• Nov. 24-25: University holidays, offices closed
• Nov. 25-29: National 4-H Congress, Atlanta, GA
• Dec 1: Catch-A-Calf applications due
• Dec. 13: Colorado 4-H Youth Fund board meeting, Littleton
• Dec. 26-28: University holidays, offices closed

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4-H Award Pins Available

If you would like 4-H award pins for swine, horse or cloth­ing/textiles, there are still quite a few left. We will send these out via Friday mail on a first-come, first-serve basis. Please email me if you’re interested. Thanks. — Connie Cecil

2006 Leadership Development Conference and 4-H Day at the Capitol

LDC and 4-H Day at the Capitol are in the planning phases so please mark your calendar for Jan. 28-30, 2006. The conference will be held at the Grand Hyatt Denver downtown. Rooms are $89 per night and includes free parking. The approximate conference registration is $115 per person. Highlights for this year’s conference include:

• Workshops:
  - Public Speaking - Toast Masters
  - Government - Rosenbusch Institute of Leadership
  - Leadership - Rosenbusch Institute of Leadership
  - Youth in Governance - Kathy Wolfe and the Youth Engagement Team
  - Youth Adult Partnerships - Dale Leidheiser and Claire Dixon
  - Current Bills and Capitol Etiquette - Rosenbusch Institute of Leadership
• Community Service Project:
  - Coordinated by the Colorado State 4-H Officer Team
• IFYE presentation:
  - 2005 IFYE delegates
• Banquet:
  - Guest Speaker - E.C. Gaffney
  - Awards Presentation - Sponsored by the Colorado Farm Bureau

Monday, Jan. 30, is 4-H Day at the Capitol where the legislature will issue the Honorary Proclamation for Colorado 4-H Day and will include a 4-H-sponsored breakfast at the Capitol with our legislators. Food will be provided by our State Fair Champion and Reserve Champion winners from core and specialty foods projects. Tours of the Capitol will be available as well as an information and question and answer session with legislators, aids and interns. Please contact Melissa Oliver at 970.491.0246 or moliver@coop.ext.colostate.edu for further information. — Ellen Butler

International Update

2006 IFYE Ambassador Programs to Australia and Finland

Australia - Ambassadors will travel from mid-June through mid July; applicants must be 15- to 19-years of age. The pro­gram fee is approximately $3,700 - $4,000 and includes inter­national airfare, travel in host country, food, lodging, supple­mental insurance, orientation and evaluation programs, and an adult chaperon. Participants will be responsible for round trip airfare from Denver to Chicago. Applications are due in the State 4-H office by Dec. 24, 2005.

Finland - Ambassadors will travel from June 17 through July 18; applicants must be 15- to 19-years of age. The program fee is $1,800, plus the cost of round trip airfare from Chicago to Helsinki (approximately $1,200 - $1,300). Participants will be responsible for purchasing additional round trip airfare from Denver to Chicago. The program fee includes a two-day group orientation in Chicago, orientation materials, passport holder, luggage tags, T-shirts, medical and accidental insurance, four-week home stay in Finland, all meals, transportation from Helsinki to and from a host family site, and an adult chaperon escort for the entire duration. Applications are duein the State 4-H office by Jan. 25, 2006.

For more information, contact me at 970.491.2711 or e-mail: cloflin@coop.ext.colostate.edu. Thank you.

— Courtney Loflin

2006 Arbor Day Poster Contest

The National Arbor Day Foundation, in conjunction with the Colorado Tree Coalition, is calling on all fifth grade classrooms in Colorado to showcase their artistic talents by creating posters reflecting the theme Trees are Terrific...in All Shapes and Sizes! The annual contest, sponsored by Toyota, teaches children about the importance of planting and caring for trees.

“Trees are vital to us all, and we need to share their history and grandeur with future generations,” says John Rosenow, president of The National Arbor Day Foundation. “Through this contest, students have the opportunity to learn about the environmental benefits of trees and develop an appreciation of trees and what they provide us.”

Teachers and homeschoolers in Colorado can sign up by contacting Donna Davis, contest coordinator for the state and member of the Colorado Tree Coalition. Requests can be mailed to Davis at Colorado State Forest Service, 208 Santa Fe Avenue, #21, La Junta, CO 81050, or by sending an e mail to dodavis@lamar.colostate.edu. Teachers will receive a free ecosystem activity guide including in depth lesson plans, hands on activities and contest information. More than 75,000 fifth grade classrooms across the country participated last year.

Davis said the Foundation and its network of state coordinators hope even more children will take part this year.

Following in school activities, students from Colorado will be eligible to participate in a statewide competition, and the winner will advance to the national level. The deadline for state contest submissions is March 4, 2006 and can be sent throughout the year until the 4th.

The Colorado state winner will receive special recognition from the Colorado Tree Coalition. He or she also will be a finalist in the national competition. The winner of the 2006 national poster contest will be announced on National Arbor Day, April 28, 2006. This year, students from 48 states will participate in state level competitions, with each winner advancing to the national finals. The top three finalists will be selected from the state level winners.

The first place winner, and his or her parents and teacher, will receive an expense paid trip to Nebraska City, Neb., birthplace of Arbor Day, where they will stay at Lied Lodge and Conference Center and participate in the April 28-April 30 National Awards Weekend. The winner will receive a $1,000 savings bond and a lifetime membership in The National Arbor Day Foundation. The winning student’s teacher will receive $200 for classroom materials. The second place winner will receive a $500 savings bond, and third place will win a $250 savings bond. Their teachers also will receive $100 and $50 respectively.

Last year’s Colorado Poster Contest winner was Landon Myers from Shelledy Elementary. The National winner was Christy Reid, a home schooled fifth grader from Hayden Lake, Idaho.

The National Arbor Day Foundation is a nonprofit educational organization dedicated to tree planting and environmental stewardship. Visit www.arborday.org for online learning opportunities and other educational materials, including lesson plans that correlate with National Science Standards.

The Colorado Tree Coalition is a nonprofit organization dedicated to preserving, renewing and enhancing our community forests in Colorado. Visit www.coloradotrees.org for more Colorado tree information. — Jan Carroll