Twenty-eight 4-H clubs from 13 counties were recognized for demonstrating their commitment to learning about and practicing healthful habits by being designated as a Healthy North Dakota 4-H Club for 2017-18.

The 4-H clubs, with a total of 559 members, earned the special recognition for incorporating nutrition, fitness and health activities into their club meetings during the past year. Eight clubs also earned extra recognition for completing the Family Mealtime Challenge.

These activities are part of North Dakota State University Extension’s “Eat Smart. Play Hard. Together” campaign. It emphasizes the importance of making healthful food choices, getting regular exercise and families eating together.

This was the 11th year some clubs were named a Healthy North Dakota 4-H Club. This year, each club member received a certificate of recognition and a small prize.

The clubs recognized this year are by county, number of members and number of years they have received the Healthy North Dakota 4-H Club recognition, and whether they completed the Family Mealtime Challenge. The challenge encouraged families to set a goal for weekly family meals. The 4-H’ers tracked the number of family meals they ate for a month.

• Barnes - Valley Friends, 20 members, nine years
• Burleigh - Caring Hands 4-H, nine members, seven years; Dynamite Kids, 21 members, five years; Lucky Clovers, 12 members, first year; McKenzie Magnums, 23 members, eight years; North Stars, 13 members, five years, completed Family Mealtime Challenge; Silver Colts 4-H Club, 11 members, nine years, completed Family Mealtime Challenge
• Cass - Building Lifetime Treasures, seven members, first year; Clover Friends, 48 members, five years, completed Family Mealtime Challenge; Dragonflies, nine members, seven years; Harwood Helpers 4-H, 16 members, seven years; Kindred Sandburs, 38 members, two years, completed Family Mealtime Challenge; Uniters, nine members, 10 years; Valley Adventures, 21 members, 10 years; Wheatland Pioneers, 28 members, 11 years
• Divide - Flickertails, 16 members, 11 years
• Grand Forks - K-Kots, 10 members, four years
• LaMoure - LaMoure Clover Leafs, 25 members, five years
• McHenry - Balfour Roughriders, 26 members, five years
• McLean - Riverside 4-H, 20 members, three years
• Morton - Missouri Valley Bunch, 22 members, 11 years
• Ransom - Aliceton, 26 members, seven years, completed Family Mealtime Challenge; Heart and Soul, 38 members, two years, completed Family Mealtime Challenge; Hill & Valley, 13 members, two years; Tri-County Ag, 30 members, five years
• Richland - Helping Hands, nine members, two years, completed Family Mealtime Challenge
• Sargent - Forman Friends, 17 members, three years
• Stutsman - Country Kids, 22 members, first year, completed Family Mealtime Challenge

“These club members and leaders are not only teaching each other about nutrition and practicing healthful habits, but they also are doing outreach in their communities,” says Julie Garden-Robinson, NDSU Extension food and nutrition specialist and Healthy North Dakota 4-H Clubs program coordinator.

For example, club members helped in community gardens, prepared food for events in their communities, collected food for local food pantries and/or picked up trash along community trails. Another club made pillows for individuals with Alzheimer’s disease. Some clubs created displays to showcase their club activities at the county fair or North Dakota State Fair.

“I am very pleased to see the number of clubs that have made seeking this recognition an ongoing effort,” Garden-Robinson adds. “The fourth ‘H’ in 4-H stands for ‘health,’ and these recognized clubs are making healthful habits part of the culture of their clubs.”

Clubs are required to incorporate at least one nutrition or fitness activity into a minimum of six regular meetings during the year to be named a Healthy North Dakota 4-H Club.

4-H clubs interested in participating in the 2018-19 North Dakota Healthy 4-H Clubs program should contact their county office of NDSU Extension or visit the website at https://www.tinyurl.com/healthy4Hclub.

NDSU Agriculture Communication - Sept. 14, 2018