UMaine Cooperative Extension Program Honored

WASHINGTON, D.C. – University of Maine Cooperative Extension’s Blueberry Harvester Safety Program has recently been honored as one of three recipients of the 2005 Award of Excellence from the Northeast Cooperative Extension Directors. This is the highest award presented by the Directors of Extension in the northeast. It recognizes Extension outreach programming that has achieved outstanding accomplishments, results, and impacts in addressing contemporary issues. Marjorie Peronto, Extension Educator, Hancock County Cooperative Extension and Jennifer Lobley, Extension Educator, Washington County, accepted the award in Washington D.C. at the annual meeting of the Northeast Cooperative Extension Directors on February 1, 2006. Fourteen programs were nominated in the northeast region which includes states from Maine to West Virginia, including the District of Columbia.

The University of Maine Cooperative Extension in collaboration with Cherryfield Foods, Inc. designed The Blueberry Harvester Safety Course to train youth as young as age 14. Over the last decade, Cherryfield Foods, Inc. and others have started using tractor-powered blueberry harvesting equipment. U.S. Department of Labor regulations do not allow companies to hire youth under the age of 16 to work on such equipment without first completing a twenty hour safety certification course.

Youth in one of the poorest economic counties in Maine now have a new opportunity to receive training that will develop workforce preparation skills, teach safety skills that can be applied in multitude of real-life situations and guarantee them a high-paying summer job if they successfully complete the program.

The Blueberry Harvester Safety Course, the first of its kind, was designed specifically for youth with an emphasis on experiential learning. This 20-hour training moves youth away from a dry textbook-focused safety course into a learning environment that combines a variety of hands-on activities with practical individualized driving instruction on both tractors and mechanical harvesters. Since the program’s inception in 2003, all thirty-one youth who have taken the harvester safety training have passed the driving exam and the written exam with a score of 91% or higher, and at least three quarters of the course participants had never operated a tractor before; twenty eight of the 31 youth trained were employed during the blueberry harvest immediately following their certification. Cherryfield Foods reported that 75% of the youth participants hired in 2003 and 2004 were rehired for the 2005 harvest, and to date, no injuries have been reported.

For additional information please contact Marjorie Peronto, Extension Educator, University of Maine Cooperative Extension at 207-667-8212 or mperonto@umext.maine.edu.

Help Protect our lakes: Be a Watershed Steward

LINCOLNVILLE—UMaine Cooperative Extension’s Watershed Stewards program has announced a free seven-week training for the Megunticook/Norton watershed, in partnership with the Megunticook Watershed Association. Watershed Stewards are local residents trained by staff from the University of Maine and the Maine Department of Environmental Protection to identify and help correct pollution sources. Participants get 20 hours of training in return for 20 hours of volunteer watershed service.

A watershed is the area of land that supplies water to a lake or river system. All land-use activities within a watershed, even miles away, can affect water quality. Many lakes in the Megunticook/Norton watershed are at risk from pollution from these widespread “nonpoint” sources. It is up to Maine citizens to recognize and address the sources of pollution.

After completing the training, stewards begin their volunteer service, receive a timely newsletter, and may attend additional workshops. Volunteer projects might include watershed surveys, culvert stabilizations, rain gardens or buffer installations, beach restorations, invasive plant inspections, forming lake associations, or even making your own property more “lake friendly.” The Maine Watershed Stewards program has trained more than 300 Mainers to make a difference in their lake or watershed.

The Megunticook/Norton Watershed Stewards training program runs from March 16 through April 27, on Thursday evenings from 6:30-9:00 p.m. at the Lincolnville Central School. To sign up or find out more, please call Laura Wilson at 800-870-7270 (in Maine) or (207) 581-2971, or e-mail lwilson@umext.maine.edu.

Contact: Laura Wilson, 800-870-7270

Horse Business and Safety Clinic Offered at UMaine

ORONO— University of Maine Cooperative Extension, the UMaine Department of Animal and Veterinary Sciences and the Risk Management Agency will conduct a clinic on horse industry business and safety.

Breeders, trainers, boarding stable owners, and volunteer instructors will learn about insurance needs for those involved with horse businesses, current relevant tax laws, how to track business expenses, and how to implement a safety program to minimize accidents. Learn when and if a venture can be considered a “farm enterprise” for tax purposes, and get help determining the appropriate types of insurance for your operation. The Risk Management Agency will present information on their crop insurance and whole farm insurance policies, and a session on financial recordkeeping will help you organize your farm finances.

The afternoon program will focus on safety training for the horse operation, with a focus on fixing potential hazards at your barn and guidelines to help you prevent accidents during riding lessons. The safety training will include a lecture as well as a demonstration at the Witter Teaching and Research Farm.

The Horse Business and Safety Clinic will be held on Saturday, March 25 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Stoddard Commons on the UMaine Campus in Orono. Registration is $15 for adults and $8 for students and this covers lunch, refreshments and printed materials. Door prizes will be drawn throughout the day (you must be present to win). A limited number of scholarships are available for those who can not afford the registration fee. Pre-registration is recommended. For more information send your name, address, phone number, and e-mail to the University of Maine Cooperative Extension, Piscataquis County Office, 165 East Main St, Dover-Foxcroft, ME 04426. Or call 800-287-1491 (in Maine) or 207-564-3301, or e-mail tallen@umext.maine.edu.

Contact: Donna Lamb, 800-287-1491 (in Maine) or 207-564-3301

Pleasant Point Resident Awarded For Volunteer Work With Extension Youth Program

PLEASANT POINT—National 4-H Council, with generous support from the JCPenney Afterschool Fund, has recognized Frank Cleaves of Pleasant Point Indian Reservation with the 4-H Afterschool “Opens Doors” volunteer award. Cleaves is one of 25 4-H after-school volunteers across the county—and the only winner from Maine—to receive the award.
Cleaves became involved with Pleasant Point’s Sipayik (pronounced “zih-'bahy-ihg”) Boys & Girls Club a year and a half ago, after returning from a one-year deployment in Iraq with the National Guard. The Boys & Girls Club had recently begun to work with University of Maine Cooperative Extension’s 4-H program to expand after-school activities, and Cleaves received training as part of this partnership. He became excited about the possibilities presented by the melding of the two programs and signed up as a 4-H volunteer, becoming the driving force behind a successful “Lights On” event by galvanizing the community and involving over 100 youth in educational and cultural activities.
Cleaves reports that the Boys and Girls Club kids enjoy the diversity of the 4-H curricula. Every day, more than 40 kids aged 5 through 12 participate in theme-based 4-H activities. Last summer the club’s teenagers used railroad ties to build raised flower beds and planted flowers outside of the club. “They really lit up the place,” enthused Cleaves, who is organizing an upcoming 4-H skating party outdoors. The skating party will include “not just skating but snow sleds, hot dogs, hot chocolate . . . parents and kids . . . it will be a real community event.”
Cleaves is currently working with UMaine Extension Educator Jen Lobley and Harper Dean, the Director of Special Services for Maine Indian Education, to explore opportunities to fund a position at the Sipayik Boys and Girls Club that would focus on the integration of 4-H club and project work.
Opens Doors awards recognize 4-H volunteers who are involved in 4-H after-school programming in their communities. These volunteers help train after-school program staff, increase the use of 4-H curricula in after-school programs, and organize 4-H clubs in after-school programs in which youth learn leadership, citizenship and life skills. To find out more information about your local 4-H program please contact your UMaine Cooperative Extension county office; you may reach by calling 1-800-287-0274 or visit www.umext.maine.edu.

Contact: Jennifer Lobley, 207-255-0929 or 800-287-1542

Home Study Course for First-Time Investors

ORONO—You don't need a lot of money to begin increasing your net worth. University of Maine Cooperative Extension is offering a home-study course for beginning investors with small dollar amounts. Investing for Your Future: A Cooperative Extension System Basic Investing Home Study Course was developed for people who are new to investing and may not have thousands or even hundreds of dollars to start with.

The first three units explain how and why to invest, and explore credit management, retirement planning, risk, and creating a savings plan. The next five units break down types of investing: equity investing, fixed-income investing, mutual fund investing, tax-deferred investing, and investing with small dollar amounts. The final three units review investment resources, the selection of professional financial advisors, and investment fraud. Each unit wraps up with specific steps you can take to apply the course material to your life, and includes examples, worksheets, and a glossary.

The 158-page eleven-unit home study guide was developed by a consortium of six land-grant universities, and is available from UMaine Extension’s publications distribution center. You can order a copy by calling (207) 581-3792 or 800-287-0274 (in Maine), e-mailing puborders@umext.maine.edu, or via Extension’s online books and publications Web site at http://extensionpubs.umext.maine.edu/.

Contact: Kyle McCaskill, 207-581-3185 or 800-287-0274

Governor Baldacci Signs Up for Ag License Plate

AUGUSTA—At the Agricultural Trades Show this month, Governor John Baldacci signed up for a new specialty license plate that the Maine Agriculture in the Classroom Association (MAITCA) hopes to make available. “The governor came to our booth and said, ‘What can I do to help this project?’ I told him he could sign up, and without hesitation he gave me a crisp, new twenty dollar bill,” reported MAITCA Executive Director Willie Grenier, who has been spearheading the agricultural license plate intiative.

The colorful license plate, designed by Etna artist and University of Maine Cooperative Extension Cranberry Professional Charles Armstrong, shows a farm scene and bears the slogan, "Support Local Agriculture." As the UMaine Extension representative to MAITCA, Armstrong has gone into elementary schools to help kids learn about agriculture, where he has learned that "it's not something that can be taught overnight." While over 60 percent of the necessary signatures have been obtained, about 800 more are needed to make the license plate a reality.

MAITCA is a nonprofit group that promotes teaching about agricultural in Maine schools. “Today’s students are tomorrow’s decision-makers,” explains Grenier. “They need to know how important agriculture is to Maine, and where their food comes from.” Ten of the twenty dollars paid for each plate will be transferred to a special fund for agricultural education programs administered by MAITCA.

Sign up to support the Maine Ag Tag by downloading a coupon from www.MaineAgTag.com, or contact MAITCA Executive Director Willie Grenier by calling 207-287-5522 or e-mailing maitca@maine.gov (there is a “buy now, pay later” option).

Governor Baldacci with members of MAITCA

Contact: Charlie Armstrong (207) 581-2940

UMaine Cooperative Extension Offers Beekeeping Course

NEW GLOUCESTER—“Successful Beekeeping in Maine,” a multi-session course offered by University of Maine Cooperative Extension in cooperation with Pineland Farms, will be held on consecutive Tuesday evenings beginning February 28. Classes will be at the Pineland campus Visitors Center in New Gloucester, from 6:30–8:30 p.m. Instructors will include Maine state apiarist and bee inspector Tony Jadczak and experienced beekeeper Bob Egan.

We depend on honeybees to pollinate our food supply, yet they are in decline, as a result of nonnative mites such as the varroa mite, as well as pesticide use on crops. At the same time the number of beekeepers and hives has been diminishing, creating an enormous need for managed bee hives. If you love honey, consider beekeeping as a fun and low-cost hobby.

The fee for the entire course is $75 per person/couple and covers the cost of the textbook, a bee disease publication, and the beekeepers reference notebook. Topics include seasonal management, problem-solving, and resources for beekeepers. There will be five classroom sessions and an ever-popular “beekeepers field day” scheduled for June. The course is limited to 25 participants and enrollment is done on a first-come, first-served basis.

Please call the Cumberland County Cooperative Extension Office at 1-800-287-1471 for more information or to request a registration form. Registrations are due February 20, 2006.

Contact: Richard Brzozowski, University of Maine Cooperative Extension, PO Box 9300, Portland, ME 04104
Tel. 780-4205 or 1-800-287-1471 Fax: 207- 780-4283

Senior Companion Volunteer Honored at Blaine House

AUGUSTA—Denise Lacasse of Lewiston has been honored by the Home Care Alliance of Maine for her outstanding commitment and compassion as a Senior Companion volunteer. In November Denise received the Home Care Volunteer of the Year award at the Blaine House Tea in Augusta, which is organized annually by the Home Care Alliance of Maine and the Maine Hospice Council.

Sponsored by University of Maine Cooperative Extension, the Senior Companion Program (SCP) is part of the National Senior Service Corps. SCP volunteers are aged 60 and over and provide companionship and support to homebound adults. Through a partnership between UMaine Extension and Androscoggin Home Care and Hospice, Lacasse volunteers 15–20 hours a week visiting clients.

Lacasse’s professional experience couldn’t be better suited. For many years she worked as a home visitor for mentally challenged adults, teaching them to cook, clean, do laundry and other skills that allowed them to live independently. After Lacasse retired in 2001, her sister mailed her a newspaper advertisement for SCP volunteers, with the comment, “You can do this!”

According to Nancy Greene, volunteer coordinator for Androscoggin Home Care & Hospice, “Denise is a gentle, warm person who is loved by the patients and families she visits.” Lacasse talks of her clients with affection and enthusiasm. “I feel that cooking is very therapeutic—that’s what it’s all about. I had one man who loved opera, and so do I; I used to visit and share cassettes. You had to see that man to appreciate what those visits did for him.” For another client, she brought in books she thought he’d enjoy from the library every week. “Once I visit the person I bond. They really do more for us than we do for them. They give us strength and courage.”

Lacasse is currently at home recuperating from knee replacement surgery and laments, “I miss my people terribly.” While recovering, she still has contact with those who need her support; she tells her clients to call her any time. While she ices her knee and applies heat to her back, she works on a comfort shawl, which will be given to a Hospice patient to keep warm, and later passed on to the patient’s family.

Of the Home Care Volunteer of the Year award she says, “The award . . . the award is wonderful, it’s beautiful . . . but I really didn’t need an award. I do it because I love it.”

For more information on the Senior Companion Program or the award, please contact Anna Saar at 207-743-6329, or at UMaine Cooperative Extension’s Oxford County office at 1-800-287-1482.

Elaine Brady, Executive Board President of the Home Care Alliance of Maine, and Senior Companion volunteer Denise Lacasse.

Contact: Anna Saar, 207-743-6329 or 800-287-1482

Local Storm Water Educator Available to Schools, Groups

ORONO, ME—Environmental educator Michael Dennett wants to teach your class or group about storm water runoff. Dennett uses hands-on models and interactive activities to show how runoff from lawns, rooftops and driveways pollutes our streams and rivers via storm drains. His program introduces practices and habits that can keep our local waterways cleaner.

The Natural Resources Defense Council names runoff one of the worst sources of water contamination: worse than factories and sewage plants. Storm water runoff collects dangerous bacteria, toxic chemicals, soil and garbage on its way to our waterways.

Dennett is an AmeriCorps volunteer working for University of Maine Cooperative Extension and the Bangor Area Storm Water group. Focusing primarily on Bangor, Old Town, Orono, Milford, Veazie, Hampden, and Brewer, he is seeking schools, teachers, environmental groups, home-school groups, scouts or other local organizations who want to include watershed and storm water education in their curriculum or activities. Program activities can be aligned with Maine Learning Results.

Dennett is available through August 2006 to do one-time visits, or regular sessions that incorporate more specific aspects of water and water pollution, with the possibility of service-learning activities through a spring stream clean-up or other volunteer service projects. His programs are tailored to grades five through seven, but can be adjusted to other age groups. Contact Dennett at 207-581-3213 for more information.

Contact: Michael Dennett, (207) 581-3213, or Laura Wilson (207) 581-2971 or (800) 870-7270

Maine’s “Brownie” Brown Inducted Into 4-H Hall of Fame

CHEVY CHASE, MD—Dr. Harold “Brownie” Brown has devoted the bulk of his working life to youth education, much of it to Maine 4-H. This current president of the Pine Tree State 4-H Foundation board has been inducted into the National 4-H Hall of Fame.

Brownie grew up in the mountains of Rumford, and served in the Korean War before beginning his long career in youth education. In 1967 he left his position as a high school principal in Hermon and began working with the Maine Talent Utilization Project, helping youth plan for their post-high school futures. He has spent 33 years as a UMaine Extension 4-H Educator and was Maine state 4-H program coordinator for 17 years. Brownie led the development of Maine 4-H’s international program, facilitating exchange experiences with Costa Rica and Japan for Maine young people. He established a travel award program to fund overseas experiences for youth, and the Harold H. Brown International Travel Awards are presented each year at the 4-H Foundation’s annual meeting.

Dr. Brown is a former state president of the National Association of Extension 4-H Agents and a recipient of their Achievement and Distinguished Service Awards. On a national level, he was known as the face and the voice of National 4-H Congress. At home in Maine, Brownie’s professional affiliations have included the chair of the Governor's Advisory Council for Inland Fisheries and Wildlife, chair of the UMaine President's Advisory Council for Retirees; board member of Maine’s Youth Fish & Game Association, and membership on the Task Force on Fish Hatcheries.

4-H grew out of boys and girls clubs of the early 20th century organized for agricultural education. Today’s 4-H is part of the national Cooperative Extension System, which is operated through each state’s land-grant university. In Maine, 4-H programs focusing on leadership, citizenship and life skills are offered for young people aged 5 to 18 through University of Maine Cooperative Extension.

Dr. Brown has helped Maine 4-H remain relevant for kids in the 21st century. Agriculture, he commented, while vital, is now “just a piece of what 4-H is. 4-H is moving into school-based programming, because we have to reach young people where they are. So many things compete for kids’ time and attention . . . what we offer is really quality, the very best we can offer.” Brownie’s commitment to the value of 4-H is such that he has pledged support for Maine 4-H through his membership in the University of Maine Foundations’ Charles F. Allen Society. “. . . I wanted to say, in effect, 'Thank you,' and that I believe in the program. I have been enriched as a person by 4-H for the past 30+ years.”

People in the picture L to R are: Clyde Jackson, Director, National Association of Extension 4-H Agents; Donald T. Floyd, CEO, National 4-H Council; Harold “Brownie” Brown; Dr. Cathann A. Kress, Director of Youth Development National 4-H HQ., CSREES, USDA