Greene County 4-H’ers are encouraged to take advantage of some summer programs and trips.

Greene County 4-H and Youth Coordinator Samantha Hardaway says there is a Henry Doorly Zoo trip to Omaha, Nebraska June 14th and 15th. She tells Raccoon Valley Radio she chaperoned last year and had a blast, especially with the end of the first day of the trip.

“The youth will get to tour the zoo that evening, after it’s closed. You get to go tour exhibits that are normally dark during the day and the lights are on. So for example, we went and saw Kingdoms of the Night, the swamp area downstairs (of the Desert Dome), but we did it with all the lights on. So that was just a really cool experience.” 

Hardaway adds that 4-H’ers will get to spend the night in the aquarium and the next day, 4-H’ers will get to see the animals get fed at exhibits before the zoo opens to the rest of the public. The cost is $80 per 4-H’er that is a 4th through 6th grader.

Hardaway notes the second opportunity is the State Conference that takes place June 25th-27th at Iowa State University. This is for anyone who is 8th-12th graders. She points out participants can learn about different 4-H project areas, including livestock with animal science, art, food and nutrition, among others.  The cost is $225.

Click the links below to register for either trip.

State Conference: https://www.extension.iastate.edu/4h/iowa4hyouthconference

Omaha Zoo Trip: https://form.jotform.com/240705464774158