Posted: 8/6/03

4-H future worries faithful

Cliff Buchan
News Editor

Robin Booren has been religiously coming to the Washington County Fair with his holstein cattle every year since 1969 when the fair set up shop near Lake Elmo.

The Scandia farmer wouldnít have it any other way.

A product of the 4-H system, Booren, now 54, says he has always put great stock in the youth program that has been coordinated at the county level by the University of Minnesota Extension Office in Stillwater. Supporting the fair is one of the reasons he continues to bring cattle to the county fair for entry in the dairy open class judging competition.

Booren is just one of the county fair participants who signaled concern for the countyís 4-H program now that it has been finalized that the Stillwater extension office will be eliminated at the end of the year.

Itís all part of a downward spiral in funding that has forced the University of Minnesota to make budget cuts. One of the casualties has been the extension program.

Starting on Jan. 1, 2004, services provided by the Washington County Extension Office will be centered in two of the 16 new regional offices ó Andover and Farmington. It is expected kids in the south end of the county will get support from Farmington while those in the northern end of the county will turn to the Andover office for assistance.

Booren trucked eight head of cattle ó cows and calves ó from Scandia to Lake Elmo last week. Although he is long past his 4-H years and has no children of his own, he still sees value in helping fill the cattle barn.

Byron Anderson, Hugo, president of the Washington County Agriculture Society, shook his head in amazement and appreciation last Thursday when Booren arrived with his cattle.

4-H concerns

The loss of the local county extension office does not bode well for 4-H, Booren said as he washed cattle on Thursday.

ìI didnít think they should do it,î said the son of the late Alden Booren, a one-time county extension agent in Otter Tail County.

The University funding cuts and loss of county dollars to support the extension program are forcing the county to make a change. Booren for one is not so sure it is for the best.

ìYour own county staff knows the personal needs of the county,î Booren said. ìThose places (regional offices) donít know what Washington County may need.î

Anderson, who has been coming to the county fair for the past 45 years and now has grand kids taking part, shares Boorenís concern for the 4-H aspect of the extension office change.

Anderson said a bid to secure a regional office in Hugo was solid but failed to make the cut under the new system announced in late July.

ì4-H is probably their top program,î Anderson said of the extension offerings that include Master Gardener programs among others.

He believes the ultimate blow will be the loss of direct services to the 700 youth and the many adults now involved in the 4-H program in Washington County.

Only time will tell if the program suffers, he says.

One other thing that is certain, he says, is that parents, already a key player in the program, will need to become even more involved.

ìParents will need to step it up,î Anderson said. He is confident that parents can fill some of the void.

ìWe have good people in our county.î

But as president of the county fair board, Anderson has a secondary concern for a fair which could suffer if 4-H suffers from the extension office move. The role 4-H youth play at the fair is vital in terms of public enjoyment, he says.

A recent survey commissioned by the fair board produced one striking result, he said. By an overwhelming result, respondents said the attraction that they enjoyed most at the fair was the animals.

As the county continues to transition from rural to urban in nature, Anderson believes more ways need to be found to encourage the many youth who find education and fun in their 4-H animal projects. He fears the current plan is going in the wrong direction.

Thatís why Anderson smiled a smile of relief last week when Booren arrived, as usual, with eight head of cattle.

Booren says he believes the county and the state arenít being wise in the plan for 4-H. He is just an example of a former 4-H youth, he says, who has remained a taxpaying county resident and someone working for the betterment of youth.

But there is some sign of hope from the county this week.

County Commissioner Dennis Hegberg of Forest Lake said the county will consider funding 1‡ positions for 2004 to work with the 4-H and Master Gardener programs. If approved, the two county-paid staffers would work in Stillwater.

The county board is expected to take up the funding discussion early this fall when the budget for next year is hammered out, Hegberg said.

Top of Page