Serving Gogebic, Iron and Ontonagon Counties
Serving Gogebic, Iron and Ontonagon Counties
BESSEMER — Members of the Gogebic County Board of Commissioners voted unanimously last week to fund the county 4-H coordinator as a full-time position for eight months, from April 1 to Nov. 30 in 2024, at a salary of $40,000.
Until now, 4-H Coordinator Ashley Dennis has been employed on a part-time basis.
Chairman James Lorenson said the funds can be drawn from the county budget’s allotment of $40,000 for youth activities.
Paul Putnam, District 1 director for the Michigan State University Extension, lobbied for the change at the Dec. 20 meeting while presenting an annual report on the 4-H program.
“We’re talking about young people in our community,” said Commissioner Joseph Bonovetz, who made the motion and emphasized that the amount of money at stake is just a small percentage of the county’s overall budget.
Bonovetz added that 4-H members “show what it’s like to serve their community.”
According to the Institute for Applied Research in Youth Development, which has conducted research on 4-H members, they are four times more likely to contribute to their community, twice as likely to be civically active, and twice as likely to make healthier choices.
Under questioning from Commissioner Daniel Siirila, Putnam said that 194 unduplicated, registered youth were in the program in 2022. In that year, there were 21 clubs and 12 volunteers.
“It has been a challenge to get volunteers to commit to go through the entire process and training,” wrote Putnam in a Dec. 14 letter to Lorenson.
“Volunteerism doesn’t exist like it used to,” said Bonovetz, by way of acknowledging the need for properly paid 4-H staff.
The local Extension Office’s annual report showed 28 4-H programs hosted in the county, with 545 attendees. In addition, there were 122 MSU Extension programs either in the county, online or statewide, with 820 persons from this county attending those sessions.
Putnam said that a new painting club is being established and that the former Cloverbud program for young children is being reestablished.
Other 4-H clubs in the county include — but are not limited to — the interests of livestock, babysitting, horses and cooking. Putnam said that other topics such as sewing, shooting and entrepreneurship are being explored.
Programs targeted to specific grades also occur in local schools, with one recent science session focusing on how to make snow.
The 4-H program also offers Family Fun Nights, Summer 4-H Day Camp and Exploration Days.
Programs for parents have included topics such as “What Children Need to Know to Start School,” “Teaching Kids Mindful Eating,” “ABCs of Early Literacy” and “Together We Can.”
“I appreciate the board’s support as always,” said Putnam to commissioners.
Erin Ross, who is the supervising and staff development educator in the Bessemer Extension Office, will present to commissioners in 2024 additional information regarding ongoing 4-H initiatives.