D6—Lancaster Farming, Saturday, December 6,1980 4-H, growing through the LANCASTER - In the early 1900’s agricultural development was one ot our nation's top priorities. Extension workers quickly learned that one way to persuade a family to adopt new farming and home making practices was by introducing these ideas to children of the household Seaman Knapp and Perry Holden, Extension pioneers, could point to decreased boll weevil damage, increased com yields, and increased numbers of properly preserved tomatoes as direct results of their work with boys’ and girls’ clubs. That’s why, m 1914, the government invested in a new youth organization, 4-H, as one step in reaching optimum agricultural production. By supporting 4- H, the government con tributed to its goal of becoming the first society in history that was not only able to feed itself, but produce a surplus as well. Early 4-H Club members didn’t just learn how to in crease levels of agricultural production. They also learned responsibility, good citizenship, public speaking, and leadership, as they met to share information ob tained from their vegetable garden or hog raising projects. Today 4-H’ers still learn how to grow vegetables and raise hogs, but projects available to club members now range from cultural heritage, nutrition education, and cooking, to career exploration, wood working, and embryology. “What’s so great about the variety of 4PH projects,” says Dr. Maurice Kramer, State 4-H Program Director for Pennsylvania, “is that they give boys and girls a chance to explore The projects not only teach 4- H’ers practical lifelong skills, but also prepare them to accept future respon sibilities as an adult.” In addition to measuring the dollar contribution 4-H projects make to the economy (for example, 4- H’ers in the Beef project produce more than $lOO million worth of meat), it is necessary to look beyond the value of commodities produced and focus on human resources being "developed . Informal evaluations that 4-H develops hard-to measure human resources like self-esteem, confidence, and the ability to cope with stress. By providing op portunities for youth to experience success, whether by completing a tie-dye project, negotiating a bicycle safety course, or gives kids the chairing a meeting, 4-H is opportunity to help their helping to counteract communities, as well as feelings of hopelessness and themselves. Typical com disappomtment which seem nmnity-pnde projects have so prevalent among today’s included cleaning up you tjj roadsides, visiting nursing Studies of inner city, low- £ om ® shut 'ins, teaching income areas show that horseback riding to the when 4-H moves in, juvenile handicapped, and tran cnme decreases. It costs at sformmg vacant lots into least $17,000 per year to care mini-parks. Ihe values of for an institutionalized cooperation and teamwork delinquent 4-H program? gamed from these ex- Red meat production declines HARRISBURG - Com- from October 1979 mercial red meat production in Pennsylvania during October totaled 92.3 million pounds, down six percent from October 1979 Cattle slaughter at 72,800 head was up one percent while calf slaughter at 26,000 head was up 10 percent from last year Hog slaughter at 292,500 head decreased 12 percent from a year ago The number ot sheep and lambs slaughtered totaled 14,200 down nine percent ■ LIVESTOCK SCALES For Hog Operations TRUCK & PLATFORM SCALES ALSO AVAILABLE GARBER SCALE COMPANY 121 Witmer Rd. Phone Lancaster. Pa. 17602 (717) 393-1708 ALL SCALES STATE APPROVED. cost the federal government about $13.00 per participant It 4-H can continue to act as a deterent to delinquency by engaging youth in con structive activities before they become involved in destructive ones, the return to the public in terms.of human resources developed and money saved from avoiding institutionalization will be immeasurable. Nationally, commercial red meat production during October totaled 3.58 billion pounds, an increase of one percent from October 1979. Beef production at 2.03 billion pounds was up four percent while veal production at 37 million pounds was unchanged. Pork production totaled 1.49 billion pounds, down four percent from October 1979. years penences far exceed the monetaiy value of work- accomplished. - “In recent years, 4-H has convincingly proved itself as a valuable program for urban as well as rural areas, with projects available to every boy and girl from every ethnic group and socioeconomic class,” Dr. Kramer states. In terms of educational value, 4-H is priceless. And if enrollment can prove worth, 4-H with its more than five million members, is the nation’s largest non-school educational program for boys and girls. 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Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers