-H Club Grows Compassion through Community Pride Grant

Fire Ants 4-H Club members prepare and serve meals for hospice patients and caregivers to develop compassion and empathy in their community.

Fire Ants 4-H Club members prepare and serve meals for hospice patients and caregivers to develop compassion and empathy in their community.

There are many genetic traits you’re born with that can’t be changed.  But what about traits such as compassion and empathy?  Can they be learned?  A new study conducted by the University of Wisconsin-Madison shows that adults can indeed be trained to be more compassionate and empathetic.  But rather than wait until adulthood to grow this trait, youth involved in 4-H have the opportunity to grow compassion beginning as early as five years old.  Giving back has long been one of the essential elements of 4-H programs where youth are given the opportunity to practice service to others.

The Fire Ants 4-H Club is one such club in Washington County that gives its members a chance to practice compassion and giving through its service project with Covenant Hospice. For the past two years, the Fire Ants 4-H Club has partnered with Covenant Hospice to provide volunteer services for its clients. 

It began with a few members and parents volunteering to make a meal for a client.  Last year, club officers applied for a Florida 4-H Foundation Community Pride grant to grow their efforts with the purpose of providing healthy, home-cooked meals for Hospice clients.    Members and parents spent a day preparing and cooking made-from-scratch meals and then portioning them into individual serving containers.  Over 100 individual home-cooked meals were frozen and delivered to clients.  Members have also served at the past three annual Covenant Hospice banquet that honors patients and caregivers.  

Community service has the ability to become life changing not just for those receiving the service but especially for the youth involved.  4-H’ers are learning through hands-on experiences that they can make a difference and that their efforts are important.  Getting involved in a cause or effort that matters to youth helps develop skills and experiences that carry over into adult life and cultivate a sense of compassion for the world in which they live.  If we grow youth who are more compassionate and empathetic, what does that potentially mean for our world?  We are more likely to have youth who are socially responsible, who have a heart for giving back and helping others, who have positive relationships with peers and adults, who have improved communication and critical thinking skills and go into careers that feed their passions and interests. 

What will you do in 2016 to grow compassion? 

For more information on 4-H clubs in your county, or if you’re an adult who wants to work with youth to help them grow compassion and empathy to make help your community thrive, contact your local UF IFAS County Extension Office or visit http://florida4h.org 

 

 

4-H Club Leader Grows Resilience and Empathy

For more than 33 years, Priscilla Weaver has been teaching youth about animal science through the 4-H club program.

For more than 33 years, Priscilla Weaver has been teaching youth about animal science through the 4-H club program.

This time of the year you can find her at the North Florida Fairgrounds in the livestock buildings. As the North Florida Fair’s Livestock Director she’ll be busy putting on a great livestock show and competition for youth and adults. Priscilla Weaver is passionate about growing the 4-H animal science program. For more than two generations (33 years) Priscilla has been teaching youth about animal sciences and animal husbandry as the Kapra Kids Dairy Goat 4-H Club Leader in Wakulla County, Florida.

Priscilla started the club when she saw a need for her children and their friends to have an opportunity to participate in 4-H. “Youth need things like 4-H in their lives to grow up well,” says Priscilla. When asked why she thinks youth need 4-H Priscilla replied, “4-H teaches young people so many things, things like responsibility, caring and the ability to see a project through to its end.”

Priscilla has raised dairy goats her whole life, so when she started her club she worked with her club members in that project area. Her club has had as many as 16 members before and has won uncounted number of awards and ribbons showing their goats and their dairy by-products like cheese and soap at the Florida State Fair in Tampa, Florida

.  Priscilla feels strongly about teaching today’s youth about animal husbandry saying,

“It teaches them so many things; math and science, recordkeeping, planning and responsibility. Participating in a 4-H animal project also teaches caring and empathy by having responsibility for an animal,” says Priscilla.

Empathy and caring are two traits Priscilla has in abundance. When not volunteering for 4-H, she spends her free time working at the fair, caring for her own livestock, or volunteering with the senior group at her local church. These traits also display in the activities of Priscilla’s 4-H club as they participate in many community service projects and also in her leadership of multi-club service projects at places like the local senior center.

When asked what has kept her going as a 4-H volunteer for so many years Priscilla will tell you that it’s because, “she loves working with the youth.” Because of volunteers like Pricilla, 4-H is able to help youth grow resilience, empathy, and responsibility through animal science programs.  These are life skills that will help youth be successful no matter what career path they choose.  If you want help empower young people to be the best they can be by sharing your passions in a meaningful way Like Priscilla has, consider becoming a 4-H volunteer. The Florida 4-H Program offers a wide variety of volunteer roles to fit your schedule, interests and skills.  Contact your local UF IFAS Extension Office or visit http://florida 4h.org/volunteer for more information on how to volunteer today.