Safeway renews commitment to 4-H
New shirts and show decorations are among the items that local 4-H members will be able to buy with a gift from Canada Safeway announced on Thursday.
Jaret Haupt, a member of the Rangeland 4-H Beef Club at Eckville, was among the crowd gathered at the Port-O-Call Safeway in Red Deer to receive a $330,000 commitment from the grocery chain.
Each of Alberta’s 400 4-H clubs, plus 17 clubs in B.C.’s Peace and Kootenay regions will receive $250 a year for the next three years to help members and leaders attend events and develop their skills.
The money is a renewal, with a small increase, of a sponsorship program first announced three years ago, said Bruce Banks, CEO of the 4-H Foundation of Alberta.
Safeway had been buying 4-H beef calves for a number of years, but wanted to spread its sponsorship out to cover other activities as well and so established its cash sponsorship program, said Banks.
Beef clubs make up about 30 per cent of all 4-H clubs in the province, which also include horse clubs, dairy clubs, crafts clubs and others, he said. Putting up the cash ensures that all clubs get a fair share.
Safeway is one of a group of 4-H Legacy sponsors, which also includes Encana, AltaLink, UFA, ATB Financial and the government of Alberta.
Haupt, 13, said he followed his older sister Hayley’s footsteps, joining 4-H as a way of learning more about beef production.
“My dad has cattle and I just wanted to get into it.”
Besides their activities within the beef industry, he and fellow members go skiing at Canyon Ski Area, attend movies in Red Deer and participate in fundraisers to help finance their activities.
Last year, the club collected old tires and electronics and sold beef jerky.
Henry Weigman, director of fund development for the Alberta 4-H Foundation, said 4-H was established in Alberta in 1917. It has since become the biggest youth club in rural Alberta with 7,000 members and 2,400 leaders, representing 4,500 families.
An alumni of the program himself, Wiegman illustrated the value of sponsorships to the corporations with an example of his own. He showed a Bulova watch, retired only two years ago, that he earned in 1971 from a bank that sponsored 4-H programs.
He still holds an investment portfolio with that bank and thinks about the contest every time he drives by one of its branches.
The Alberta 4-H Centre is located on Hwy 53 near Westerose.
Information about Alberta 4-H programs is available online at www.4h.ab.ca or by calling 1-877-682-2153.
Contact Brenda Kossowan at bkossowan@reddeeradvocate.com
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