2003Regular club meetings are held on the third Tuesday of the month.
December Our December meeting was recreational. We celebrated the holidays and the end of a great year with an ice skating party at Downtown Tinsel Town. Twenty two club members and guests had a great time honing their skating skills. The weather was very appropriate! What kind of ice skating party could you have if the temperature was above freezing? The setting was perfect too! The temporary skating rink was set up across from the historic Russellville train depot and surrounded by decorated Christmas trees. The holiday music and hot chocolate provided by Main Street Russellville added the finishing touches!
November The meeting kicked off with a song led by our new recreation leader. We had a short business session and proceded to the program. Our November meeting program was Rocketry! We learned about rockets from one of our older club members and actually built a water rocket to launch. A power point presentation was used to introduce concepts of rocketry. Then club members used two 2-liter soft drink bottles for each club member or two person team to make rockets capable of being launched up to 200 feet.
In November we installed new officers for tne 2003/2004 year. We held a candlelight ceremony to honor these new leaders. One club member gave a project talk at this meeting. It was about dog care.
October The Russellville City Slickers (RSC) Tech Team held a PowerPoint Workshop, Tuesday October 28 at 6:30 p.m. at the ANO Training Center. This was a great opportunity to learn about presentation software from our club technology team. The facilities for the program were wonderful. Lots of club members and several adults benefited from this workshop. We really appreciate Mr. Taylor for giving us access to this facility and for all of his help with the presentation materials!
At October's meeting we had door prizes and programs to celebrate 4-H Month. Three club officers organized a foods workshop with good things to make and eat. During our business session we elected officers and county council representatives for the coming year. Everyone who planned to run for election prepared a short speech introducing themselves and telling why they would be good in a particular office. Mr. Fairbanks was also there to tell us about his plans for the County Council.
Remember to wear your 4-H T-shirts during 4-H Promotion month! Tell your friends about 4-H!
September The September meeting of the Russellville City Slickers was held on Sept. 16 at 6:30 p.m. The program for the meeting was a fall craft, a scarecrow made from a dish towel and dish cloth. It makes a great decoration to hang in the kitchen throughout the fall.
September was busy with fair activities too! Our club entered 93 items in the education building giving us the most points of all organizations and 4-H clubs! We also prepared an educational booth all about Mars and its close proximity to earth this fall. There were also dozens of other exhibits ranging from rabbits to garden produce to photography! Great job City Slickers!
August Thanks to everyone who helped out at the Raffle Ticket Sales on Thursday, August 28 at Kroger on West Main!. We were able to make $130 for county 4-H activities and programs!
Craft Workshops for the fair were a big success as you can see by stopping by the Education Building at the fair. Volunteers taking craft entries were very impressed at how busy the City Slickers were! On Saturday, August 30, Cloverbuds worked with Mrs. Delong and Juniors and Seniors worked with Mrs. Morris to make numerous items to exhibit at the fair including tin punch plates, jewelry, muffins and computer art!
Our August meeting was held on 19th at 6:30 p.m. The program for the month was a woodworking project. We made a memo holder that you can hang on the wall. The wood used was poplar. Members sanded the pre-cut backboard and drilled holes to attach the locking bar and to hang the project. Two members gave project talks this month. We heard about a trip to Little Rock to learn about state government and some very interesting facts about Arkansas history. (I know that on my next fishing trip to the White River, I will be watching for the White River monster!) During our business session we discussed our Bee, Bird & Butterfly Project, the Pope County Fair, the club Fair Booth, the Chicken Lunch Fundraiser results, and Raffle Ticket Sales (Thursday, August 28 at Kroger on West Main at 3:30 p.m.). We also scheduled craft workshops for cloverbud and senior and junior members for Saturday, August 30.
July 
Our July meeting was a pet show conducted together with the Center Valley 4-H Club (Mrs. Annett's club)! It was held on Saturday, July 26 from 10 am until noon at the Pope County Riding Arena near the fairgrounds. It was a "fun" pet show; a good time without too much competition. Mike Fairbanks, our new 4-H agent and Carol Parker, our new 4-H program assistant agreed to be our judges. Each 4-Her was asked to introduce and say a few things about their pet. There were 4-H blue, red and white ribbons for prizes. It shaped up to be a great event! Thanks for joining us Center Valley 4-H!
June In June, we met at the Lake Dardanelle State Park visitors center to begin work on our BBB project island. We took a soil sample, cleared and cut brush, built bird houses and identified plants. We used park kayaks to get to the island. Four to six members went to the island at a time. The others worked on bird houses while they waited for their turn. Cloverbuds came and helped too! They helped with the birdhouses and made nature collages with Mrs. DeLong.
May On May 22, club members participated in a project tour. We visited Pine Ridge Gardens, a nursery in London that specializes in native plants and supplies them to customers all over the United States. The activity helped us prepare for our Bees, Birds and Butterflies project.
Pine Ridge Gardens Tour
Our May meeting was planned to be at Lake Dardanelle State Park. Due to threatening weather it was changed to All Saints. Club members made two projects for the fair, mosaic plant pots and potato planters. We also met our new 4-H county extension agent, Mike Fairbanks. Welcome to Pope County Mike! The planned start for our Bees, Birds and Butterflies project was postponed until June 3. Junior and senior members will get started on some activities on the island that we will be developing as a bee, bird, and butterfly habitat.
4-H Fred and Phyllis have returned!!
In January we began an exchange with 4-H clubs around the country. Club members made paper 4-H Fred and Phyllis dolls and journals. The dolls were split up and sent to clubs in Nebraska, Ohio, Indiana and two clubs in California. These clubs sent us dolls too. Over the last couple of months, the 4-H dolls have gone where we have gone in 4-H. We have recorded our activities and taken pictures to put in the journals. At the end of the activity (May), we sent the dolls and journals back to the club that sent them to us. When we get our dolls back, we will be able to learn about 4-H in other parts of the country!
Some of our 4H Fred & Phyllis dolls arrived from Nebraska on May 5!
April Our meeting started off with a game led by Jason. Then Mandi led our business session in the president's absence. A report on the county banquet was given and awards were distributed. Mandi also encouraged club members to sign up for county O'Rama, the county's biggest day of competitive events. Three club members gave project talks. The main program was presented by a member of the Fair Hares Rabbit Club. Sarah instructed us about rabbit breeds with a slide show. She also spoke about rabbit care and showmanship. This program helped several of our club members who have rabbits and gave us all a better understanding of the rabbit project.
March Because of Spring Break, our March meeting was rescheduled. It was held March 25 at 6:30 at All Saints. The program for our meeting was related to environmental stewardship. We participated in Earth Day activities. The long awaited Fred & Phyllis dolls were also distributed. Updates on several exciting 4-H activities such as the county achievement banquet and the club technology team were provided. Look forward to news about how you can participate in the Relay for Life and a new club project, Bees, Birds & Butterflies too! Two club members gave project reports this month!
Scroll your mouse over the picture to see another photo!
February We had a Recognition Program on our regular meeting date, Feb. 18. Everyone was contacted to bring a food item to share. Club members were recognized for their project work, recordbooks and accomplishments. Pope County Extension Service Staff Chairman, John Payne, congratulated club members on their accomplishments and community service.
January In January, we heard a world cultures project talk on Peru. The program for our meeting was an exchange with 4-H clubs around the country. Club members made paper dolls and journals. The dolls were split up and sent to clubs in Nebraska, Ohio, California, and Indiana. These clubs are sending us dolls too. Over the next couple of months, the 4-H dolls will go where we go in 4-H. We will record our activities and take pictures to be put in the journals. At the end of the activity (March), we send the dolls and journals back to the club that sent them to us. When we get our dolls back, we will be able to learn about 4-H in other parts of the country!We will need everyone to do their part. Keep up your journals and take lots of pictures! I am really looking forward to learning all about the adventures of our 4-H dolls.
2002
December We held a Christmas Party on December 17. Mrs. Morris was in Ohio so the club officers had full responsibility for the meeting. Food and fun; what a great way to close out the year!
November Operation Christmas Child
As a Christmas community service project, our club prepared shoe boxes filled with toiletries and gifts for needy children. In November, each family brought new, inexpensive toys, school supplies, gum or hard candy to our meeting. Lorrin & Lindsay also collected toiletries from area businesses. Some families made a financial donation of $5.00 to cover shipping costs.The meeting of the Russellville City Slickers was held on Tuesday, November 19. An important aspect of this meeting was the installation of the 2002/2003 slate of officers. Our club is fortunate to have a great group of motivated members who have volunteered to serve this year. We also welcomed two new adult leaders in November. Mrs. Michelle Annette and Mrs. Cynthia DeLong have agreed to work with the cloverbud members (ages 5 to 9) of our club.
In November we began a new meeting format. First of all we included two project talks in the business session; one junior or senior talk and one cloverbud talk. From now on, all club members will be asked to do a 2 - 5 minute talk related to one of their 4-H projects during the year. Another change that we began was having separate programs for the cloverbuds and the older 4-Hers. This will allow both groups to have more age appropriate programs. Beginning in November, the cloverbuds and older club members will separate after the business session. Our club has grown and these changes should help us to adjust.
For the program, the cloverbuds made a really neat toy that is not only be entertaining but can be shown in the fair next year. The older kids wrapped and packed the shoe boxes for Operation Christmas Child.
October ****4-H Promotion Month!****Our regular club meeting was Tuesday, October 15. Besides lots of terrific 4-H promotion activities conducted by club members, we had a great program on web pages and careers in technology given by Katherine McMahon, Web Associate with the Cooperative Extension Service. Club members brought canned goods for the food drive and their 2003 membership renewal cards.
Remember to wear your 4-H T-shirts during 4-H Promotion month! Tell your friends about 4-H!
Eight club members participated in a club workshop to build web pages on Tuesday, October 8 at 7 p.m. at the ATU library. This workshop was conducted by one of our senior club members for kids ten and up. It was a great experience. Go to Web Pages to see pictures from the workshop and to link to the member web pages.
September The topic of our regular meeting on September 17 was "Americanism". Representatives of the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW), Mr. Bob Johnson and Ms. Marchelle Jones, came to conduct a program about the American flag and the pledge. Mandi introduced our guests. Leah and Jillian planned patriotic games and Lorrin and Lindsay prepared delicious refreshments. The meeting closed with a club photo showing off our fair T-shirts organized by our "Master of Ceremonies", Mr. Taylor. Another great meeting marked in the records!
The Pope County Fair was also wrapped up in September. Check out our County Activities page to see the photos of our Fair Booth Committee.
August Time to get ready for the Pope County Fair!
The topic of our regular meeting on August 20 was the Pope County Fair, Sept. 17 to 21. Fair books were distributed. Members were encouraged to exhibit their livestock and home economics projects, as well as, to volunteer at the fair. In addtion to the carnival. this year's fair will feature a petting zoo for pre-schoolers, a special needs show, a dance and 4-H olympics! The program for the August meeting was a comical demonstration of biscuit making. If you would like to see Leah's recipe just click on the following link to view a text file. Buttermilk Biscuit Recipe
July On Monday, July 29 club members, 12 and up, volunteered at the Main Street Mission from 4 to 6 p.m. We delivered the canned goods that our club has collected so far, stocked the shelves, washed dishes and served the evening meal. These activities are part of the state "4-H CAN Make a Difference" community service effort. See our community service link for pictures.We had a recreational meeting at Brandon's house on Tuesday, July 30 from 6 to 8 p.m.. We all gathered for horseback riding, swimming and a cookout. We had a great time! We appreciate Brandon's family for having us!
On July 16, at our regular meeting, we had a craft workshop. Participant chose from a "pot luck" of crafts to make and exhibit at the fair. Submitting your crafts, plants, photos and other items in the fair in the club name helps your club. We get about $1 for every blue ribbon you earn! This enables us to continue to have nice club projects and activities!
June June found many of our club members attending various 4-H camps that made scheduling our regular club meeting very difficult! Our outing to Dardanelle State Park for kayaking and a nature program slipped to July 2. Members enjoyed an excellent program presented by park interpreters, Sarah Keating and Deborah Wilkinson. We learned to kayak and explored the shores of the lake. We also learned about the habits and features of the wildlife that frequent the park by investigating their skins, skulls and tracks. One member even learned first hand what it feels like to be a beaver!
May In May, several of the club officers conducted a foods workshop. All of the recipes featured Arkansas strawberries. We learned to make strawberry cookies, chocolated covered strawberries and fresh fruit smoothies. Everyone took a flier home that included the recipes we used, as well as, several other fun and easy recipes using fresh strawberries. You can see our recipes by linking to the following text file: Recipes
April For our April program, two of our club members organized participation in the international Earth Day Grocery Bags Project. Together with another 4-H Club and a local elementary school, we decorated 450 brown paper grocery bags with environmental messages. The bags were distributed to Kroger customers on Earth Day, April 22, 2002. You can learn about this project and see our club report and pictures at the following link:Earth Day Grocery Bay Project
March We took a trip to the Jones Center for Families in Springdale, Arkansas. The Jones Center is a facility made possible by an endowment from Harvey & Bernice Jones (Jones Trucking). It is dedicated to serving families and strengthening community. Our club enjoyed a day of ice skating and swimming.
February In February we had a Culture Fair. Club members dressed in the costumes of other cultures, made international food items, gave talks about other countries, and shared about their heritage.
January Every January the club makes valentines for hospitalized veterans as part of Ann Landers national "Valentines for Veterans" Project.
