Military 4-H Programs At Work in Alabama

Since 1995, 4-H has worked in partnership with U.S. Army Child and Youth Services, Air Force Family Member Programs and Navy to extend 4-H to U.S. military families worldwide. With the support of 4-H professionals, military staff and volunteers provide quality developmental programs for children in safe and nurturing environments so that military men and women can pursue their critical, high risk assignments.

State, county and regional Alabama Cooperative Extension System staff, community agencies, schools and 4-H club youth are reaching out to military youth before, during and after their parents are deployed through a variety of military 4-H programs.

Each state has a 4-H military liaison to support the work with Army and Air Force and to reach out to the Army and Air National Guard and Reserve units through Operation: Military Kids! (OMK). Alabama’s liaison is Charlene Morse Hines. Hines assists county 4-H and installation staff and coordinates 4-H military partnership efforts throughout the state. She also helps integrate military 4-H clubs into the statewide 4-H and Extension program and collaborates with other 4-H military liaisons to support these efforts.

The OMK program is especially helpful to children whose National Guard and Army Reserve parents living in civilian communities are mobilized.

“These children may never have identified themselves as military kids until a parent’s deployment rendered them suddenly military,” said Hines. “Their first true experience with the military is the stress and uncertainty that goes hand in hand with military deployments. With the additional stresses of helping out the remaining parent at home and the constant media coverage of the war, the impact can be overwhelming for these youth, especially those living away from a military community and its comprehensive support structures.”

Currently, OMK programs are established in 40 states. In Alabama, Military 4-H programs are up and running at every major military facility. Partnering with the Military Child Education Coalition, OMK also provides school teachers, principals, counselors and nurses with resources and education to help them better understand and meet military youth’s needs.

In addition to support and social activities, children of military service members and others interested in OMK can participate in three specific outreach activities to raise awareness and support of the OMK program in their communities.

Mobile Technology Labs are portable computer labs that are set up locally to connect geographically dispersed military youth with their deployed parents and other youth in similar situations. The portable labs contain laptops, digital photo and video cameras, printer, scanner, laminator, DVD media and a variety of software.

Hero Packs are knapsacks filled with various items to help children of deployed service members stay connected and to thank them for the sacrifice they make when their parents are deployed. The Hero Packs are assembled by participating youth during local, county, state or national partner events.

Speak Out for Military Kids is a speaker’s bureau where military kids and their supporters can speak at local schools and community groups to raise awareness about the unique needs of military youth.

4-H clubs provide a slice of home for military youth worldwide by providing quality educational experiences using research-based curricula for youth ages 9 to 19. Military youth can get involved in 4-H and continue their 4-H work wherever they move when their parents are transferred or deployed.

Alabama 4-H also conducted two summer camps for military youth and has another camp planned for 120 military youth next summer. The camp is free to the kids and provides them with a week of fun recreational activities and gives them opportunities to get to know peers who are facing the same challenges.

This past weekend 4-H volunteers and OMK provided some children's programs at the Yellow Ribbon event in Montgomery. This event was designed to help returning soldiers reintegrate with their families, friends and communities. 4-Hers conducted children's activities while the parents were in seminars. The children did leather works (making key chains and coasters) no-sew pillows and painted fish print t-shirts. OMK provided the mobile technology lab so the children could make scrapbooks of memories.

For more information on military 4-H programs in Alabama, contact Hines, at (334) 844-2294, office; cell (334) 734-2336; or e-mail her at hinescm@aces.edu.

Posted by dreynold at August 19, 2008 12:57 PM | TrackBack