Somerset County 4-H Open House

Families are invited to the Somerset County 4-H Open House on Thursday, September 24, 6:30 to 8 p.m. at the Ted Blum 4-H Center, 310 Milltown Road, Bridgewater, to learn about all that 4-H has to offer.

The 4-H Youth Development Program is offered through the Cooperative Extension System of the U.S. Department of Agriculture. It is one of the oldest and largest youth organizations in America, with 6 million members. 4-H is open to any child from K-13 (one year out of high school). Young people may select from a broad menu of local 4‑H programs developed by educators that offer hands-on, learn-by-doing, opportunities in agriculture, STEM, health, civic engagement and the arts.

The Open House features representatives from the almost 80 clubs available in Somerset County through Rutgers Cooperative Extension. There is also information on both short- and long-term volunteer opportunities for adults.

4-H Prep, also known as Cloverbuds, is open to grades K-3 and offers a mix of activities. Traditional 4-H clubs, for grades 4-13, focus on a particular project area. A few of the projects currently offered in Somerset County are robotics, food & nutrition, beekeeping, gardening, rabbits, sewing, poultry, model trains, twirling, remote control cars, archery and more.

Somerset County 4-H also has a Seeing Eye Puppy program. In a unique partnership with The Seeing Eye based in Morristown, N.J., 4-H’ers are provided with potential service dog puppies. With the help of family, trained volunteers and their club, 4-H members raise and socialize the pups and provide basic training. The dogs are then returned to The Seeing Eye at 14-16 months of age to continue their training to become Seeing Eye service dogs for the blind and visually impaired. 

For a list of 4-H clubs and to learn more, visit 4HisTOPS.org.