1999 Cal Focus Plans of Action

2002 Citizenship Focus Plans of Action

BIRTHDAY GIFT BOXES

Through the collaborative efforts of six Contra Costa clubs and three local Girl Scout troops, each group was asked to prepare birthday gift boxes for one girl and one boy. Together they prepared 26 gift boxes that would be distributed to the Phoenix House Shelter and the Opportunity House Shelter. These gift boxes are intended to cheer up youth staying in temporary housing and to let them know that their community does indeed care about them.

Teen Leader: Marta Kroger Adult Leader: Julie Kroger Collaborators: 4-H Community Club Leaders, 4-H Members in Contra Costa County, Girls Scouts of Napa Solano Council

IMPERIAL COUNTY FOOD BANK

In Imperial Valley, nearly 31 percent of the population lives below the federal and state poverty level. The Imperial Valley Food Bank has gathered and donated over 900,000 pounds of food for the local community. However, since the events of September 11, the food bank was hit hard for donations. Members of the Star Route, Holtville and Verde 4-H Clubs decided to host a Golf Tournament as a fundraiser to raise money to help restock the shelves of the food bank. Their event was very successful and they raised $4,734.00! Excellent job!

Teen Leader: Melissa Allison and Matthew Smith Adult Leader: Mary Ann Smith Team Members: Andrew Leimgruber, Tassa Allegranza, Blake Plourd, Krista Taylor, Allison Wray

4-H TEENS & LEADERS AWARENESS OF CA FOCUS

Two Sacramento 4-H members were the first to attend the 2002 CA Focus Conference in over 5 years. At the conclusion of the conference and after a wonderful learning and fun experience, they couldn't understand why more 4-H members didn't attend this annual event. They determined that it was because people just didn't know about it! So as their 2002 Plan of Action they decided to prepare a PowerPoint presentation that they could share at many different statewide events in order to increase the awareness of CA Focus. The presentation was called Focus on Cal Focus. It was shown at numerous 4-H Leaders' Council meetings, State Leadership Conference, CAL Conference, TIC Conference, teen leadership conferences and even the State 4-H Leaders Forum. Not only did they increase awareness to many people, they learned a lot from this experience and, they had a lot of fun!

Teen Leaders: Christopher Diringer and Stephanie Diringer Adult Leader: Karla Diringer EDUCATE LOCAL TEENS ABOUT DOMESTIC VIOLENCE

This team from Santa Clara County felt there was a huge lack of education to youth regarding teen and domestic violence. Their Plan of Action was to do extensive research on teen violence, seek out collaborators with extensive background on this topic and prepare a presentation to perform at local high schools. The presentation would increase the awareness of the domestic violence and coercion in teen relationships, and bring home the message of how it can affect each student personally, as well as the community. The team had never seen this topic addressed in their school and felt it was too important a subject to be overlooked! They developed a school assembly program to provide awareness to teens and developed a manual and a brochure. Then they went on to train other teens to present the workshop in their school.

Teen Leader: Margo Lang Adult Leader: Deborah Lang Team Members: Jennifer Ku, Julisia Banach

CARE CLOTHS

This team from San Joaquin County worked to made and distribute "Care Cloths" to local shelters for battered women and children. A Care Cloth is a kit made from a wash cloth that will hold miscellaneous toiletry products such as a tooth brush, toothpaste, soap and shampoo. The supplies to made the Care Cloths were donated from local stores and businesses such as Wal Mart, Big Valley Dental, CREST and 4-H members. The cloths were sewn into small care packets in which the toiletry products were placed, rolled up and tied with a pretty ribbon. The recipients at the shelters were very grateful for these kind and considerate gifts!

Teen Leaders: Brittny Bova and Sarah Dunnicliff Adult Leader: Penny Dunnicliff Team Members: Patti Bova

CA FOCUS AWARENESS IN STANISLAUS

Stanislaus County members wanted to inform more of the clubs about the opportunity to participate in the CA Focus experience. They prepared an announcement to be posted in the 4-H newsletter indicating their willingness to come to their club or council meetings to discuss the advantages of participating in CA Focus and they shared a scrapbook they had put together to highlight some of the events that occur while at the conference. Regrettably, they didn't receive as enthusiastic a response as they had hoped but plan on continuing their effort to increase participation.

Teen Leader: Savannah Lamb and Amanda Lamb Adult Leader: Julie Beth Lamb GOT MEMORIALS!

San Bernardino County 4-H members undertook a very challenging and potentially very rewarding project for their 2002 Plan of Action. They decided to research, locate, photograph and document the Veterans Memorials in San Bernardino County. In 2000, Senator Adam Schiff initiated SB 1635 - a first of its kind Veteran's Memorial Bill. This bill would catalog all California memorials and provide a Registry of the memorials to be made publicly available. The 4-H members, once completing their data collection, would prepare a report that would be forwarded to Senator Schiff to be added to the Registry. Additionally, they plan to share copies of this report at local libraries for public use. They felt it was very important for people to understand the sacrifices made by our veterans to help maintain the freedoms and values we all enjoy as Californians and as Americans.

Teen Leader: John Trammell Adult Advisors: Bernadine Marquez and Steven Trammell Team Members: Russell Champlin, Jenna Chiatovich, Kelsey Clelland, Carrie Crane, Matthew McGee, James Wilson, Stacey Witt

EDUCATE FOR SAFETY IN THE COMMUNITY

During Tulare County's annual Cinco de Mayo carnival and fair, the Earlimart 4-H club set up a booth in the exhibition building to distribute information to the public on the topic of both fire safety and bicycle safety. With the assistance of the Delano Fire Department and the donation of safety pamphlets, the team members were able to talk to the public about the importance of educating the entire family on issues such as:

1) developing an escape route from their house in case of a fire, 2) how to 'stop, drop and roll" should your clothing catch fire, and 3) the importance of fire detectors, the proper use of fire extinguishers, etc. They also distributed pamphlets on bicycle safety and the proper use of a helmet and why riders should always wear a helmet.

The team felt this was a valuable service to the community and plan to set up a booth again in 2003.

Adult Leaders: Tina Campos and Georgia Ramirez Team Members: Jimmy Caraveo, Joshua Caraveo, Scott Perigo, Evelyn Castillo, Dariane Nabor, Jillian Salim, Aaron Ramirez, Robyn Ramirez (plus other 4-H members assisted)

PROMOTING CPR TRAINING The CA Focus participants from Fresno County chose to become certified in CPR training and conduct additional trainings for members and volunteers in their community. With the assistance of a certified CPR instructor, the members learned the necessary skills to conduct their own workshops at local schools and also teach 4-H camp counselors. The workshops were well received and it was an excellent opportunity to educate the community that 4-H "isn't just about attending fairs!"

Adult Leaders: Connie Kuber and Georgene Diener Team Members: Catharine Kuber, Ashley Wright, Josh Bledsoe, Jason Conway, Mark Diener