The Town ‘N Kountry Kids Blue and Red 4-H Clubs recently participated in the statewide 4-H community service project of collecting new or gently used shoes for Soles4Souls. The project goal is to collect 10,000+ pairs of shoes that will be given to those in need around the globe. This past week at 4-H TLC (Teen Leadership Camp) in Brookings, delegates helped to properly package the shoes to be sent to Soles4Souls (S4S). The total number of shoes donated through Sanborn County 4-H was approximately 500. To date, close to 7,000 pairs of shoes have been collected across the state. The club will continue to collect shoes through Aug. 1 to work towards the 10,000 pairs goal.  Shoes may be taken to your local 4-H office or to a regional office, or you may contact any 4-H member.

Once the collection project is complete, S4S will ship the shoes to developing countries. If 10,000 shoes are donated on our behalf, S4S will coordinate a new shoe distribution with a non-profit of our choice in South Dakota. Soles4Souls approach to wearing out poverty includes: 1) Protect the environment: Repurpose new and gently-worn shoes and clothing otherwise destined for landfills. 2) Create economic opportunities: Utilize product to help entrepreneurs in emerging nations create and sustain small businesses to generate sustainable income. 3) Serve those in need: Distribute new shoes and clothing to those in need and in times of disaster around the world, even in South Dakota.   Visit https://soles4souls.org/ to find more information on the impact this organization is making.

May 31 and June 1, 4-H members from Moody, Sanborn, and Aurora counties came together to participate in a Barn Quilt workshop. The concept of barn quilts began with Donna Sue Groves and her wish to honor her mother, Maxine, and her Appalachian heritage by having a painted quilt hung on her barn in Adams County, Ohio, back in 2001. Often after the quilts are painted and hung on barns, a quilt barn trail is created in the community. This simple idea has spread to 48 states and to Canada, and the trail continues to grow. Over 7,000 quilts are part of organized trails; dozens more are scattered through the countryside waiting to be discovered.

The event was led by instructor Vicki Cooley of Sioux Falls. Each participant picked their pattern and colors ahead of time. Youth worked for four hours each day to complete their barn quilt. The quilts can be seen at Achievement Days.

…Check out pictures of the event in this week’s issue of the Sanborn Weekly Journal.

The State 4-H Shoot was held April 26-28 in the Pierre and Ft. Pierre area with over 1,500 youth participating in over 2,500 entries in various disciplines. Shooters were broken down into age groups and by discipline and type of equipment. The South Dakota State 4-H Shoot is one of the largest youth shooting events in the nation. 

Sanborn County had 65 youth qualify to participate at the State Shoot with 168 entries in the numerous disciplines.

…Read the results and see pictures of the event in this week’s issue of the Sanborn Weekly Journal!