As 4-H prepares to celebrate the 100th anniversary of its founding, the group’s goal of improving community education remains its focus.

“We assess what the community needs are and tailor our program accordingly,” said Nicole Groezinger, a 4-H community worker who deals with youth programs at the DeKalb County Extension office.

Groezinger and others associated with 4-H are preparing for a May 5 celebration to honor the founding, with festivities taking place at the DeKalb County Farm Bureau.

According to the national 4-H Web site, “4-H is the youth education branch of the Cooperative Extension Service, a program of the United States Department of Agriculture.” The organization’s mission is to help youth learn skills for living, according to the University of Illinois Extension 4-H Web site.

Each state and county has access to a county extension office for both youth and adult programs. The DeKalb County 4-H Extension is at 1350 W. Prairie Drive in Sycamore.

Groezinger said each county in Illinois has an extension office that is based out of the University of Illinois.

DeKalb County’s 4-H unit leader, Joy Gulotta, is in charge of the office. All of the workers are employees of the University of Illinois, and some of them, including Groezinger, are civil servants.

Groezinger said community education is the purpose of the county office.

Club activities and projects

Individual 4-H members, called 4-Hers, are organized in clubs and range in age from 5 to 18.

“Clubs can be anywhere from 5 to 50 kids,” Groezinger said.

There are 20 such clubs in DeKalb County. In the city of DeKalb alone there are three clubs – Afta Club, Parke Victory Club and the Pilton Park Clovers – while in Sycamore there are two clubs, the Sycamore Store and the DeKalb Chore Boys.

The clubs elect presidents, vice presidents and secretaries. These club officers determine each club’s focus.

At the club level, officers plan community service and recreational activities. Children who find they’re involved in the same projects can work together.

There are more than 100 projects a child can be involved in during a given year, ranging from agriculture to aerospace. Typically, children get involved in three or four projects in a year, Groezinger said.

Usually, a child chooses to continue with a project from one year to the next, progressing through stages of increasing complexity in the same field, he said.

For example, a child involved in an aerospace project might start out making kites and end with building rockets or taking flying lessons.

However, a child may choose at the end of a year to drop a project and possibly substitute a different one.

“We give them materials and participation is self-directed,” Groezinger said.

Projects culminate in presentations at either the General Project Show at the Farm Bureau in DeKalb or the 4-H Show at the DeKalb County Fair, held at the Sandwich Fair Grounds.

This year, the General Project Show will be held the weekend of July 17 and 18, and the 4-H Show will be Aug. 2, 3 and 4.

At the General Project Show, each child will speak to a judge one-on-one about his or her project and receive a rating of blue, red or white. In each category, two or more children 10 and above will be selected to go to the State Fair in Springfield.

At the 4-H Show, children with projects involving animals – both livestock and pets – will make demonstrations. Groezinger mentioned the Sycamore Farmers organization contributes to the 4-H Show.

There are two organizations for DeKalb County 4-Hers who want their clubs to get involved with county-wide events.

The first is the DeKalb Federation, which is involved with the Centennial Walk. The second is 4-H Embassadors, a group that promotes 4-H at schools and other public venues, and also represents 4-H in dealings with other groups.

Locally, the 4-H Embassadors organization aids the Kiwanis Club of DeKalb-Kishwaukee with its annual fundraiser Biking with Beanzie, a recreational ride that funds pathway projects.

“We’re always looking for volunteers, especially past 4-Hers, to run games at the Centennial Walk and work with children as project leaders,” Groezinger said.

To volunteer, call the DeKalb County Extension Office at (815) 758-8194.