Engaging youth in agriculture | Local News
BUTTE COUNTY –– This summer, a local group is offering a new opportunity for area youth — promoting a healthy environment, healthy choices, and healthy homes through agriculture education in three, day camps to be held at the Butte-Lawrence County Fairgrounds in Nisland.
The Youth Agricultural Education Series is the brainchild of Shawnie Mackaben and CharLee Bachman. Mackaben attended the Thursday Butte County Commission meeting. She said the series’ purpose is to present learning opportunities to area youth promoting healthy environment, food, and families.
The series will be set up in three, one-day day camps, running from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., over the course of the summer. Currently, the following events are planned for this summer – rangeland health and sustainability, June 12, water health and conservation, July 10, and soil health and management, August 14. Topics slated to be discussed include animal care, home, homesteading, and more.
The premise, Mackaben said, is to teach youth how to grow, care for, and maintain life in a holistic and healthy fashion to improve the youths’ environment, food supply, and quality of life.
As it is the program’s inaugural year, attendance will be limited to 50 youth ages 12-18.
For 50 area youth to participate in three summer sessions, the total projected cost, Mackaben said is expected to be approximately $9,800, and would cover busing, curriculum, advertising, food, and prizes.
Mackaben said that the area has a need for enhanced homesteading and agricultural education with the freedom to develop as needs of the community necessitates. A governing board is being developed to start a foundation which will pursue long-term activities that can address the educational needs of the niche focus areas. Until the board is functional, the Butte County Conservation board will oversee the functions, operating as a pass-through for funds donated for the camps.
“We’re working on nonprofit status,” she said about the organizing group, which is still working on an official name. “And we’re going to put together educational events for youth in the area for these day camps right now, and we’re asking to use the fairgrounds on Saturday June 12 just kick off our very first series of the summer.”
Mackaben said the group is seeking donations to hold the event annually at no cost to the participants. For this year’s events, she said the event insurance has been sponsored by Farm Bureau Financial Services and Phil Kissack.
“We have sponsorship from the South Dakota Grasslands Coalition, the (Butte County) Conservation District, Farm Bureau (Financial Services) for Butte, Meade, Harding, Lawrence (counties), and some of their subsidiary organizations have also sponsored,” she said. “Word of this has spread clear over into Wyoming, and they want their kids to come to this, too.”
The commission overwhelmingly agreed that the program sounded like a positive opportunity for area youth and families.
“The whole premise behind our group is that getting opportunities out for kids that aren’t necessarily in 4-H or FFA, and that we can have these unconstrained educational opportunities teaching them about healthy food, healthy lifestyle, healthy farms, conservation, how to live happily with the land, preserving the land, and getting more out of it,” Mackaben said.
The group requested the county consider waiving the rental fee to utilize the fairgrounds for this year’s events.
“And then going through the rest of the year … we’re working to get … one event per month (of) continuing education, possibly in garden harvest, maybe chicken tractors for backyard chickens, each having one follow up event a month to help educate kids without constraint of an affiliated organization,” Mackaben said.
Commissioner James Ager moved to approve the group’s request to utilize the fairgrounds on the three dates requested and that the rental fee be waived, and Commissioner Kim Richards seconded. The board unanimously voted to approve the request. Commissioner Stan Harms was absent from the morning session of the Thursday meeting.
“Thank you, I think this is a great deal,” Ager said. “I hope this thing just explodes and we have to create more room somewhere.”
Mackaben said that the group is looking for volunteers willing to assist with the events. Anyone interested in the event, registration information, or to volunteer are asked to reach out to Mackaben at (605) 484-1702 or Bachman at (605) 892-5242, or email the group at [email protected].
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