Despite COVID-19 causing them to shut down their offces to the public for a couple of months, offcials with the OSU Extension Centers in Washita and Beckham counties have continued to serve their clientele.
Kristy Spalding, who grew up in Cordell, is the Washita County Extension Center director and she also serves as Family Consumer Science and 4-H Youth Development director.
Spalding has been with the Extension Center for 27 ½ years.
Dana Church is a 4-H Educator. She grew up in Waynoka and has served in her position four years.
Greg Hartman is Ag/4-H Educator in Washita and Beckham counties and also serves as Beckham County Extension Director. He grew up in Sayre and taught Vo-Ag at Weather for a number of years.
He’s been with the Extension Center for 18 years.
Spalding explained, “I think we’ve done really well during this time. Oklahoma State University put together a lot of research-based information that we could present to our clientele about COVID.
“Towards the end of March, our offce actually shut down to the public. We provided mask kits so 4-H members could make masks and they made 122 of them. Our Oklahoma Home Community Education group was also provided the kits and they made 228,” Spalding added.
She said other individuals in the community made masks as well. There was a drop off box set up outside the Extension office.
She said they came and picked up the mask kits and once they made them, dropped them back off.
Church noted, “We made a list of those who might need masks and I know some of them went to nursing homes, Hospice nurses, hospitals and a cross section of people in the communities.”
Hartman said a drop off box also was used for Ag producers for soil, forage and water testing. “That was a real critical time.”
He said it was so important, “because it came at such a critical time in April to plant their summer crops in Washita and Beckham Counties.”
Church noted, “Specifically, we have big 4-H county events in March and April. Usually we have a county-wide speech contest for all nine clubs that is face-to-face. So we worked it out and planned a virtual speech contest.”
She added, “We had good participation and the 4-H families were so happy that we were able to continue that event.”
Church related that “We’ve also created several workshops that were recorded online and made available to 4-H families across the state through Facebook because “I was part of a statewide committee that was trying to be really creative to serve our 4-H youth.”
One of the major 4-H events held annually became a casualty of COVID-19. “Our 4-H Camp in June had to be canceled,” Church said. “Kids were really disappointed. It’s a 2 ½ day camp and our kids were unhappy to miss out on that because they really enjoy it.”
Even though several events had to be canceled, these are still planned in addition to the one held on Tuesday of this week which was the Washita County 4-H Teen Leader meeting in Canute Park where there was an election of offcers and Ag Innovator training.
Sept. 29: Washita County 4-H annual Awards Program, is scheduled for 7 p.m., in Cordell Park.
Oct. 5 at 9 a.m. at the Washita County Courthouse in Cordell Commissioners will be signing a 4-H proclamation.
October 4-10: National 4-H Week. Local Clubs are doing various activities in their communities to bring a focus to 4-H.
Spalding pointed out, “Another thing we had to cancel was the 22nd annual OSU Extension Health and Safety Day for all Washita County fourth graders. The schools normally bring their kids but the kids were at home and not at school last spring.”
She also mentioned, “I had a lot of classes, quilting workshops, youth sewing and cooking workshops, Adult Tai Chi classes, all were postponed.”
Spalding emphasized, “We’re having to postpone our larger events because we go by OSU guidelines and CDC guidelines. We will have these, but it just will be later.”
Hartman mentioned the Farm to You event in Beckham County had to be postponed in April. “Hopefully, we’ll have that when we get the guidelines released so we can get back into their schools,” he said.
Hartman stated, “Progressive Ag Safety Day that we put on was postponed until a later date. It’s normally put on in May but students weren’t in school.”
He noted, “On the Ag side, our Field Days were canceled in April, May and June, the wheat tour was canceled and our Pre-Planning Cotton meeting in April was canceled.
“The Cattlemen’s meeting we hold in late April or early May was canceled also.”
He stressed, “In August, we started doing virtual meeting tours on online and we have a big three-day event Sept. 22-24. That information can be found on the Washita County and Beckham County Facebook Page.”
Hartman pointed out “in Beckham County we have a tremendous amount of peanut acreage and working along with OSU, we will be able to host a live Peanut Blasting at Sayre on Sept. 25. I have done it for all 18 years I’ve been with the Extension Center,” he said.
He explained, “The producers feel like it’s important to have the event so they can start digging their peanuts.”
Beckham County is one of the top 2 largest peanut producing counties in Oklahoma, Hartman said. Caddo County is the other. “They are the top two, and they switch back being No. 1 and No. 2,” he added.
Spalding, noting the Extension offces have been open for business since the state reopened in May, emphasized “our guidelines changed accordingly. Some of the guidelines have remained, wearing masks with clientele in public settings, social distancing, and we are using hand sanitizers and wiping down surfaces constantly.”
Additional guidelines come into play, depending on what age and what clientele the staff is working with.
“We are in Phase 3 of the guidelines. We cannot have programs with groups of over 50 and those 65 and over can’t attend because they are still considered safer at home,” she said.