Teen Filmmakers Exhibit and Learn at 2014 FilmFest 4-H

Posted on August 31, 2014 by Tom Tate

Teenage filmmakers from nine states exhibited 40 youth-produced films at the 2014 FilmFest 4-H in st. Louis, August 3-6. Sixty teens and leaders participated in the educational programs at the festival. Activities included viewing and discussing the teen-produced films and participating in a series of workshops conducted by film industry professionals. The topics included design, writing, casting, filming, lighting, sound, stunts, makeup, costuming, animation, control room operation, and remote satellite transmission.

Among the many highlights:

Emily Hagins, youngest Hollywood film director and writer, shared her Hollywood-based filmmaking insights from an unprecedented youth perspective.
Film producer and editor, Russ Weston, winner of fur Emmy and six Telly awards, conducted workshops for the youth in the remote satellite truck and control room on how remote productions get to our television screens; and
A visit to the nationally acclaimed “CoolFire Studios” in st. Louis where participants visited with professional directors, animation artists, sound producers and film producers as they worked in their studios.

Twenty-nine films were pre-selected by judges to be viewed in five categories: Documentary, Narrative, 4-H Promotional, Animation, and “Voices of 4-H History.” The top three in each category were recognized during the program along with a vote for the audience favorite. According to Tom Tate, the National 4-H History Preservation Team’s representative at the festival, “2014 FilmFest 4-H prepared future leaders to communicate more effectively in changing times.”

Five films from the “Voices of 4-H History” category were selected for viewing at this year’s festival. The three top place finishers in the category were:

Clay Ferguson (San Leandro, CA), “100 Year Anniversary: 4-H and the Alameda County Fair”
Eric Glaze (Waynesville, OH), “A Centennial of Extension with Dr. D. Howard Doster”
Kelsey Hibl and Brittany Berger (Dickenson, ND), “Voices of Stark County 4-H.”

The National 4-H History Preservation program provides sponsorship to FilmFest 4-H as part of its “Voices of 4-H History” initiative. For more information visit:

http://4-HHistoryPreservation.com/Voices/

History Preservation Newsletter
July/August 2014

Posted on August 14, 2014 by Sue Benedetti

UGH! August in Washington, DC, is miserable. If it weren’t for our loyal readers (probably in air-conditioned offices), we’d be at the beach. Not totally true: 4-H is always “non-miserable” and there are some real success stories in this month’s Newsletter. Read on.

We often wonder, is the preservation of 4-H history taking hold at state and local levels, as much as we’d like to think it is at the national level? Two stories this month illustrate how national agendas and resources have been adapted and applied independently in a state and a county initiative:

How does a new Extension hire use the resources of the National 4-H History Preservation Program? So many resources to draw from; where to go first? A WV Extension staffer shares his personal experience; and
4-H History is best preserved at the local level and Polk County Missouri 4-H’ers grab that challenge and run with it. They’re implementing “Voices of 4-H History” the way the program was envisioned: to celebrate local alumni and highlight county history!

During World War II, 40 US Liberty (cargo) ships were named by 4-H members who raised money through war bonds to commission the ships and stock them with food and supplies for our troops. Two ships were named after which Congressmen who had a significant impact on 4-H and Extension? Answer inside. Do you know if your state named a liberty ship or ships? If so, whose name did they carry. Let us know at: Info@4-HHistoryPreservation.com.

All too often in history, sadly, 4-H was portrayed as only a white kid’s activity; indeed, Extension struggled long and hard to make the program relevant to all ethnic groups. Programs for Native American 4-H’ers have, in many ways, served as models to tailor programming to fit cultural realities. The 1943 Oklahoma Indian story here documents such a success.

The 2014 FilmFest 4-H featured five youth developed films about 4-H History. Was your state represented this year? Read about some of the neat film-related workshops conducted this time.

You’ll note two articles above written by state/local Extension staff. We want to receive more! Tell us how you use the resources we represent, and let us know your local stories. You are, after all, the history of 4-H!

Contact info@4-HHistoryPreservation.com , and enjoy this issue.

History Preservation Newsletter
April 2014

Posted on April 15, 2014 by Sue Benedetti

The last few days of balmy spring weather brought DC’s cherry blossoms bursting forth in all their frothy pink splendor to highlight the annual Cherry Blossom Festival. This painting captured that spring ritual in the c. 1975 National 4-H calendar art. So, for this issue, what is more fitting than 4-H helping Mrs. Obama plant a cherry tree? Or a “Hands on History” challenge to create healthy cherry-based snacks?

There’s a new self-guided history tour at the National 4-H Youth Conference Center. Using QR Codes, we’ve put up six sites in and around the J. C. Penney lobby for visitors to scan and learn a bit about that piece of 4-H history. The tour covers a broad span of time from a portrait of the “Mother of 4-H” to artifacts from the most recent 10 years of the program. Scan the QR Code in this issue and see where it leads.

We continue the “Voices of 4-H History” program of recording audio and visual memories as we come closer to the Centennial date of signing the Smith-Lever Act (May 8) which gave federal funding to the Cooperative Extension Service. Progress updates from several states, some suggestions, and a list of available resources make up this month’s coverage.

“Voices” participants are scripting, filming, editing, re-filming, and re-editing their potential entries in the national 4-H film festival, “2014 FilmFest 4-H.” This year’s festival will be in St. Louis and “Voices of 4-H History” is an official category in the August competition.

And now it’s time for that healthy snack: a juicy slab of freshly-baked cherry pie while you enjoy this issue!

4-H and Radio: Early Days, Growing Together

Posted on February 20, 2014 by Larry Krug

When the National Committee on Boys’ and Girls’ Club Work (now National 4-H Council) was started in late 1921, it basically consisted of a staff of one person – Guy Noble – working at a ‘desk on loan’ in the Chicago headquarters offices of the American Farm Bureau, with the assistance of a part-time secretary (also on loan). In addition to the overwhelming burden of raising funds in unchartered waters and planning and managing the major national 4-H event, National 4-H Congress, Guy Noble also knew that it was critical to promote the concept of 4-H to broaden audiences if it was to grow.

As early as 1922, before it was even a year old, the National Committee on Boys’ and Girls’ Club Work became a radio pioneer. Arrangements were made that year with the Westinghouse Radio Service of Chicago for news of Boys’ and Girls’ Club Work to be presented each Monday, Wednesday and Friday at 6 pm. In 1922 there were only 30 radio stations in the country and a quarter million receiver sets scattered across the nation.

The decades of the 1920s and 1930s became a growth period for both radio and for 4-H together. At one point all the major radio networks were carrying 4-H radio programs. And, there was the National 4-H Music Hour on NBC which featured the United States Marine Corps Band and highlighted music appreciation for young people. The National 4-H News magazine carried a regular column of upcoming radio programs in their monthly publication.

David Sarnoff, president of the Radio Corporation of America (RCA), and one of the corporate giants in the communications industry, partnered with 4-H. He became a board member of the National Committee on Boys’ and Girls’ Club Work and RCA would become a national sponsor, funding a new activity for 4-H Club leaders and members. It was the National Program on Social Progress which helped to train and encourage 4-H members and adults in their communities to make the community more pleasant and improve the quality of living. This included: being more “neighborly,” and more resourceful, as well as stressing more education and creative community social activities. The program placed heavy emphasis on using the radio for communications.

By the 1930s, many rural stations were hiring farm broadcasters; first to announce the grain and livestock markets each day, but then to support rural community activities and events. Four-H fit nicely into this pattern as well; with farm broadcasters becoming strong friends of 4-H. At the same time Extension at every level – federal, state and county – were embracing the use of radio. A decade later, by the end of the 40s, over half of the radio stations in the country were regularly carrying Extension programs, including much coverage of 4-H. The radio was playing in the house, the barn, the car; no longer a novelty, it was a part of our everyday lives.

A new segment – 4-H and Radio – has just been posted in the National 4-H History section of the 4-H History Preservation website. We hope you enjoy it. Take a look at it at: http://4-HHistorypreservation.com/history/Radio/. If you have comments about 4-H and radio please contact: Info@4-HHistoryPreservation.com.

Five Years Old and Growing Strong!

Posted on January 22, 2014 by Sue Benedetti

This month marks the fifth anniversary of the National 4-H History Preservation Program, and what an invigorating period it’s been! We look back at some of the program’s accomplishments during that time and marvel at the outstanding cooperation we’ve received from all organizations we’ve worked with, and the collaborative efforts of the nearly 100 volunteers whose dedication continues to inspire us.

History Flashbacks: 1919 and 1938 news articles document career moves of important 4-H pioneers, O. H. Benson and A. B. Graham. Another article in the Farm Boys’ and Girls’ Leader recognized a Montana club, as the first in the state to meet national requirements for a “Standard Club.” Did you know there was such a thing?

And a look to the future: since history is made every day, the future of the 4-H History Preservation Program is never-ending. What do we see ahead? What do you see ahead?

“Hands on History” raises the importance of 4-H record-keeping, and “Voices of 4-H History” brings us up-to-date on various state activities, as well as plans for the 2014 National 4-H FilmFest.

2014, a year of notable anniversaries, is off to a rousing start for the History Team; we hope it’s the same for you! Happy New Year and enjoy this issue.

One of the first known visual aids trucks that helped extension workers take farm and home science to the youth and adults in rural areas following the passage of the Smith-Lever act and for years to come. Note that the movie projector behind the truck ran off of the car’s generator to show educational movies in the darkened school buildings. This project combined the two wonders of automobiles and moving pictures to awed youngsters and adults alike. This pioneering venture in visual education was a success from the start!

Like this:

Like this:

4-H History Activities Accelerate in the Summer

Like this:

Like this:

Like this:

Like this:

Like this:

Like this:

WOW, What an Issue!

Like this:

Like this: