T-shirt Orders! Find the Order form here:2023 TShirt order Form , all orders are due October 15, you can Venmo, pay by Square link or provide cash or check to the Extension Office
4-H Enrollment for 5th-12th graders is OPEN! Enroll online at https://v2.4honline.com/#/user/sign-in, Freestone County 4-H Adult Leaders will pay the enrollment fee for all members until October 1st.
- 3rd & 4th graders need to wait until September 1 to enroll.
Club Meetings will start in September! You can find the list of Club meetings here: 2023-2024 4-H Club Meetings
Have trouble remembering the club meeting dates from month to month? Here is a full year Calendar! 23-24 4-H Club Meeting Calendar
- Teague 4-H will meet September 4 at 6pm at 8th Avenue Baptist Church in Teague
- Wortham 4-H will meet September 6 at 6pm at Wortham Chamber Building (next to the post office)
- Fairfield 4-H will meet September 10 at 4pm First United Methodist Church in Fairfield
- Freestone Community 4-H will meet September 10 at 6pm Freestone Community Center
4-H Awards from 2022-2023 Year
- 4-H member awards will be announced at Club Meetings. Shotgun & Archery will be provided at the Try it Day if you are not at a community club meeting.
Major Show Tag orders:
Heifer, Sheep & Goat Major show validation will be at Fairfield Vet Hospital (Dr. Sanford’s) on October 30th from 4-6pm. *Note this will be the only validation date for Sheep, Goats & Heifers. If you have any questions let me know.
- If your heifer has been state validated it does not need to be re-validated, the validation lasts for its full show career
- If you validated sheep/goats in June the tags can roll over for spring majors as long as there is not a change in ownership
Spring Majors Tag order Deadline for Swine is September 25th, $20 a tag payable to Fairfield FFA
- Physical validation will take place in November
Freestone County 4-H Leadership Team Must have been a Freestone County 4-H member for one year before you can apply. Must be in 8th-12th grade to apply. Maximum of 8 youth will be selected to serve Freestone County 4-H as a Leadership Team member. Deadline for the application is September 20th. Leadership Team Application 23-24 Leadership Team Guidelines 23-24
Archery & Shotgun Try it Day will be September 17th from 1:30-end at the Case Robinson Memorial Range on 833 
Spring Major Show Entries (Fort Worth, San Antonio, San Angelo, Houston & Austin) will be due November 8th by 6pm.
Livestock & Horse Quiz Bowl Practices: Returning & new members show up to the first practice or let me know you are interested so we can get the teams assigned. 9th-12th graders I need 3 more people for Livestock Quiz Bowl Senior Team!
- District Contest Date is November 9 in Belton
- Practices will begin at 4:30 at the Extension Office, if you cannot arrive until 5pm that is ok too just let me know.
- Dates: September 13, September 25, October 9, October 25, November 1, November 6
County Fair Buyer’s Lists have been emailed out to every 4-H member that had a buyer and/or add-ons. If you did not receive an email please email: cindy.dahlke@ag.tamu.edu, or you can come by the office 8-12 to have her print out your list. Please send her or I a picture of your thank you notes before you mail them. Checks will hopefully be ready the beginning of September.
Some things to look forward to in the 2023-2024 Freestone County 4-H Year
- NEW Teague 4-H Club, meeting on the First Monday of every month at 8th Avenue Baptist Church
- Freestone Community 4-H club is moving their meeting date to the First Sunday of every month, 6pm at Freestone Community Center
- Over Christmas Break Navarro & Freestone County’s will be hosting a Youth Ag Tour—keep an eye out for that information and how to get signed up!
How do I know what’s going on?
- Follow us on Facebook, Freestone County 4-H
- Join us on Remind, text @freestonec to the number 81010
- Check out the website: freestone.agrilife.org and click on the 4-H tab or livestock project tab
FAQs
I am new to 4-H what do I do?
Visit a 4-H club! Pick a club that works for your schedule and go to a meeting. You will see firsthand what happens at the club meetings, get to meet the volunteers, and see the youth involved. You can ask questions at the club meeting and even get enrolled! If you would rather ask the Extension Agent (Erin Davis) questions give us a call 903-389-3436.
If you don’t fill out a paper form and pay by check for your enrollment at the club meeting you can enroll online: 4honline.com
What happens at club meetings?
There are officers of the club (President, Vice President, Secretary, Treasurer etc) that will be at the front of the room running the meeting. They will call the meeting to order, go over the minutes from the last meeting, treasurers report, announcements (dates and deadlines for things coming up), there will be an educational presentation, recreation (game or activity) and even sometimes snacks!
Make sure you sign in at every club meeting, so the club managers can keep track of how many meetings you’ve attended. (You must attend 4 club meetings to show at Freestone County Fair). Parents please sign in as well.
Club meetings will last 30-45 minutes. It is recommended that parents attend the meetings as well so you can hear the announcements and know what is going on.
I’m interested in a project but need help getting started
Look at the Explore guides and information and the Texas 4-H Website (https://texas4-h.tamu.edu/projects/), if there is a project leader listed reach out to them to find out more. If you have additional questions reach out to Erin Davis, County Extension Agent 903-389-3436 and she can answer your questions and get you started!
When is the Freestone County Fair?
Freestone County Fair is always the week prior to the 3rd Saturday in June. The sale takes place on the third Saturday, so the shows will take place Tuesday-Friday. The 2022 Dates are: June 13-18, 2022
More information about the fair can be found at: http://freestonecountyfairandrodeo.com/index.html
Erin will present information about county fair livestock projects (heifers, sheep, goats, swine, rabbits, poultry) at the January club meetings. But keep in mind County Fair steers are validated the first Saturday in December. If you need help finding a livestock project Erin can help just let her know.
Projects Offered:
Citizenship
Consumer Education
Dog Care & Training
Entomology
Fashion & Interior Design
Food & Nutrition
Health & Personal Safety
Horticulture
Junior Master Gardener
Leadership
Livestock Judging
Meat Science
Natural Resources
Outdoor Education & Living Skills
Photography/Videography
Public Speaking
Range Science
Robotics
Rocketry
Science, Technology, Engineering, Math
Small & Companion Animals
Soil and Crop Science
Sportfishing
Theater & Performance Arts
Veterinary Science
Wildlife & Fisheries
Workforce Preparation & Careers
Youth Entrepreneurship
Livestock Project areas:
- Dairy Cattle
- Beef Cattle
- Sheep
- Goats
- Swine
- Rabbits
- Broilers
- Horse
Most common project areas will have information presented at club meetings and there will be livestock project clinics.
Specific project information can be found at: https://texas4-h.tamu.edu/projects/
Projects with additional meetings/practices outside of club meetings
- Livestock Judging-join the Remind class if interested text @79472f to 81010
- Livestock Quiz Bowl-join the Remind class if interested text @37ec7a to 81010
Contest Opportunities
Information on contests will be posted here: https://agrilife.org/d84h/events-and-activities/
- Variety of Fishing opportunities for both teams and individuals
- Shotgun shoots (contact the Shotgun coach for info)
- Archery shoots (contact the Archery coach for info)
- Food Challenge/Food Show
- Dairy Judging
- Horse Judging
- Photography
- Fashion Show, Fashion Storyboard, Duds to Dazzle
- Consumer Decision Making
- Livestock Judging
- Meat Judging
- Soil Judging
- Leaders 4 Life Skillathon
- Education Presentations
- Public Speaking
- Share the Fun
- Horse, FCH and Livestock Quiz Bowls
- District & State Horse Show
- Some contests are also offered at Major Shows (Fort Worth, San Antonio, San Angelo, Houston, Austin) pay attention to Major show information when posted.
