4 H Members

Annie McGraw, 8, was a whiz at identifying types of animal feed and equipment used to care for livestock, but telling a Hampshire from a Montadale sheep and a Brahman from a Hereford steer stumped her a little. As a member of the Howard County Livestock Clovers, Annie took part in several events last week at the Howard County Fair geared toward the youngest 4-H members. That included a quiz Thursday to see how much the participants have learned over the year. "We take this test every year, but it's still kind of tricky," said Annie, who lives in Woodbine.

HORSE-LOVING children showed their expertise Sunday at the 2002 Howard County Youth Horse Show Series in Highland. Sponsored by two Howard County 4-H horse clubs, this was the final show of the annual series held at Schooley Mill Park. Parents and chaperones brought the children and their horses in trailers and set up camp for the day. They brought coolers, lawn chairs and reading material to keep them busy for the many hours their children competed in a variety of classes. The show was divided into about 40 classes, based on the age of competitors and their level of skill.

The folks who run the Howard County Fair are counting the days - less than a month remains - until the annual farm festival floods the West Friendship fairgrounds with animals, 4-H projects and tens of thousands of people for a week. Nearly everything about this year's fair will be familiar, they say, a striking contrast to the fast-developing county, where change seems inevitable. In a preview at the fairgrounds yesterday, the fair board showcased the same cow-milking, pie-eating and pretty-animal contests; the same competitions for the best livestock, capped by an auction; even some of the same carnival rides, food vendors and musicians as in times past.

WHILE LIVING in the southeastern corner of Howard County it's sometimes difficult to remember that all this - and Columbia, too - used to be farmland. Fortunately, rural traditions and values endure in such clubs as the Fulton 4-H. For those of us with an urban upbringing, the Maryland 4-H is a family-oriented organization for youngsters to age 18, sponsored by the Maryland Cooperative Extension. The clubs encourage members to take on yearlong projects based on their interests, and because of the organization's agrarian roots, the projects usually have a rural flavor.

THE 4-H slogan asks, "Are You Into It?" The Dayton 4-H Club answers with a resounding "Yes!" With a membership of more than 100, the Dayton 4-H Club is one of the largest in Howard County. It has been around for more than 25 years. While some clubs specialize in horses or dogs, Dayton 4-H is open to a variety of projects: beekeeping, forestry, creative writing, cooking, dairy, beef, swine, sheep, photography, rockets or bicycles. To be considered complete, each project must be presented to the community.

WITH SCHOOL out, Dayton 4-H Club members are devoting free time to preparing for the Howard County Fair next month. Club members are putting finishing touches on projects they plan to exhibit. Look in the 4-H building for their work Aug. 7 when Dayton Club members will talk with fair visitors in the 4-H building. The group also has been busy working on a community service project: a skit explaining what 4-H is all about. The skit will be performed at area nursing homes and for other groups by request.

Brianne Bly, 19, says the drought has made it difficult to raise animals for this year's Howard County Fair. She should know.For 10 years, she has been raising steers, sheep and pigs to sell at the fair's 4-H livestock auction. Many of the animals were born on her family's farm.Last night's auction was the last for Bly because membership in 4-H is for those ages 8 to 19.Bly brought three steers, two sheep and two pigs to the auction, and one of each -- Zander the steer, Jacob the sheep and Eve the pig -- were sold for slaughter.

After the last ribbons are handed out at the Carroll County 4-H Fair, some serious money starts changing hands when county bigwigs open their checkbooks to bid two to four times market value on the steers, lambs, hogs and other animals that fetch about $179,000 a year.Some of the money raised in the livestock auctions that are the culmination of the fair is donated to the fair or scholarship funds, but most 4-H members keep at least enough to cover feed costs, which can easily reach $1,000, and to build their savings for college.

After the last ribbons are handed out at the Carroll County 4-H/FFA Fair, some serious money starts changing hands when county bigwigs open their checkbooks to bid two to four times the market value on steers, lambs, hogs and other animals that fetch about $179,000 a year.Some of the money raised in the livestock auctions that are the culmination of the fair is donated to the fair or scholarship funds, but most 4-H members keep at least enough to cover feed costs, which can easily reach $1,000, and to build their savings for college.