Ten Illinois 4-H teens were honored as Illinois 4-H Key Award winners for their leadership, community service and mentoring activities throughout their 4-H career. The award is sponsored by the H. Richard and Sarah F. McFarland Endowed 4-H Youth Leadership Development Support Fund from the Illinois...

One never knows how 4-H experiences can shape one's future. Josh Cole Brodnax participated in 4-H nutrition sessions while a youngster living in public housing in East Moline, thinking that would be his only experience with 4-H. Little did he know that 4-H would find him again as a teen and hone...

The next time you use the phrase "walking on eggshells," you'll think of a group of 4-H afterschool youth in Decatur who actually walked on eggs as part of their 4-H embryology project study. In addition to hatching chicks, the youth studied the egg structure, and to illustrate her points, 4-H...

Through a pilot initiative engaging 50 youth in Rockford, Madison and Elgin, 4-H youth in Illinois are building science and engineering skills for the future. Using open-source software and simple microcontroller boards called Arduinos, these youth are writing computer programs, learning how to...

Any better, and he'd been perfect. Darren Hawkins of Grundy County missed only one clay target throughout a full day of shotgun trap competition at the Illinois 4-H Shooting Sports State Shoot held Saturday, May 31 at the Brittany Shooting Park in Bunker Hill. Hawkins hit 74 of his 75 targets to...

You never know where the inspiration for a career will come. For 16-year-old Susannah Hall, it came from the 4-H knitting project she taught herself by reading a how-to book at the library. Susannah is a 5-year member of the Ft. Sumpter 4-H Club. She recently taught other 4-H members and parents in...

Four teens represented Illinois at the National Science and Engineering Festival in Washington, D.C. this spring. These 4-H science ambassadors, who hail from DuPage, Kane and Kendall counties, manned a water science booth at the popular national event. All of the youth are members of a special...

Some 4-H stories touch your heart in ways you don't ever forget. Meet 4-H member Tiffany Williams from Clark County who, as part of the five-member 4-H QOV Spinners 4-H Club, has donated time, talent and material to make beautiful "Quilts of Valor" for veterans of the area. Deb Lindley, the leader...

Janet Pezzelle, a volunteer leader of the Forsyth Fantastics 4-H Club for 15 years, said she wanted to expose her club members to something new. Her "something new" was bright, shiny and full of bling, glass mosaics. Members brought in items from home as the base for their mosaic project, and with...

The pilot program for the 4-H Teens as Teachers grant has wrapped up, and the results prove the concept of using teens to teach peers is solid for both the participants and the teen mentors. The following testimonials speak to the impact for 4-H Teen Teachers. "Being a teen teacher showed me...

Sometimes, it's hard enough just following a step-by-step recipe. Now, imagine you've been given a basket of ingredients and told to "make something." That's what teens in this year's Illinois 4-H Food Challenge pilot program faced. Several counties are holding mini competitions where youth...

Youth in Macon County now know more about how their food is produced, thanks to Illinois 4-H's Tech Wizards program. 4-H Tech Wizards is a national mentoring program funded by the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention. During March, the students studied embryology, all the while...

Kendall County 4-H Federation members gave back to their community by supporting local food bank organizations, including the Northern Illinois Food Bank (NIFB) in Geneva. The group helped pack 651 "backpacks" which will provide for 11,718 meals for hungry residents in the region. The 4-H...

University of Illinois Extension Statewide Camping Educator Curt Sinclair knew in his heart that serving as a 4-H camp counselor changed lives. Now he has the proof to back up his beliefs. In a recent survey conducted by U of I Extension for 4-H Memorial Camp, the comments from the teen counselors...

Leaving a child at camp for the first time can be scary for parents. In nearly 20 years at 4-H Memorial Camp in Monticello, Curt Sinclair, University of Illinois Extension statewide camping educator, said he never tires from getting these types of emails from parents: "I wanted to reach out to...

Kane County 4-H members gained first-hand knowledge of the important roles local government officials play during the 22nd annual 4-H Government Day. The 4-H youth shadowed more than 30 county officials, experiencing the inside of a County Board meeting, courtroom proceedings, and other government...

It's one thing to show livestock; it's another to understand the science behind raising livestock which will produce well and provide wholesome product for consumers. That's the vision which led DeWitt County 4-H volunteers Larry Martin and Doug North to host a livestock clinic which attracted...

Illinois 4-H strives to teach life skills. Sometimes those life skills may seem very simple to us, but are truly life changing. Read these words from a mother who knows just how important 4-H has been to her son. "We have five sons adopted form China. Jason came home in 2010 at age 6 ½ with an...

Not many 4-H members can say they've been to the White House—by special invitation. Two members of the Chicago Knights, a 4-H robotics club, can. John Moore of Lincoln Park High School and Lydia Wolfe, Hales Franciscan High School, received the invitation to demonstrate the robot they built for "...

As the competition season for Illinois 4-H robotics clubs draws to a close, several clubs continue their community programs and trainings for younger members. The Techno Ferret 4-H Club has a great video created by their senior 4-H members...