Out of an abundance of caution and in an effort to keep our youth, volunteers and community safe, the Shelby County 4-H Advisory Council in partnership with Purdue Extension Shelby County has elected to host our 4-H Fair events virtually this year.

While Indiana’s current Back on Track plan would allow for an event of this size by the 5th of July, it is not a guarantee. In addition, the requirements from Purdue University to use PPE, social distancing, constant sanitization, health screenings, registering of participants and visitors on the grounds, site security and enhanced animal handling procedures would make it nearly impossible to comply with policy and still provide a positive experience for our youth.

Youth will have the option to exhibit projects virtually via video, photo, etc. on our Fairentry system. Details on project submission and logistics of the virtual fair will be coming soon. Your 4-H Advisory Council and Extension staff are going to be working through all the logistics and developing resources for members and families.

Please know this decision was not taken lightly. Several community members were consulted in making this decision, including but not limited to: county commissioners, local health department, and others. In an effort to be transparent with all of you about this news, we want our 4-H families to know that we simply could not meet the requirements presented to us with the facilities, time, budget and volunteers that we have available.

While the loss of a face-to-face event is very disappointing, we hope our 4-H family will stand with us in positivity as we move forward with a virtual fair. We WILL showcase our youths’ efforts to our community this year and we are working very hard to ensure we celebrate the many hours of learning and work they have completed in the best way we can. Now, let's see that 4-H grit and determination as we move forward with our 4-H events!

Thank you so much for your support,

Purdue Extension Shelby County & Shelby County 4-H Advisory Council