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Talk-Line: Katie Baker on Lee County 4-H chapters · WIXN AM 1460 - Shaw Local Radio

0:00
Speaker 1: We are quarter past the hour. This is Monday, It's
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Speaker 1: September fifteen, the year is twenty twenty five, and it's
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Speaker 1: time for another informational edition of Talkline here at WIXN Radio.
0:08
Speaker 1: Good morning, I'm Steve Marco. It is time for our
0:10
Speaker 1: monthly visit with our friends from Lee County Extension. News
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Speaker 1: and information from Lee County Extension on the youth front.
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Speaker 1: We like to focus on four H and youth activities
0:19
Speaker 1: across the area with our hostess of the Extension Report
0:22
Speaker 1: every month. She is the four HU Development Program Coordinator
0:26
Speaker 1: for Lee County Extension and she's live with us at
0:28
Speaker 1: the microphones. Katie Baker joins us this Monday morning here
0:30
Speaker 1: at wix IN.
0:31
Speaker 2: Good morning, man, morning Steve.
0:33
Speaker 1: Good to have you back with us. It is time
0:34
Speaker 1: to again unfold more youth activities, more activity in the
0:38
Speaker 1: world of four H and Katie is going to do
0:40
Speaker 1: that for us this morning here at WIXIM. We are
0:43
Speaker 1: going to talk first of all about re enrollment in
0:47
Speaker 1: four each today tell us about this.
0:49
Speaker 2: So September first is the beginning of our four H
0:51
Speaker 2: year kind of run along with the school year. So
0:54
Speaker 2: if you're thinking about getting involved or getting your kids
0:57
Speaker 2: involved in four h Now is a great time. Our
0:59
Speaker 2: clubs are starting and back up after you know, going
1:01
Speaker 2: through the four eight show and then kind of wrapping
1:03
Speaker 2: up for the year. So clubs are starting back up
1:06
Speaker 2: in September and then our enrollment system will open up
1:10
Speaker 2: in October. So if you want to like start trying
1:12
Speaker 2: some clubs, I always say, try a few clubs before
1:15
Speaker 2: you pick like the one club you're going to be in.
1:18
Speaker 2: Not everyone's a perfect fit for everything every family. Sometimes
1:22
Speaker 2: the timing for another club works better. We've got clubs
1:24
Speaker 2: that meet on Thursdays, Tuesdays, Saturdays, just throughout the week
1:28
Speaker 2: and at different times too, so you can find your
1:31
Speaker 2: perfect club out there for you and your family. We've
1:34
Speaker 2: got ten community clubs in Lee County, so that's ages
1:37
Speaker 2: eight to eighteen, and they meet like once a month.
1:40
Speaker 2: Typically some of our clubs have gone to every other month.
1:43
Speaker 2: That works a little bit better for those kids. So
1:46
Speaker 2: if you want to get out and try that stuff,
1:48
Speaker 2: we have those. We've got Clover Bud clubs for ages
1:50
Speaker 2: five to seven and they do more hands on activities
1:54
Speaker 2: for their meetings so they're engaged throughout their entire meeting
1:59
Speaker 2: and then we've got special interest clubs throughout the year
2:01
Speaker 2: that we'll talk about one that's opening up here soon, right,
2:04
Speaker 2: But last year we had frosting fun where the kids
2:06
Speaker 2: got to decorate cakes and cookies and cupcakes and all
2:10
Speaker 2: that stuff. We started our Pacaneers Club, our l PAKA Club,
2:14
Speaker 2: and then we've got our Positive Leaders Dog Training Club. Yeah,
2:19
Speaker 2: we've got junior garden that we do in the summer.
2:21
Speaker 2: Kids in the kitchen that we'll talk about a little bit.
2:23
Speaker 2: Tons of stuff so.
2:25
Speaker 1: Keaty, you know, and in talking about re enrolling and
2:28
Speaker 1: in talking about enrollment itself with Lee County four H,
2:33
Speaker 1: you've had the experience now for some years now as
2:36
Speaker 1: one of the you know, coordinators of for H and
2:38
Speaker 1: Lee County. I know that COVID interrupted things, you know,
2:42
Speaker 1: COVID nineteen, the pandemic. Let's let's face it, it didn't
2:44
Speaker 1: interrupted and it really made an impact, you know on
2:48
Speaker 1: things trying to get moving again here in our Lee
2:51
Speaker 1: County area. But I've seen, you know, kind of a
2:53
Speaker 1: rebound as far as you know, youth activities. Are we
2:57
Speaker 1: seeing that, you know with these community clubs.
3:00
Speaker 2: Not sure what it looked like during COVID because I
3:01
Speaker 2: think I started like right now after it we kind
3:03
Speaker 2: of like got out of that really deep era of COVID.
3:07
Speaker 2: But I mean we've got pretty good club numbers. Most
3:09
Speaker 2: of our clubs are like twenty five plus kids. That's fine,
3:13
Speaker 2: and I mean they're out doing stuff in the community.
3:15
Speaker 2: A lot of them have like yearly community service projects
3:19
Speaker 2: that they do and they go they do that every year.
3:22
Speaker 2: I know, some of our clubs help clean up like cemeteries.
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Speaker 2: Some of them do help with like pop off festival
3:27
Speaker 2: and stuff out there. Wyoming Indians are like super in
3:30
Speaker 2: to the community, very good. But yeah, I mean they're
3:33
Speaker 2: out and there.
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Speaker 1: Well, like you said, you know, if there's if there's
3:35
Speaker 1: an average of twenty five members in these community clubs,
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Speaker 1: you times that by ten, you're looking at two hundred
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Speaker 1: and fifty kids across our leaking out area that are
3:44
Speaker 1: right now actively involved. And we are looking for what
3:47
Speaker 1: we'd like to see that.
3:48
Speaker 2: You know, Yeah, we've got I mean, we've got two
3:50
Speaker 2: clubs in Dixon and like we can always have more clubs.
3:53
Speaker 2: The more kids that are involved like it. I mean,
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Speaker 2: it does take leaders and volunteers, and we have a
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Speaker 2: lot of great volunteers. But you know, as you get
4:01
Speaker 2: more kids, we need more volunteers.
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Speaker 1: But what's what's a comfortable number for club you know,
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Speaker 1: clubs in you know, Lee County, you know, as far
4:09
Speaker 1: as you know members are, is it twenty five?
4:12
Speaker 2: I mean that seems to be like right, like we've
4:14
Speaker 2: got some that range. We've got some clubs that like
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Speaker 2: have five kids and that's like they've kind of like
4:19
Speaker 2: aged those kids have aged out in that area. So
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Speaker 2: I mean they range we've got like a five to
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Speaker 2: twenty five to twenty nine I think is our highest
4:27
Speaker 2: right now. Yeah, but yeah, they're they're out there and
4:30
Speaker 2: they're doing stuff.
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Speaker 1: So and now's the time you know to get your
4:34
Speaker 1: your kids involved really signed and signed them up. And
4:36
Speaker 1: if you you know, kind of have a hesitation about
4:39
Speaker 1: you know, what goes on in for it's what goes
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Speaker 1: on in these community clubs.
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Speaker 2: Just try it. Yeah, yeah, I mean you can set
4:46
Speaker 2: reach out to me and I'll get you in touch
4:48
Speaker 2: with a club leader and you can I mean, you
4:50
Speaker 2: can try a club and you don't have to like
4:51
Speaker 2: sign up for life, right you can try and be like,
4:53
Speaker 2: oh maybe that's not for us. And if like the
4:56
Speaker 2: regular club meeting experience is not for your family. Check
4:59
Speaker 2: out the spin clas if you if you know your
5:02
Speaker 2: kid is super interested in something and wants to do
5:04
Speaker 2: that with other kids, but they don't know those other
5:06
Speaker 2: kids yet, also reach out to me because we could
5:09
Speaker 2: set up like a special interest club and like get
5:11
Speaker 2: more kids involved with that. That just I mean, that
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Speaker 2: just requires you to volunteer. But if it's if your kid.
5:16
Speaker 1: Likes it, like, go ahead and do that absolutely.
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Speaker 2: Man. We do have an enrollment fee of twenty dollars.
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Speaker 2: If that's like a problem for your family. If you
5:24
Speaker 2: can't afford that, you can always let us know. And
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Speaker 2: we've got some funds through like state for H and
5:29
Speaker 2: stuff that we can kind of help cover those costs.
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Speaker 2: And a lot of most of our clubs I think
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Speaker 2: pay for their enrollment fees for their club members, so
5:37
Speaker 2: don't worry about cost. We like to see kids in
5:40
Speaker 2: for each and getting that experience, and so we do
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Speaker 2: have funds available to help cover that when when that's needed.
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Speaker 1: Well, you have a ring endorsement from this parent because
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Speaker 1: both of my daughters went through the entire gamut from
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Speaker 1: eight to eighteen as far as for H and both
5:55
Speaker 1: of my daughters are doing. Thank you very much, very well,
5:58
Speaker 1: you know, and I credit for h with a part
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Speaker 1: of I really do.
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Speaker 2: Get a ton of good feedback. And your kids may
6:04
Speaker 2: not appreciate it when they're in it, but like when
6:06
Speaker 2: I've talked to like adult members or alumni, like no
6:10
Speaker 2: doubt that was so good for me as a kid,
6:12
Speaker 2: I was like, oh cool, I'm glad that you recognize
6:14
Speaker 2: that now, and like you can see the benefits of it.
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Speaker 1: Community relations relationships with others, and you know, just just
6:20
Speaker 1: being a part of a group. Again, that's important, these
6:25
Speaker 1: belonging to the.
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Speaker 2: Part of our club experience, and like we want those
6:29
Speaker 2: kids to feel like they belong somewhere and that they're
6:31
Speaker 2: valued because they are. And so that's I mean, that's
6:34
Speaker 2: that's before each is about giving back to the community.
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Speaker 1: And exactly, and that's why we always, you know, that's
6:41
Speaker 1: why we do this monthly because we want to spotlight
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Speaker 1: this important area, especially with our youth, and especially here
6:47
Speaker 1: in our area. I think it's our area is crying
6:50
Speaker 1: you know for for for kids to you know, get
6:54
Speaker 1: take advantage exactly, take advantage of these you know, these
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Speaker 1: areas of for each And again Kate points out, now's
7:01
Speaker 1: the time really to get your kids involved in four
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Speaker 1: Each if not already do so by signing up and
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Speaker 1: checking in with Lee County Extension. That's what you need
7:09
Speaker 1: to do. You need to check in with Katie and
7:11
Speaker 1: our friends from Lee County Extension.
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Speaker 2: They and don't feel like now is the only time.
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Speaker 2: It's just a good time.
7:16
Speaker 1: Yeah, exactly the year. Yeah, because this is well, because
7:19
Speaker 1: this is the time, like you mentioned with September, the.
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Speaker 2: Beginning of the years, beginning the four year experience. Now's
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Speaker 2: the time, yep.
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Speaker 1: And that's why well, that's why we're bringing up today.
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Speaker 1: Katie Baker does that our youth development program coordinate with
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Speaker 1: four h here and Lee County is our guest today
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Speaker 1: on the talk line. Let's talk about well, you talked about,
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Speaker 1: you know, the groups. We want to talk about Federation
7:39
Speaker 1: because we've got some important stuff coming up right.
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Speaker 2: Yes, I'm going to highlight federations. So we've got federation
7:46
Speaker 2: and ambassadors in Lee County. And our ambassadors kind of
7:49
Speaker 2: do more like promotion, and we did we have our
7:51
Speaker 2: ambassadors for the year. But our Federation club meets monthly
7:55
Speaker 2: and those are our four each members that are thirteen
7:56
Speaker 2: and up and they're really like focused on leadership and
8:01
Speaker 2: just kind of helping out at the county level, so
8:04
Speaker 2: taking that club member experience just a little step higher,
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Speaker 2: and so they help plan countywide events and activities. They're
8:12
Speaker 2: actually they've invited all of our forage members that are
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Speaker 2: thirteen and up out to I think John A. Mac
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Speaker 2: Orchard on October eighteenth. You should have gotten an email
8:20
Speaker 2: about that if you were in fourage this past year.
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Speaker 2: Just kind of hang out with our federation kids and
8:24
Speaker 2: talk to them if they're interested in joining that. We
8:28
Speaker 2: do have delegates, so each club is able to elect
8:30
Speaker 2: to delegates for federation that they send and they can
8:32
Speaker 2: vote on issues for the club. But we are open
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Speaker 2: to all members, so you don't have to be a
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Speaker 2: delegate to come to that meeting. You just have to
8:41
Speaker 2: be thirteen and up. And the only thing you can't
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Speaker 2: vote on if you just come to the meetings is
8:44
Speaker 2: officer elections, okay, and our officer elections are October thirteenth,
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Speaker 2: and yeah, so that's coming up here. And our officers
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Speaker 2: must have attended like half of last year's meetings, and
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Speaker 2: I think everybody that has come to the meetings this
8:58
Speaker 2: year actually qualified, which is awesome. So Our kids are
9:01
Speaker 2: like dedicated and they're they're coming and showing up at
9:03
Speaker 2: these meetings. And one of the things we did last
9:06
Speaker 2: year was donate to like the food pantries. They went
9:08
Speaker 2: out and bought a lot of stuff every year at fair.
9:11
Speaker 2: At four each show, they pick somewhere to donate a
9:15
Speaker 2: bunch of goodies to and they do like a fun drive.
9:18
Speaker 2: So something good to get involved in if you've got
9:20
Speaker 2: older kids that maybe don't want to hang out with
9:22
Speaker 2: the younger kids in their regular club, but they still
9:25
Speaker 2: want that four each experience.
9:26
Speaker 1: Okay, all right? And where do these meetings usually take
9:30
Speaker 1: place in wind of.
9:30
Speaker 2: These mostly at the extension office. We mete out of
9:33
Speaker 2: the fair grounds like during fair, but extension office and amboy.
9:38
Speaker 2: So that's that's an easy drive for you.
9:40
Speaker 1: Come out all right, and once once a month.
9:43
Speaker 2: Once a month, yeah, the second Monday of the month,
9:46
Speaker 2: okay at six o'clock.
9:47
Speaker 1: Okay, all right, So again, if you'd like to become
9:49
Speaker 1: a part of this federation area for h again check
9:52
Speaker 1: it out. If you're a four Each member and you'd
9:54
Speaker 1: like to, you know, extend your activities and are able
9:58
Speaker 1: to do that please, you know, what's what's the best
10:01
Speaker 1: way to just.
10:02
Speaker 2: Reach out to me let me know, okay, phone email.
10:06
Speaker 1: Okay, looking for for H members for federation to again
10:11
Speaker 1: join them in that area of Lee County four H
10:14
Speaker 1: within our northern Illinois area. So and we'll give you
10:17
Speaker 1: phone numbers and website addresses here. Very shortly with Katie
10:20
Speaker 1: Baker on w Y Exam, wanted to preview because the
10:24
Speaker 1: next time that we chat, I suppose we'll be after
10:26
Speaker 1: the fact that I think it'll probably be after just
10:30
Speaker 1: after you know this week takes place, right.
10:32
Speaker 2: Yeah, so coming up, We've got National four each week
10:35
Speaker 2: and this year is October fifth through eleventh. Our clubs
10:39
Speaker 2: every year they go out and they put four each
10:41
Speaker 2: theme displays around Lee County. It could be like window displays.
10:44
Speaker 2: Sometimes they are displays in your local schools. Sometimes they're
10:48
Speaker 2: like just out by businesses. I think we had one
10:51
Speaker 2: year where they put like giant sign thats that I
10:53
Speaker 2: love for H and sublat and it was super cool
10:55
Speaker 2: to head it all lit up. So it's like just
10:59
Speaker 2: get out there and check them out. I do try
11:01
Speaker 2: to put pictures up on Facebook when I remember, but yeah,
11:04
Speaker 2: I got a bad memory. But National four each week
11:07
Speaker 2: they put out those displays and then are I don't
11:11
Speaker 2: have on here is our awards season is like coming up,
11:13
Speaker 2: so November it will be awards. All your awards and
11:15
Speaker 2: your club end of year stuff is due today FYI,
11:19
Speaker 2: September fifteenth. But yeah, the club displays will get judged
11:24
Speaker 2: and then the awards will go out in November.
11:26
Speaker 1: Yeah, okay, yeah, yeah, those window frind displays, those storefront displays,
11:30
Speaker 1: and those area displays, and it might be just you know,
11:34
Speaker 1: in a certain area of a business, but again four
11:37
Speaker 1: hers will be putting up these displays, you know, and
11:39
Speaker 1: celebrating four each week and then as Katie mentioned, displays
11:43
Speaker 1: judged and awards again in that awards period coming up
11:47
Speaker 1: the end of the year, and we'll see who does
11:50
Speaker 1: the best as far as competition is concerned this year. Okay,
11:54
Speaker 1: four each week. That's coming up October fifth through the eleventh,
11:57
Speaker 1: less than a month away, is national four each week.
12:00
Speaker 1: They observe it fine here in our Lee County area
12:03
Speaker 1: with all of that activity going on. And you did
12:05
Speaker 1: want to mention the spin club. You talk about that.
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Speaker 2: Kids in the kitchen Spin Club. This is our I
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Speaker 2: think a third year doing this and this year is
12:13
Speaker 2: going to start on October fourteenth, and it'll be from
12:15
Speaker 2: four to six. They meet on the second Tuesday of
12:18
Speaker 2: the month. They just meet once a month, and it's
12:21
Speaker 2: like your kids get to work with master gardeners and
12:23
Speaker 2: they learn how to do just different recipes with fruits
12:25
Speaker 2: and vegetables. There's a new focus each week and the
12:29
Speaker 2: kids get to help plan the menu for the next week.
12:31
Speaker 2: So like one year they did like potatoes, was there
12:34
Speaker 2: like a week of food. They've done onions, They've done zucchini, pumpkin, apple,
12:39
Speaker 2: and then they make like four or five different dishes
12:41
Speaker 2: of that stuff and they get to try out those
12:43
Speaker 2: new foods and it's a nice space if your kids.
12:46
Speaker 2: I think most of our kids are a little quieter
12:47
Speaker 2: in that club, but like it's a nice space for
12:49
Speaker 2: them to gather and like get to talk to other
12:52
Speaker 2: quieter kids and it's a good experience for them.
12:55
Speaker 1: Okay, and when and where.
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Speaker 2: When So it'll be October fourteenth, four to six, second
13:01
Speaker 2: Tuesday of the month until March, and that's at the
13:04
Speaker 2: Manual Lutheran Church here in Dixon.
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Speaker 1: Okay, all right there on Franklin Grove Road, a Route
13:09
Speaker 1: thirty eight East Dixon at Emmanual Lutheran Church. It's kids
13:12
Speaker 1: in they and you don't have to be a fourcher
13:13
Speaker 1: for this, right.
13:14
Speaker 2: You don't have to. So there's a thirty dollars club
13:18
Speaker 2: supply fee for this. But then we do have you
13:20
Speaker 2: do that twenty dollars enrollment fee for the club because
13:22
Speaker 2: it is a club.
13:23
Speaker 1: Okay, but you don't have to.
13:24
Speaker 2: You don't have to go to like a community club
13:27
Speaker 2: to do a special interest club. You can just do
13:29
Speaker 2: a special interest club because sitting in a meeting may
13:33
Speaker 2: not be for everybody. So if you want like a
13:35
Speaker 2: hands on focused experience, you can do that.
13:38
Speaker 1: Kids at the Kitchen Spin Club coming up in October.
13:40
Speaker 1: That's when it starts and it runs all the way
13:42
Speaker 1: through twenty five into twenty six with those meetings. Hell
13:46
Speaker 1: at Emmanual Lutheran Church to get more on that spin Club,
13:49
Speaker 1: to get more on the Federation of Possibilities for your
13:53
Speaker 1: four ahres, and to sign up for four h K
13:56
Speaker 1: get us out phone.
13:57
Speaker 2: Numbers so Facebook you can check aslut Leak County four
14:00
Speaker 2: h Our office phone number is eight one five eight
14:03
Speaker 2: five seven three five two five. The website is go
14:07
Speaker 2: dot Illinois dot edu slash CLW and you can check
14:10
Speaker 2: out all the different pieces on there and find four each,
14:12
Speaker 2: or look at the events coming up. Whatever floats your boat.
14:16
Speaker 1: Yep, and again just connect in one of those fashions
14:19
Speaker 1: with Katie and our friends from County Extension and they'll
14:22
Speaker 1: get you moving in that four each territory, if not
14:25
Speaker 1: already move further with all of the events and activities
14:29
Speaker 1: that Katie brings to the table every month right here
14:32
Speaker 1: on WI Accent. Always a pleasure having you on board
14:34
Speaker 1: math Thanks, Thanks Gees. Today, Katie Baker is our four
14:37
Speaker 1: HU Development program Coordinator with Lee County Extension. Our guest
14:39
Speaker 1: today on the Monday morning talk line News. First next,
14:42
Speaker 1: here comes Charlene Bilama.
14:49
Speaker 2: I'm Charlene Bilama and this is your Shaw local news
14:51
Speaker 2: update