Malmstrom youth cook corny cookies for 4-H

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Kristina Overton
  • 341st Missile Wing Public Affairs
MALMSTROM AIR FORCE BASE, Mont. --  The Malmstrom 4-H Club, the Rocket Riders, demonstrated their culinary skills as they whipped up a batch of candy-corn cookies as a cooking project at the youth center Oct. 16. The 10 members prepared the candy-corn shaped sugar cookies from scratch using flour, sugar, extract and margarine. 

Confectionary prowess isn't the only skill that the 4-H members practice as a part of the program. 4-H offers opportunities to do projects to learn about animals, leadership, arts and crafts, mechanics and technology, rocketry, agriculture and other subjects. 

"I like all of the projects that we can do in 4-H," said Emily Berg, 12. "I even took my cat to the fair as a project!" 

The program also helps youth meet the diverse challenges of today's society, and brings youth and adults together to design programs that educate and promote productivity. 

"4-H is all about teaching the children life skills," said Cynthia Berg, youth center director. "As a former Montana 4-H'er, I learned the importance of giving back to the community, following through with a project, striving to always do better, learning new skills and I also became a better public speaker." 

"To this day, many of my fondest memories growing up have been experiences I had while in 4-H," Mrs. Berg said. "Whether it was winning ribbons, camp, the fairs, or the friends I made, I owe a lot to the program. It's a major reason why I volunteer as a 4-H leader on Malmstrom and strongly encourage people to join." 

4-H members participate in regular club meetings, and have the opportunity to compete in county and state fairs each year. 

"The youth here have done really well," Mrs. Berg said. "We have three participants this year that competed in the county fair. One of them even had the opportunity to go to the state 4-H conference." 

Winners of the 2009 Cascade County 4-H conference were Emily Berg, Ashley Finley, Kyle Finley and Sam Weaver, who were awarded ribbons in categories that included foods, photography, public speaking, citizenship, cats, self determination and archery. 

"It's really cool because they get rewards for their participation in competitions," Mrs. Berg said. "They receive ribbons and occasionally monetary awards." 

The program is provided at all youth centers on military installations, so children are able to continue their participation regardless of change in duty station. 

For more information about the 4-H program, call the youth center at 731-4634.

Editors Note
Anyone interested in the Candy Corn Cookies recipe can find it at www.dltk-kids.com