Ellis County 4-H I N S I D E T H I S I S S U E : Holiday Classic 1 CloverLeaf V O L U M E 1 7, I S S U E 1 0 N O V E M B E R, 2 0 1 6 Thoughts for the Month with Megan 2 Social Media 3 All 4 Him 4-7 Ellis Shooting Sports 9 Kids Fan Club 10 Clover Kids 11 Livestock4-H 12 Ennis 4-H 13 Springlake 4-H 14 Ennis Archery 4-H 15 Arts 4-His Honor 16 Silver Spurs 17 Pettigrew Academy 18 Robotics 19 Maypearl FFA Swine Show 20 Calendar 21-22
2 P A G E 2 Thoughts For The Month With Megan Tools of the Trade Turmoil. Hatred. Insults being spat in every direction. With so much uncertainty spinning around us, how do we keep on the straight & narrow? This is something I have been thinking about over the last few days. How do we educate our youth to become better students, better people, and, eventually, better adults during this season, in which we see a good portion of the current adult population behaving the way they are? Teaching things like character, truth, leadership, and integrity become increasingly harder to drive home with our youth when this is the example being left for them. So, the question remains, how do we change the future for our students? The answer is a simple one: We give them the tools to do better. Kindness. What is Kindness? What does it look like in today s time? Why is kindness an important tool for our youth to have? Recently, I was presenting a program at a local school and overheard some of the young men trading insults. While these young men laughed and thought this exchange was a funny one, it really struck a chord with me. Kindness can simply be speaking words that will not be hurtful. Setting an example where we hurl insults at each in the form of jokes is not kind. What would happen if what we spoke became truth for that person? Speaking kindness, doing kind things would go a long way to change the climate of our world today. Truth & Character. These two words go hand-in-hand. What is truth? Truth is defined as the real facts about something. State the facts. Don t twist the words of those around you. Tell the truth. Character comes from telling the truth, being kind, and being a person on integrity. Character is defined as the way someone thinks, feels, and behaves. Good character comes when people can rely on the truth you tell, the positive manner in which you present yourself, and the way you follow through on what you say. Truth and character. Two things we desperately need today. Leadership. Leadership comes from within. Leadership is something we often try to teach to our 4-H youth. We urge them to become good leaders, to have leadership. What does that look like? If you ask most young people, they will tell you that the leader is the person at the front of the room. If you ask some of the Ellis 4-H Council Officers, they will tell you that a leader is someone who does things without being asked. They are often in the background, doing tasks that no one else wants to do. They lead from the back. Leadership is standing up for what you believe. Leadership is not putting others down, but rather, building them up. Leadership is looking forward and bringing those around you to that place. Leadership is having good character, being kind to others, and telling the truth. E L L I S C O U N T Y 4 - H
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21 FREE Children's Nature Event for the public on Saturday, November 12 from 9-Noon. This year's event is held in loving memory of MARTHA SETTLES WESTBROOK who donated the Nature Center Building in memory of her parents in 2007. The Settles Science and Nature Center will be open with exhibits, crafts, games, free prizes, and FREE PIE for everyone! Our theme this year is BEES! ALL WELCOME Thank you Pettigrew Academy
Mark Your Calendar 22 November 2 - Entry Night Spring Shows November 5 & 6 - Holiday Classic November 10 - County Food Challenge/Food Show November 12 - County Lamb & Goat Validation November 21 - State Swine Validation December 2 - County-wide Christmas Party/Dance December 7 - District Food Show/Food Challenge-Belton December 23-24 - Extension Office Closed-Christmas January 7 Club Officer Winter Retreat Mark Arnold Ellis County Extension Agent Agriculture & Natural Resources Ellis County Extension Office 701 S. I-35 E Waxahachie, TX 75165 972-825-5175 972-825-5184 (Fax) E-mail: ellis@ag.tamu.edu Megan Parr Ellis County Extension Agent 4-H & Youth Development Rita Hodges Ellis County Extension Agent Family & Consumer Sciences Find us on the web at: http://ellis.agrilife.org./ EllisCountyExtension @ ellisco4h @ellisco4h