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Tag: 4-H

KSDS Assistance Dogs

Corwin, an assistance dog, with girl in a wheelchair
Corwin, an assistance dog, with Angela

On a transatlantic flight to Europe, Éclair is arriving in Ireland. But this isn’t just another jet-lagged tourist: This is a four-legged traveler.

Éclair is a black lab puppy. She went to Europe as part of an exchange to help enhance the service dogs that assist people across the nation, and she was sent by an assistance dog service in rural Kansas.

Bryce Dolan is director of marketing and fundraising for KSDS Assistance Dogs Inc., which sent the puppy Éclair to Ireland as part of an international exchange.

KSDS had its beginnings through 4-H. In 1987, 4-H dog project members from Cloud, Riley and Washington counties began serving as puppy raisers for assistance dog organizations in Ohio and California.

When they realized that very few of these assistance dogs were being placed in the Midwest, they wanted an assistance dog training facility for people in the central U.S.

In 1990, the Kansas Specialty Dog Service (now known as KSDS) opened its doors in Washington, Kansas. KSDS is a non-profit organization that provides professionally trained guide and service dogs for people in need of a canine partner. KSDS is led by CEO Duane Toews and a board of volunteers.

Continue reading “KSDS Assistance Dogs”

Kansas Lange, Two Little Goats

Two little goats. That doesn’t sound like a lot, but perhaps it could be the beginning of an entrepreneurial career.

Teenage girl, standing and looking at camera
Kansas Lange

Today we’ll meet a young rural-preneur who is using her two little goats to learn the principles of entrepreneurship for the future.

Kansas Lange is a teenager who won her county’s Youth Entrepreneurship Challenge in spring 2022. Kansas and her family live in Garfield, in Pawnee County.

Her father is Charles Lange, a K-State grad and public health veterinarian in Dodge City. While inspecting the packing plant in Dodge, Dr. Lange met one of the workers, Sabrina, who is originally from New Mexico. They married, moved to Garfield, and now have two daughters and a son.

Kansas is the younger daughter. “My grandfather suggested they name me Kansas because that is where they met,” Kansas said.

Kansas became very active in 4-H. “I’m homeschooled, so this is my creative outlet and my opportunity to meet people in the community,” Kansas said.

In addition to showing multiple species of livestock, she enrolled in such projects as shooting sports, woodworking, clothing and textiles, and foods and nutrition.

Kyle Grant is the K-State Research and Extension 4-H agent in Pawnee County. “Kansas has excelled in our Pawnee County shooting sports program,” Grant said. “She also excels at livestock judging, meats judging and skillathon, where she earned the opportunity to go to the national contest in Louisville, Kentucky. She is a good role model for Pawnee County 4-H’ers.”

Kansas learned about the Pawnee County Youth Entrepreneurship Challenge, sponsored by NetWork Kansas. YEC is a sequence of community-based entrepreneurship competitions for students in grades 6-12, culminating in a state championship. Students present their conceptual or business ideas to judges and compete against others in their age division locally. The top contestants advance to the state finals, held in April at K-State in partnership with the College of Business’ Center for Entrepreneurship and the Kansas Masons.

Erik Pedersen is president and COO of NetWork Kansas. “When you walk into one of these events at a middle school or high school, you see a student standing there with a tabletop display that they’ve created,” he said. “They’re dressed up and talking to a group of adult judges; they’re shaking hands, they’re making eye contact, they’re answering questions about their project or business idea. The life skills that they’re gaining will put them miles ahead of their peers.”

Kansas thought about what project she might enter in this competition. As a teenager, she was experiencing acne on her skin and looking for better skin treatments. “I found a lot of articles that said that goat milk soap could help,” she said. No big city stores carried such products nearby, but she could raise dairy goats and make soap of her own.

Kansas got two Nigerian Dwarf dairy goats that she milked twice daily, did the research and developed a process for producing scented goat milk soap. It worked so well that she wanted to share the products with others and started selling the product locally. She named her business Two Little Goats.

“My mom has a degree in business, so she could help with the business side, and my dad helped with the science and biology,” Kansas said.

She entered her project in the Pawnee County Youth Entrepreneurship Challenge. In 2022, she took first place and advanced to state. At the Kansas Department of Agriculture’s 2022 Ag Growth Summit, Kansas spoke about her project at the entrepreneurship breakout session.

“I especially enjoyed doing the research and thinking on my feet when the judges ask questions,” she said.

She’s a remarkable young woman from the rural community of Garfield, population 151 people. Now, that’s rural.

More information about YEC is available online.

How do we as a state develop and encourage the next generation of entrepreneurs? The Youth Entrepreneurship Challenge is a great step in the right direction. We commend Kansas Lange and all those involved with YEC for making a difference with their ideas and business development.

A big career in business just might begin with two little goats.

Joni Albers, Hungry Gardens

By Ron Wilson, director of the Huck Boyd National Institute for Rural Development at Kansas State University.

A blue ribbon. For millions of 4-H youth through the years, blue ribbons have been awarded in recognition of a high-quality project.

For Joni Albers, the founder of the Hungry Gardens in California, her first blue ribbon helped launch a lifelong interest in horticulture. She is now using those skills to produce healthy food for urban neighbors.

Joni Albers
Joni Albers

Originally from Hoxie, Joni’s roots go deep in rural Kansas. Her grandparents were dairy farmers, and her family always had a large garden. “My mother got me started in gardening,” Joni said. “I had my first garden at six years old.”

She was also a member of the Solomon Valley 4-H Club. In her first year, she took her homegrown green beans to the Sheridan County Fair and won a blue ribbon. “That started it all,” she said. Joni was active in 4-H, taking on projects such as sewing, art, bucket calf, and woodworking, but horticulture was her favorite. Continue reading “Joni Albers, Hungry Gardens”

Kansas Profile – Now That’s Rural: Lacey Noterman, virtual livestock show

By Ron Wilson, director of the Huck Boyd National Institute for Rural Development at Kansas State University.

“Never underestimate the power of youth.” That is the phrase used by an extension agent whose 4-H youth helped conduct an innovative livestock show entirely using technology.

Dalton Winfrey, Bailey Briggs, Kara Kunselman, Ashley Kennedy, and Sean Wagner
Dalton Winfrey, Bailey Briggs, Kara Kunselman, Ashley Kennedy, and Sean Wagner

Lacey Noterman is a livestock and youth extension agent for the K-State Research and Extension Wild West District, serving Haskell, Seward and Stevens counties in southwest Kansas. A native of Dighton, she was on the livestock judging team at Fort Hays State before joining the extension service in Haskell County.

In 2016, Lacey helped launch a 4-H livestock ambassador program in Haskell County. This was intended to give youth a bigger voice in livestock-related 4-H activities and help prepare them as advocates for animal agriculture. Ambassadors are selected annually by the livestock show and sale committee. “(To avoid favoritism,) I remove the names from the applications and then the committee makes the selection,” Lacey said. Continue reading “Kansas Profile – Now That’s Rural: Lacey Noterman, virtual livestock show”