The Hudsonville Fair, Hogs, and 4-H

H as in “Head, Heart, Hands, and Health”- the motto for the non-profit organization 4-H. 

H as in the Hudsonville Community Fair 

H as in..hogs?

How do all of these things relate? 

Well first, 4-H is a non-profit organization that strives to engage “youth to reach their fullest potential while advancing the field of youth development” through experiential learning and the development of practical skills. The Swine Curriculum is one such program. Through this program, kids are taught how to raise pigs for a show. Aimee, a friend of our Streams of Hope team member Fayth, first introduced us to this program. Her two sons have been raising two pigs EACH through the program, and Aimee wanted to purchase one for Streams of Hope. This brings us to the next H… the Hudsonville Community Fair! 

From August 19-24, the city of Hudsonville holds a week-long fair featuring fun events like carnival rides, delicious food, and live music. One event is the livestock auction, where livestock are auctioned to fair-goers. Pigs raised by 4-H program kids will also be put on auction, and Streams of Hope has raised enough funds to win one this year! Aimee has been fundraising for Streams of Hope for quite some time now. Her efforts have not only helped us raise money for the pig, but has also introduced our organization to new donors. When our pig is available, we will process the meat at BC meats in Byron Center and offer it to our Food Center clients as some of the freshest and tastiest meat in town! 

So there you have it! The 4-H’s of the 4-H Swine Project. The fair will be taking place in just a few more weeks now, and we can’t wait! Having a whole pig donated to our Food Center means so much to the 500+ community families who regularly visit us for supplemental food. Thank you to all the donors – including the Boom Exercise Class – who made this purchase possible!

 Learn more about our Food Center by contacting Barb at barb@streamsofhope.org