Hungry to Help

North Carolina 4-H Youth Development has created a program called, "Hungry to Help" that addresses hunger issues in North Carolina. According to statistics, 1 in 5 children in North Carolina struggle with hungery issues on a daily basis. Whether it involves skipping meals, eating less than is needed to live a healthy life, or "making do" with foods that are filling but not nutritions...hunger's effects can be devastating.

In Alabama, more than 15 percent of Alabama residents live in poverty. In some counties in our service area, the number rises to almost 30 percent (one out of ever three residents).

Alabama Hunger Facts:

1. 1 out of every 5 children in our area lives in poverty.

2. 1 out of every 4 of Alabama's seniors live below the poverty level.

3. Over 12% of Alabama citizens receive food stamps. The benefit equates to 79 cents per meal

4. In 2004 Alabama had one of the Top 5 Highest Poverty Rates in the US

The "Hungry to Help" program offered by North Carolina 4-H is a pre-packaged service project for 4-H Clubs. They provide:

• Healthy Food Drive Tool Kit
• Agent Packet
• Hungry to Help--Press Release (template)
• Hungry to Help--Media Alert (template)
• Hungry to Help Clip Art
• Grocery Bag Clip Art
• 4-H Clover Soup Can Clip Art
• Staffing the Initiative

If your 4-H Program, whether on the regional or county level, is looking for an impactful service project....you might check out, "Hungry to Help" from North Carolina 4-H Youth Development.

4-H Marketing Resources

It's that time of year again...school is back in session and 4-H staff across the state of Alabama are gearing up for a new 4-H club year....so are many other youth development organizations. Alabama 4-H competes for youth audiences with many other extra-curricular activities being offered today. We know, however, that what we can offer a child is of lasting importance. We teach life skills...we make learning fun and valuable!

With so many options available to youth, we need to make sure that our marketing on the local level is at the forefront of everything they are being offered. Our 4-H flyers, member's booklets, and promotional materials needs to be colorful and attractive; we want to get their attention!

This month, I thought I would share some 4-H Marketing Resources offered by Iowa 4-H. This is a wonderful resource that Iowa 4-H offers to anyone to use. They offer free cool fonts, colorful and graphically stimulating backgrounds as well as templates for letterhead, postcards and 4-H Newsletters!

The vivid colors, futuristic graphics, and cool fonts offered by Iowa 4-H will definitely create some eye-catching flyers and ads for your 4-H program! Check it out today! To reach the website, please click here.