MANHATTAN, Kan. – Kansas 4-H will celebrate its long-standing commitment to community service when members across the state participate in 48 Hours of 4-H, Oct. 9-10.
Beth Hinshaw, a 4-H youth development specialist in the southeast region, said the annual event wraps up National 4-H Week in the United States.
“4-H has a really long history of young people being involved in their community,” Hinshaw said. “Some of the research from several years ago tells us that 4-Hers in grades 7 and up are nearly four times more likely to make contributions to their communities. And, those in grades 8-12 are two times more likely to be civically active.”
48 Hours of 4-H is a project that encourages clubs in the state to plan a community service project. “It’s not a 48 hour project,” Hinshaw said, “but rather a project that you do sometime during that 48 hour timeframe.”
In the past, Hinshaw said, groups have been very creative in how they have chosen to help their community, including such things as:
- Beautification of the community, such painting equipment in parks, planting flower bulbs, picking up trash and trimming landscapes.
- Collections, such non-perishable foods and laundry supplies.
- Special events.
- Serving meals.
- Visiting nursing homes.
“It’s really about what the 4-H club or group wants to do to serve their community,” Hinshaw said.
In addition to asking local media to cover their project, Hinshaw urges Kansas 4-H clubs to post pictures to Instagram, Facebook and Twitter.
More information about 48 Hours of 4-H and how to register a project is available online.