BOONE, Iowa—This week is Iowa State University Extension and Outreach Week. This year Iowa’s 100 county extension and outreach offices will host community service activities during the week and throughout the month of April.
“Community service is one more way ISU Extension and Outreach engages Iowans to build a strong Iowa,” said Alex Merk, Boone County Program Coordinator.
Unfortunately, Mother Nature has dealt a bit a delay to the planned activities in Boone County. Merk said that as part of Extension Week, Boone County Master Gardeners and Extension staff were hosting a clean-up day for the new Master Gardener Growing Together Donation Garden located at W. 1st and State Street (the former Crawford Hall garden). Clean-up was to take place from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. this evening. Volunteers were going to help prepare the garden for planting. All produce from the new garden will be donated to IMPACT Community Action and Boone Salvation Army food pantries this summer. At this time the Master Gardener Donation Garden Clean-up has not been rescheduled, but as soon as a date is determined, we’ll pass the information on for those that wish to participate.
Those that aren’t available to attend the clean-up are invited to participate by planting an extra row of produce in their own 2018 garden to be donated to local food pantries this year.
“Since May 2017, Iowa State alumni, family and friends have been wearing their cardinal and gold and participating in service projects of their choice. They report their hours to showcase Cy’s Days of Service. Statewide we hope to have at least 500 participants log more than 30,000 hours of service by the end of April 2018,” Merk explained.
100 Years of Extension in Boone County
This year Boone County is also celebrating 100 years of organized county extension work. This long-established partnership with Iowa State University provides local citizens with access to education and university research. ISU Extension and Outreach educational programs cover the entire life span, from Iowa’s youngest to oldest residents. More than 1 million people directly benefit from ISU Extension and Outreach educational programs each year. Extension connects with millions more online.
ISU Extension and Outreach is part of the federal Cooperative Extension Service — a network of more than 100 land-grant institutions, including Iowa State University and the U.S. Department of Agriculture, serving communities and counties across the United States. Every county in Iowa has an elected extension council that decides how to support ISU Extension and Outreach educational programs at the county level.
(contributed article, Boone County ISU Extension and Outreach)
