TRUMBULL COUNTY Youth does his part to help 4-H clubs grow

A Kinsman boy helped attract 4-H members countywide.
By STEPHEN SIFF
VINDICATOR TRUMBULL STAFF
WARREN -- Visitors at this summer's Trumbull County Fair can expect fuller 4-H fare.
After years of decline, the number of county children participating in 4-H appears to have stabilized, according to numbers from Denise McKinney, 4-H program assistant.
And the number of children showing projects at the fair -- especially animals -- is up about 10 percent from 2001.
Just check out these figures: 77 beef cattle on display, up from 51 last year; 21 dairy cows, up from 17; 76 swine, up from 57; 35 poultry, up from 20; 24 lambs, up from 15; and 50 rabbits, up from 40.
McKinney said she doesn't have a clear explanation for the increase.
"No one is sure," said Jan Solomon, a member of the fair board and adviser to the children who run the 4-H portion of the Trumbull County Fair, which will be July 9-14.
But she has a theory, and it involves Bobby Kidd.
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At the beginning of the school year, Bobby, a 15-year-old from Kinsman, got frustrated with the gradual decline in membership of his own 4-H group, the Badger Shamrocks.
He said that when he began going to Shamrock meetings eight years ago, the club, which focuses on artistic activities, had about 10 members. This year the number had dropped to four.
"Maybe if I can put out a flier telling what 4-H is really about, kids will want to join," he recalled thinking.
After speaking with junior fair board and 4-H advisers, the scope of his plan expanded: Fliers could go to every school district and into the hands of every pupil in third through fifth grade in the county.
Eventually, Bobby was able to print 1,800 black-and-white fliers listing the variety of activities available through 4-H. The cost was covered by a $75 grant from the Strimbu Foundation, awarded through the county 4-H office.
"Seventy-five dollars for making these fliers is probably the best $75 they ever spent," Solomon said.
Only the Howland School District refused to allow the fliers to be distributed to its pupils, Bobby said.
Participation
"A lot of people called to find out what 4-H was all about for their kids," said McKinney. "Some of the kids actually enrolled."
Countywide, membership in 4-H remained level at about 600 for the third consecutive year despite the constant loss of children who outgrow the program.
Over the previous five years, enrollment had dropped by about 235 children.
siff@vindy.com