Mounted Mischief 4-H Club of Federal Way is joining 4-H groups across King County in a fundraising effort to pay for their next year.
Mounted Mischief is among more than a dozen 4-H programs in the county, but the only one in the Federal Way area. Its approximately 20 members gather twice a month for horse-centered meetings, and once a month for their “secondary project meeting,” where kids do crafts, cooking or other special projects.
The club is part of the King County 4-H Horse Program, and will help host a tack sale on Saturday, Nov. 21, at Enumclaw Middle School, 550 Semanski St.
Due to budget cuts, it is unclear what kind of funding the program will have next year. The tack sale is their first step toward becoming self-supporting.
“My hope is $10,000 (raised),” Mounted Mischief club leader Kim Giglio said. “I think it’s very achievable, if people come to buy.”
In order to achieve that number, the tack sale would have to make between $55,000 and $60,000. The program will receive 18 percent of the sales for their consignment fee. They hope to reach the $10,000 mark after paying expenses of the tack sale, including rental of the building.
Money raised will go toward rental fees for clinics, horse shows and awards. Next year’s show schedule is in doubt at the moment, as it is uncertain if the King County Fair, the main qualifier for the state fair, will be held next year. If the fair isn’t held, then the 4-H program would have to come up with other shows to be qualifiers for the state fair.
“We’re expecting thousands, maybe tens of thousands, based on the number of people I have talked to,” Giglio said.
Items up for sale will include basic necessities such as blankets, buckets and rakes, as well as more extravagant items such as show outfits covered in sequins and crystals, and sterling silver decorated saddles.
It’s not just 4-H members who are selling items, but also those who have been on the show circuit and may have higher-end stuff available.
“We’re having to get a lot more resourceful,” Giglio said.
Doors open at 9 a.m. Nov. 21, and the sale will continue through 3 p.m. For $10, buyers can purchase an “early bird pass” that will allow them to enter the sale at 7:30 a.m. Cash, checks, credit cards and debit cards will be accepted.
Sellers can bring their items to the school from 4 to 8 p.m. Friday, Nov. 20. The consignment fee will be 18 percent. Sellers will receive a check for their sold items by mid-December.
More information about the sale is available at www.kc4-hhorse.com.
About 4-H
• 4-H started around the turn of the 20th century, and began almost simultaneously in several parts of the country as people wanted to make public school education more connected to country life. The programs grew until Congress created the Cooperative Extension Service at USDA in 1914. This soon became known as 4-H Clubs: Head, Heart, Hands and Health.
• 4-H Clubs can decide themselves what they do. It is no longer just animal related, and there are clubs for cooking, gardening and technology.
Depending on the state, kids can be in 4-H from ages 9-19. There is also a program for youth ages 5-9, and a 4-H for college students.
• Some famous 4-Hers include Faith Hill, Reba McIntyre, Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, Al Gore, Dolly Parton, Johnny Cash, Nancy Grace and Reggie White.
• Today, the program has more than 6 million young people across America and is also in more 80 countries worldwide.
Source: 4-H.org
