The Rimbey 4-H Club is still going strong! We started off December with our first judging workshop on Dec. 7. We had this at St. Margaret’s Parish Church.
This event helped us improve our judging skills. On Dec. 9 we fixed our old rickety clipping shoots, to become stronger and more efficient at the show and sale on May 12 and 13, and as always we encourage you to come check it out.
On Dec. 16 we had our farm tour and all of our calves are looking great so far. We took a bus so that we could all ride together. It made the day a lot more fun.
On Dec. 21 we had our Christmas party at the Agrim Center. The club had a gift exchange and a tasty potluck. On Jan. 28 we cleaned up the Last West Hall from the Wild Game Supper the night before. After we cleaned up the hall we had our meeting.
On Feb. 3 we had our public speaking day at Forshee Hall. For seniors - Rueben Rand placed third, Cali Hofmann placed second, and Amanda Peter placed first. For intermediates - Bryer Butcher placed third, Laci Hofmann placed second, Willow Smith placed first. For juniors - Dirk Benedict placed third, Wyatt Benedict placed second and Bridget Bergeron placed first. Overall everyone did a fantastic job. .
All of the other projects are also making good progress. In the rabbit group there are seven rabbit members. Each month the members get together, bringing along the rabbits. The group attended a Rabbit and Pheasant Show in Drayton Valley on Dec. 2. All of our members had success as they each came home with ribbons. Currently the members have been learning different things that have to do with the rabbits such as parts on the rabbit and nutrition.
The horse club has met several times. They have had several western horsemanship lessons at an indoor arena and they went on a trail ride in December during the warm weather. They are currently studying the parts of a horse and the parts of a saddle. They have started to talk about the signs to look for when a horse is not feeling well. They have several more lessons booked and hope to go on a summer trail ride in the Foothills.
The Creative Options project has also had success. With a successful Co-op community spaces grant last year, Ryker and Jazdn broke ground last August with the Pollinator Garden portion of their modular AG classroom at the Ellis Bird Farm. “The Bee Box ” modular honey processing container’s modifications were completed in January and it was off to paint February 5th. The reveal of “The Bee Box” will be at the Home Show in Red Deer, March 8-10. With only a few days rest, Ryker and Jazdn will be starting the 20’ sea can chicken coop March 18 to hopefully be ready for chickens opening day of the Ellis Bird Farm, May 20th, 2024.
Sewing began the year making reusable gift wrap and feed sac tote bags. They sold the tote bags at the Rimbey Christmas Market in December. For a Christmas project the girls worked to complete a small cross stitch which served to be a Christmas ornament. The girls have dove right into their quilts as the new year started.
Through January and February they have worked to complete the individual quilt blocks as well as completing the quilt top as a whole. In meetings to come they will work on preparing the backing, creating a label, binding and do the final “quilting”. All of the girls’ hard work will be showcased in the Red Deer Quilt Show in May. This year our sewing club has 6 members.
Our Rimbey Club has many exciting things coming up such as our Mini Show, various achievement days, and of course highway cleanup. Keep posted so you do not miss out!
