December 20th, 2024

Dear 4-H families,

As we come to the end of another wonderful year, we want to extend our best wishes for a joyous and festive holiday season. Your dedication, enthusiasm, and support have made 2024 a truly remarkable year for our Waukesha County 4-H community.

This year, our members have achieved many milestones, from school graduations, trying out new projects and experiences, exploring and finding our passions and many community service initiatives that have made a great impact on our community. We are so proud of all the hard work and dedication shown by our 4-H youth, volunteers and families. 

We are ecstatic about upcoming opportunities that will be offered through our clubs, projects and countywide programming in the new year! Please keep your eyes open for upcoming opportunities! We are grateful for the support from volunteers and families. May your holidays be filled with joy, laughter and love. Here’s to a prosperous and exciting 2025! 

Best wishes, James, McKenzie & Sara

We're thrilled to announce the launch of our brand-new Extension Waukesha County website, designed with you in mind! Whether you're a curious youth, dedicated volunteer, or supportive family member, our updated 4-H site is your go-to hub for everything 4-H in Waukesha County. Easy navigation, fresh content, and all the resources you need to thrive in our vibrant community await you. We have created a menu for new and inquiring families and one for current families to have a starting point and make it easier to find relevant information. Here's a quick tour of what you can discover:

4-H Home Page: Begin your journey here. Get the latest news, updates, and a warm welcome to our program. 

Join 4-H: Ready to dive into the excitement of 4-H or referring a friend? If you have not yet joined 4-H this is where you will go as a new family to 4-H. See how you can join our extraordinary group of young achievers and start making a difference today.

Annual Re-enrollment: Stay in the loop and continue your adventures with us. This is where you will go if you are a current and returning family. Find all the information you need to effortlessly re-enroll in 4-H each year.

Volunteer Home Page: Volunteers, we couldn't do it without you! Connect here for resources, and discover how your talents can inspire the next generation.

Activities: From camps to community service, explore all the dynamic activities we have lined up. Your next favorite memory-maker is just a click away.

Projects: Dive into hands-on learning with our projects tailored to ignite your passion and curiosity. Visit our website now and join us in creating experiences you’ll cherish forever. We can’t wait for you to explore all that our Extension Waukesha County 4-H has to offer. 

Awards and Scholarships: Aim high and achieve recognition. Discover the awards and scholarships available to support your educational dreams and achievements.

Youth Leadership: Empower yourself with leadership skills. Explore opportunities that inspire and build the leaders of tomorrow.

If you have any difficulty finding anything or have any questions, please contact James. Be sure to follow updates through email, website and social media (like us on FB @Waukesha County 4-H Youth Development). We can’t wait for you to explore all that Extension Waukesha County 4-H has to offer! 

Club and project leaders: please regularly update the program calendar below with your meetings/events.

“Thank you for the warm welcome starting at the Awards Banquet & extending to the inclusive emails, invites from awesome Club Leaders, and conversations with youth and families who have gone out of their way to say hello in my first three weeks. Many of you may have known me as a 4-H mom or have seen me around with my kids at events, connected while prepping an order in the Forum kitchen during Fair week, or we’ve rubbed dirty elbows in the barn or talked about chickens somewhere at a poultry event, or maybe, we’ve yet to meet. Either way, I am excited to be a part of your 4-H circle and hope to engage with you to create active and fun educational programming for OUR youth!  I am very excited and enthusiastic to take on my new role within UW-Madison Division of Extension Positive Youth Development and Extension Waukesha County 4-H for youth outreach & education, project nights, events, and youth programming. I hope to help youth and volunteers connect youth to their Sparks, create Belonging, Develop Relationships and focus on Engagement in our youth events!

Enrollment Numbers (as of 12/20/24): Total number of Approved Extension Waukesha County 4-H Members: 461, Volunteers: 92, Club Members: 286, Cloverbuds: 83. 

If you have any questions or need any assistance regarding enrollment please contact McKenzie Knudson at mknudson@waukeshacounty.gov.  

Save the dates Wednesday, February 12th, 26th, March 26th, April 16th & 23rd, May 7th & 21st for Extension Waukesha County 2025 4-H Project Nights at the Waukesha County Expo Center! We will have two available session time slots for activities or ongoing projects: Session 1: 5:30 - 6:15 PM; Session 2: 6:30 - 7:15 P.M. Located at Forum North Hall, Waukesha County Expo Center, 1000 Northview Rd, Waukesha, WI 53188. There is no cost to attend, and all 4-H members are invited. 

Are you an adult volunteer interested in leading an activity or project? We are looking for volunteers to lead an activity or ongoing project at our 2025 4-H Project Nights at the Waukesha County Expo Center!

Consider sharing your knowledge, passion, and talents by helping youth members learn skills they will use throughout life. As a volunteer, you will have the opportunity to work with a group of young people on a specific project area, such as animal science, robotics, or photography.

Available Session Time Slots: Session 1: 5:30 - 6:15 PM; Session 2: 6:30 - 7:15 P.M. You can sign up for one or both sessions each night. Please review the available project night dates and sessions on the sign up below.

Lead an activity or ongoing project here: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0844AFA729
A3F9C70-54066701-2025#/

Congratulations to our awards winners and thank you to the Leaders Association for hosting the Youth and Adult Volunteers Awards Banquet. We would like to thank Jim Heinrich County Board Chair for speaking at and attending the event.

We know that entering the NEW year may SPARK an interest to help create youth educational programming, so we are looking for insight from youth, parents/volunteers, and club or project leaders. We’ve already heard some great feedback and we are seeking your opinions! Please take the survey that fits your role. The surveys will close 1/3/25. 

(Quiz for youth & leaders: what is the incentive if your youth club members take this survey…? Find out in the survey below!) 

Check out the WI 4-H Sparks Road Map by clicking on the image above or go here: WI 4-H Sparks Roadmap

We are seeking volunteers: we know our parents, extended family and friends are an amazing resource for youth programming? Are you interested in collaborating on an activity or youth event? We are excited for you to share your knowledge, passion and talents to help youth find their SPARK! We’d love to partner to create an educational session or event – contact James at James.boling@wisc.edu or Sara at Stomjanovich@wisc.edu for more information for Winter/Spring 2025 programming!

Shoutout to Brookfield Blazers for a great club meeting this month. James and Sara had an opportunity to provide a Stem Building lesson to youth members. Thank you to the parents for all of your help!

Clever Clovers meeting this month included an annual green elephant gift exchange and their Cookie Auction. They raised $330 in the club auction and youth members will vote on where those funds may be donated to at the next meeting. Keep up the good work Clever Clovers!

Youth Event Planning Meeting: ALL Youth Leaders (any youth in our county who want to have supported leadership opportunities) are invited to attend a Youth Event Planning meeting on Thursday, January 9th 6:30-7:30 (Location TBD)  with the goal of connecting youth voices to creating, promoting & leading projects or events. Please contact Sara if you are interested in attending.

Extension Waukesha County 4-H Project Nights at the Expo: Save the dates Wednesday, February 12th, 26th, March 26th, April 16th & 23rd, May 7th & 21st. (Projects TBD based off of feedback from surveys). Session 1: 5:30-6:15 pm; Session 2: 6:30-7:15 pm. More details to come! (based off your survey info)

Waukesha County Leadership Awards Banquet:  All 4-H members, parents and leaders are invited to attend the Waukesha County Leadership Awards Banquet on Monday, December 2nd. Registration will begin at 4:45 until 5:15 P.M., welcome at 5:15, dinner at 5:30 with awards to follow. Registration will be sent out soon. This event is hosted by the Waukesha County Leaders Association.

Extension Waukesha County is committed to supporting quality educational experiences for our youth as well as supporting our volunteers and families. Please do not hesitate to contact us with any questions or if you need any assistance.

James Boling

4-H Program Educator

james.boling@wisc.edu

Sara Wells-Tomjanovich

Associate 4-H Educator

stomjanovich@wisc.edu

McKenzie Knudson

4-H Administrative Support

mknudson@waukeshacounty.gov

An EEO/AA employer, University of Wisconsin-Madison Division of Extension provides equal opportunities in employment and programming, including Title VI, Title IX, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act requirements.