4-H Camp Success

by Carrie Derossett

Major Program: 4-H Youth Development Programming

According to the U.S. Census the median household income in Logan County is $39,072 and according to Data U.S. the median household income in the city of Russellville is only $29,545. The cost for one 4-Her to attend 4-H Summer Camp is $225 plus the cost of transportation. Many families in Logan County do not have the resources to allow their children to attend 4-H Camp. Even if the cost of 4-H Camp was only $100, many families would find it difficult to come up with the extra money. It isn’t that 4-H Camp is too expensive. It costs less than many other camps, but the resources that our families have are limited.

The Logan County 4-H Council made it their mission in 2017 to allow all kids that wanted to go to 4-H Camp to be able to go without financial burden. The council has two large fundraisers, the fall grill and spring grill. They prepare lunch for one day in the fall and spring and sell to community members. They also do several small fundraisers throughout the year and ask for community support from local businesses. The Logan County Extension District Board was also able to provide some funding as well.

In 2017, 51 4-Hers from Logan County were able to attend 4-H Camp for only $50 each. In 2018, 89 4-Hers were able to attend 4-H Camp for only $50. In 2019, 71 4-Hers were able to attend 4-H Camp for only $50. We were able to give local youth in our community a tremendous opportunity that they may not have otherwise been able to take part in.

We had an extraordinary group of young people attend 4-H Camp. These youth were humble and appreciative. As part of our camp week, we took time to make homemade, handwritten thank you notes to every sponsor. That has made a great impact in the community support that we continue to receive for our local 4-H program.