Florida 4-H News Room: 4-H News from Around the State

FANNING SPRINGS, Fla.-- A young North Central Florida girl is using her experience with animals to help a friend in need.   Regan Varnes is a 4th grader at Chiefland Elementary School and is a part of the Kountry Bumpkins 4-H group. She is raising a pig called Socks, as part of a project. After hearing her friend was suffering from cancer, she decided to give all the money she would make from auctioning off her pig to help her friend. Once she announced this. some people in the Tri-County community rallied behind her.   "It was humbling," said Karen Tillis, one of the people at the auction who bought into Socks. "I thought that it was amazing how our community came together to support this little girl."   The sale for Regan's pig will be kept open for donations until the end of the auction on Friday.   This story was originally published at: http://www.wcjb.com/local-news/2015/03/young-girl-sells-pig-help-friend-suffering-cancer

4-H has always taught life skills to youth, and it all began with agriculture. Florida 4-H began as a program to teach farming methods to rural youth and became a community-based program that taught millions of young Floridians how to “Learn By Doing”.  “Agriculture is firmly cemented in the foundation of Florida 4-H and thanks to the resources of the University of Florida IFAS Extension and a nationwide network of extension professionals, agriculture remains an important part of Florida 4-H programming.” Shaumond Scott, State 4-H Communications Coordinator. In 1909, UF Dean of Agriculture J.J. Vernon organized corn clubs for boys in Alachua, Bradford and Marion counties.   Clubs for girls followed in 1912.   After 1915, Florida A&M University directed a program for African American youth.   The clubs were part of a national movement that became known as 4-H and is now one of the largest youth organizations in the country.   4-H offers a diverse set of p