Craig County 4-H

02/02/2026

Good Evening,

Hope everyone is having a nice Sunday! I wanted to go ahead and share the link for 2026 Junior 4-H Camp pre-registration; running from February 2nd to March 2nd. For our Craig/Giles/Roanoke & Salem cluster, we have already allotted beds. Craig girls will be in one wing of RJJ (Reid J. Jones) and boys will be in Svoboda. Following the March 2nd deadline, we give up beds to the other counties if they have waiting lists (or vice-versa). So register quickly to make sure your child or children will have a space. Just a note – teens interested in going to camp as a Counselor-in-Training (CIT) or Teen Counselor do not complete this pre-registration form. They need to contact me for information on how they apply for these leadership roles. That information is also in the camp google site at: https://sites.google.com/vt.edu/23cgmrjuniorcamp/home

Camper pre-registration form links (long link and short link for easier typing):

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdunUhmo3LdrMtYpgQ24E29FW1uHX0P06XsmuZyLtlfDO3MJw/viewform?usp=header

https://tinyurl.com/craig4hcamp26

Thanks and have a nice week!!
Michelle

This is the pre-registration form for the Craig/Giles/Roanoke Junior 4-H camping week, Sunday, June 28 to Thursday, July 2. Please complete one form for your family including all siblings who would be attending Junior 4-H Camp as a camper (teen and adult volunteer leaders should not complete the reg...

01/26/2026

2026 Junior 4-H Camp registration will begin on Monday, February 2nd. This year, camp will run from Sunday through Thursday, June 28th to July 2nd to allow families more time for the July 4th weekend. We will leave after church/lunch on Sunday. Check out the included flyer for more information. I will post the registration link to this page on Monday morning, February 2nd.

01/22/2026

4-H has a lot to offer for teens in the areas of learning, leadership, citizenship, and just good old fashioned fun!! Our Craig County 4-H Teen Club has been doing things in each of these areas this year, and we are always looking for new members. Junior 4-H Camp is around the corner, so we always welcome teens who want to make a difference and become a role model for younger children, but our club does lots of things in addition to camp. Check out this flyer for more information or call/email Michelle Poff at 540-864-5812 or adickerson@vt.edu

01/22/2026

Yesterday, Craig County 4-H teens visited our State Capitol with Roanoke and Bedford teens for the annual 4-H Day at the State Capitol event. The teens met with Senator Christopher Head, participated in a mock legislative session where they voted for pieces of legislation currently being considered in the House and Senate, watched a legislative session in the Capitol, took a tour of the historic St. John's Church where Patrick Henry gave his famous "Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death" speech, and took a tour of the American Civil War Museum and Tredegar Iron Works. It was a day full of fun and important Virginia government and history education!!

12/09/2025

2026 Junior 4-H Camp, June 28 - July 2

https://sites.google.com/vt.edu/23cgmrjuniorcamp/home

Hold the Date for Junior 4-H Camp 2026: Junior 4-H Camp will be held the week of June 28-July 2, 2026. This year, we will be camping Sunday through Thursday to allow families a longer July 4th weekend following camp. Departure for camp will be after lunch on Sunday. All camp information will be posted to this website as plans develop:
https://sites.google.com/vt.edu/23cgmrjuniorcamp/home
Bookmark this page to see all the details as registration information is posted.

For teens interested in applying to be a Teen Counselor or Counselor-in-Training, just look at the drop down list under "Home" at the top of the page and go to Teen Leadership. The application is linked there.

Dates: Sunday to Thursday June 28 - July 2, 2026 W. E. Skelton 4-H Educational Center Wirtz, VA Open for youth, ages 9 to 13 as of September 30, 2026 Camp Fee: $370, covers 4-H Center fee for lodging and meals, bus transportation, tee shirt, and class supplies.

10/17/2025

The 2025-26 year for 4-H is underway, and the Craig County Shooting Stars are looking sharp on the archery range. The club meets twice each month for practice and club planning. For now, the Shooting Stars are focused primarily on archery, preparing for local, area, and state competitions. Youth can compete in categories for Genesis, recurve, and compound bows and typically are scored at distances of 10, 15, 20, and 25 yards for juniors and 15, 20, 25, and 30 yards for seniors. If proficient, older archers can compete in national level distances up to 60 meters. In addition to archery practices, the Shooting Stars enjoy social activities like visits to the Roanoke Virtual Reality Center, pizza parties, and more. The club is open to youth, ages 9 to 19.

Equipment for the Craig County 4-H Shooting Stars is provided through NRA Foundation grant funds for youth shooting sports. The club has been very fortunate to be the recipient of those funds for many years. This allows youth the opportunity to try the club without having to make a financial investment. As members become more active with the club, they often purchase their own equipment for competitions, but this is not required. The Craig County 4-H Shooting Stars Club would like to thank the NRA Foundation for its generous contributions to the program!

The Virginia 4-H Shooting Sports program offers opportunities in many disciplines including archery, air and .22 small bore rifle, shotgun (trap and s***t), hunting skills, and muzzleloading. Programs are led by 4-H certified instructors for each respective discipline area. The only limitation to building a strong shooting sports program in Craig County is the availability of certified instructors. We are always looking for adult volunteers who want to share their passion for teaching youth life skills through VA 4-H shooting sports - life skills like goal setting, teamwork, building self-esteem, self-discipline, and more.

To learn more about enrolling youth in the 4-H Shooting Stars Club or about volunteer opportunities in the 4-H shooting sports program, contact Michelle Poff, 4-H Extension Agent, at 540-864-5812 or adickerson@vt.edu.

08/06/2025

Craig and Giles County 4-H hosted a forestry and wildlife camp yesterday. The group of 18 visited the Farm at Sinking Creek and learned about beaver habitat and then spent the afternoon in Newport where they took a forestry walk, made wildlife tracks and edible s**t, and participated in a sample Wildlife Habitat Education Program (WHEP) contest. WHEP is a state and national 4-H/FFA contest for youth that tests wildlife knowledge. Teams compete in a wildlife ID contest and write wildlife management plans for specific species based on a landowners goals and objectives. Special thanks to the Frist family and The Farm at Sinking Creek and to the Southeastern Grasslands Institute for helping make this day a big success!!

07/31/2025

Our 4-H teen club just wrapped up the summer with a trip to Emerald Pointe Wet & Wild. There are lots of opportunities for leadership and fun social activities in 4-H. This year, the club participated in 4-H Day at the State Capitol, went snow tubing at Winterplace, participated in a leadership retreat at the Airfield 4-H Center with a trip to Kings Dominion, provided leadership for Junior 4-H Camp, and ended the summer with a trip to Emerald Pointe Wet & Wild. Teens interested in participating in the club for the 2025-26 year should contact Michelle Poff at adickerson@vt.edu or call at 540-864-5812.

07/24/2025

Camping season has come to a close at the W. E. Skelton 4-H Center. The Craig, Giles, Roanoke Cluster had a blast! During their week at camp, young people had the opportunity to learn new skills and hone existing ones in classes ranging from high ropes to kayaking. They learned the value of teamwork as they participated in various pack competitions including a talent show and other theme related contests (country vs. country club games, etc.). They also enjoyed dances, campfires, and the opportunity to spend time with their friends. Most importantly, campers learned or strengthened the life skills they need on their path to responsible citizenship. Craig County 4-H would like to thank all of our volunteers, scholarship sponsors, and other community supporters for helping to make our 2025 camp week a success!

We would like to thank all the volunteers who helped to supervise campers, assist in classes, set up for meals, and more. These include: Adult Volunteers – Frances Foster, George Foster, Crystal Parker, Sally Farrell, and Josh Mitchell; Teen Counselors – Austin Fowler, Alivia Fowler, Elyssa Dewease, Aspirah Rutrough, Damien Smith, Dreydin Smith, Isaac Foster, and Simon Weyant; and Counselors-in-Training – Maria Foster, Kylie Blankenship, Hunter McClanahan, Nathan Blankenship, Easton Geister, and Keaton Foster.

We would also like to thank the following individuals and businesses for their generous support to the Junior 4-H Camp Scholarship Fund:

Mrs. Marilyn Barnes
Mrs. Hazel Beeler
Bethel United Methodist Church
Charlton Associates
Craig County Fairgrounds Association
Craig County Farm Bureau Women’s Committee
Craig County Health & Dental Center
Craig Healing Springs Christian Church
Crawford Oil Company
Cross Roads Christian Church
Farmers & Merchants Bank of Craig County
Mr. & Mrs. Lanier Frantz
The Dorothy Cate & Thomas F. Frist Foundation (Senator Bill & Tracy Frist)
Blair & Erica Jones
Market Street Pharmacy
Maywood Garden Club
Mountain Castles Soil & Water Conservation District
New Castle Christian Church
New Castle Garden Club
New Castle United Methodist Church
Paitsel Funeral Home
Mrs. Cole Frantz Semones
Sisson & Ryan Quarry, LLC
Mr. & Mrs. Leonard Smith
Deborah D. Snead
Mrs. Mildred Wingate
Nadine C. Allen Excellence Fund
Arthur Taubman Scholarship Fund
Farrier Funds
Lester Funds
Smith Mountain Lake General Funds
John T. Skelton Funds

We would also like to thank the following for help in getting campers and teens, and their luggage, to the 4-H Center and back:

Craig County School Board for their loan of two school buses
Mr. George Foster and Ms. Kay Hutchison for driving the buses with our campers/teens to and from camp
The Farmers & Merchants Bank of Craig County not only provided a full camp scholarship; they also added additional support to pay the bus drivers’ fees.
Mr. Jacob Swanson for providing and driving a luggage trailer to and from camp.

07/07/2025

Craig and Giles County 4-H, with support from the Frist Family, is offering a forestry and wildlife day camp to introduce area youth to the 4-H Wildlife Habitat Education Program (WHEP) and forestry judging competitions. The camp will be held on Tuesday, August 5th at the Farm at Sinking Creek off of Highway 42. We will have lots of fun hands on activities and a hike / tour of the farm with the Southeastern Grasslands Institute. If kids and/or teens are interested following the day camp, we may put together groups for competition in the spring. Either way, it will be a fun day! Please see the attached flyer for all the details.
Register Here (first come, first served):
https://tinyurl.com/4hforestrywildlifecamp25

02/24/2025

A group of 4-H'ers traveled to Abingdon on Saturday to learn about our food challenge competition. This is a program that has a district, state, and national competition where kids work in teams of three or four. Teams receive specific ingredients and create a dish of their choice, give a presentation on the nutritional value of the dish and its cost, and get to practice a variety of culinary skills. If you have kids who are interested in this program, contact me for more information. The district competition is in May so we hope to have a few practices before then to prepare a team or teams.

02/14/2025

Pre-registration for 2025 Junior 4-H Camp (Craig, Giles, Roanoke/Salem) is now open. All the information about camp (dates, age guidelines, description, and cost) is included in the attached flyer. For convenience, the link to pre-register is here:
https://tinyurl.com/25jr4hcampcgrs

Teens who applied to be a Teen Counselor or CIT should NOT complete this registration. This is for campers only. Teen Counselor and CIT applicants have already completed their registration. If there is a teen who would like to go as Counselor or CIT, and didn’t apply, they should contact me. CITs have to be 13 years old by September 30, 2025. Teen Counselors have to be 14 years old by September 30, 2025.