4-H began in the early 1900's as Corn Clubs for boys and Canning Clubs for girls. Although the program has changed a lot through the years, it has always been a program designed to help children become productive members of their communities.
4-H is a national organization delivered by Cooperative Extension–a community of more than 100 public universities across the nation that provides experiences where young people learn by doing. Youth complete hands-on projects in areas like health, science, agriculture and citizenship, in a positive environment where they receive guidance from adult mentors and are encouraged to take on proactive leadership roles. Kids experience 4-H in every county and parish in the country.
Nebraska 4-H prepares young people for successful futures. Educational programs place a strong emphasis on life skills, such as critical thinking, problem-solving, social skills, communication, responsibility, citizenship, and leadership.
2026 Custer County 4-H Council
District 1: Kyla Olson and Kash Tobias
District 2: Holly Bumgarner and Luke Smith
District 3: Jen Schmidt and Chad Coleman
District 4: Christy Berghorst and Todd Longfellow
District 5: Dan Longfellow and Hannah Beck
District 6: Holly Remund and Peter Pelster
District 7: Kory Ostrand and Danyle Goodman
District 8: Jake Rosentreader and Sally Harris
District 9: Lana Phelps and Jeff Witthuhn
Youth Candidates: Emma Larsen and Caleb Wiiest
Youth Candidates: Hayden Christen and Trey Berghorst
4-H Council Officers
President Jeff Witthuhn
Vice-President Jake Rosentreader
Secretary Kyla Olson
Treasurer Christy Berghorst
MARKET BEEF WEIGH-IN
Saturday, February 7, 2026
Broken Bow Animal Hospital in Broken Bow
Please come to Broken Bow Animal Hospital from the south. DO NOT park on the highway to the north of the
Broken Bow Animal Hospital driveway. More information will be emailed to all families at a later date. If you have
any questions, please contact the Extension office.
The 4-H Livestock Committee voted to make it optional for market beef animals to be weighed in, with the exception of
animals who want to be eligible for beef rate of gain and/or the carcass contest. If you choose not to weigh in market beef,
you will need to purchase an ear tag(s) from the Extension Office. All animals that are not weighed in at the Custer County
weigh date will need to have their animals ear tagged and identified by June 15. ID form(s) will need to be turned into your
organizational leaders, so they can turn in the forms into the Extension on or before June 15.
4-H’ers who want their market beef animals entered for beef rate of gain and/or carcass contest will need to weigh them in at
the Custer County market beef weigh date.
Animals showing at the County Fair only will need 4-H ear tags for beef animals and will be $1.00 each. Animals showing at
State Fair/Aksarben will be required to have an official EID tag available at weigh-in (price is $2.75 per EID). Exact change
is helpful when paying for tags at weigh-in. No big bills when paying with cash is appreciated.
NEW: Exhibitors that want to show an animal for the State Fair and Aksarben will be required to submit two separate envelopes
and online nominations. Aksarben exhibitors will be ordering and purchasing their DNA envelopes through the Aksarben website
https://www.aksarbenstockshow.com/. The DNA process and online nomination process will be separate between each livestock
show. State Fair DNA will be paid for when exhibitors register animals online at showstockmanager.com.
Market Beef ID sheets partially completed prior to weigh-in is HIGHLY RECOMMENDED and will speed up your weigh-in
process. ID sheets can be picked up at the Extension Office prior to the weigh-in day or can be printed in landscape format from
the file attached.
Remember to take photos on the day of weigh-in of any animals that might be entered in the carcass contest.
Remember to also enroll in the 4-H Beef project on the 4-H Online program! You do not want to work with animals all year long
and not be eligible to show because you forgot to enroll in the project. Enrollment information can be found at:
https://4h.unl.edu/enroll.
2026 4-H Special Garden Project
This project is open to youth of 4-H age, 8-18 before January 1, 2026, and it will give them the opportunity to learn about growing, harvesting, and exhibiting this unique flower.
The Special Gardening Project lets 4-H members try their hand at growing unusual vegetables, flowers, fruits, and herbs. The project allows experienced 4-H gardeners to grow something fun, new, and different while letting those new to gardening get their feet wet in this project area.
The focus of the 2026 project is the Alumia Vanilla Cream Marigold. This marigold produces creamy, yellow flowers on compact plants. This variety not only has a unique color, but it also has a very long bloom time.
