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St. Martin Parish Cooperative Extension
114 Courthouse Street
Breaux Bridge, LA 70517
Phone: 337-332-2181
Fax: 337-332-2870
Website: www.louisiana4h.org/stmartin
Office Hours: Monday-Friday
8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Ashley Istre
4-H Agent
aistre@agcenter.lsu.edu
Erica Poirier,
Assistant 4-H Agent
epoirier@agcenter.lsu.edu
Social Media; Search “St. Martin Parish 4-H” on Facebook, and Instagram
Dear Cloverbud Member,
We are going to have a fantastic time at our 4-H FUN Day at BBHS on November 25! I hope that you will be able to attend! If you are going to attend FUN Day, please get your parents to pre-register you by using information provided.
Sincerely,
Cloverbuddy
Fall Fest was held on Saturday, October 25, 2025. Fall Fest included a Beef, a Sugar, a Seafood, Family Recipe, an Edible Art Contest, a Pet Show, a Fall Photography Contest, a Rock Decorating Contest, and a Pumpkin Decorating Contest. Pictures and the results of all the Fall Fest Contests can be found on our Facebook page (St. Martin Parish 4-H).
Note: The 4-H Office will be closed from Wednesday, December 24, 2025, through Thursday, January 1, 2026.
November 25, 2025
9am – 11am
4-H Fun Day is for 3rd, 4th, 5th, & 6th grade 4-H members who want to learn about leadership, communication, and citizenship!
The workshop will be held at Breaux Bridge High School in the boy’s gym on Tuesday, November 25, 2025, from 9:00am-11:00am.
Make plans to attend and be ready to learn all about STEM projects at Fun Day. (Please wear tennis shoes)
Pre-Registration is strongly recommended so that we can have enough fun supplies for everyone. Register by using 4-H Online (v2.4honline.com) and select 2025 St. Martin Parish 4-H Fun Day deadline to register November 21, 2025. Sessions led by Jr. Leader club members. This is a free event.
St. Martin Parish 4-H offers lots of opportunities throughout the year. How can you keep up with all the events? Stay connected! We publish a monthly newsletter that will be given to the 4-H members at their monthly club meetings. (If you are absent on the day of the 4-H club meeting, ask your school club leader for a newsletter when you return to school.) We also have a St. Martin Parish 4-H website where we post newsletters, calendars, contest rules, and much more!
The parish program is also connected through social media. We are on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram, and Snapchat.Join our pages today to stay connected and be active in 4-H this year!
The 4-H agents are also available at the office on Monday-Friday from 8:00 am-4:30 pm at 337-332-2181. You can also email Mrs. Ashley at aistre@agcenter.lsu.edu or Mrs. Erica at epoirier@agcenter.lsu.edu
The 4-H Motto is: "To Make the Best Better"
This motto challenges everyone involved in 4-H to do the very best job they can.
The 4-H Colors Are: Green and White.
Green symbolizes nature's most common color. White symbolizes purity.
The 4-H Emblem is: A green four-leaf clover with the letter "H" on each leaf. The H’s stand for: Head, Heart, Hands, and Health
I Pledge my Head to Clearer thinking.
My Heart to greater loyalty
My Hands to larger service
And my Health to better living
For my club, my community
My country and my world
Orders are due to the St. Martin Parish 4-H Office by November 6th.
The pickup of the items ordered will take place on November 25th from 3:00 p.m. until 5:00 p.m. at the Breaux Bridge High School Barn, near the football field. To order, fill out the form and return the completed form to the St. Martin Parish Extension Office located at 114 Courthouse Street, Breaux Bridge, LA. 70517. For questions or more information, please contact the St. Martin Parish 4-H Office at 337-332-2181
All 4-H clubs are, once again, invited to collect nonperishable food items and/or monetary donations for the St. Bernard / St. Francis Food Pantry or the St. Teresa Center for Works of Mercy. Clubs can organize the collection of items and arrange to have them delivered to the St. Bernard/St. Francis Food Pantry in Breaux Bridge or St. Teresa Center for Works of Mercy in St. Martinville on Tuesday, December 9, 2025.
Some examples of needed items include applesauce, canned beans, canned chicken or fish, canned vegetables, cooking oils, crackers, dried herbs and spices, fruit (canned or dried), granola bars, instant mashed potatoes, meals in a box, nuts, pasta, peanut butter, rice, powdered and shelf stable milk, soup, chili, and whole grain cereal.
Breaux Bridge St. Bernard/St. Francis Food Pantry 701 W. Bridge St.
7:00AM-5:30 PM
St. Martinville St. Teresa Center for Works of Mercy 600 S. Martin Luther King Drive
6:30AM-7:30PM
For over 15 years, we have collected pull tabs off the top of can drinks to help the Ronald McDonald house in Memphis, TN. This is a great service opportunity that is easy to complete.
What do you do? Collect as many pull tabs as you can from now until February 25th. Collect them in a plastic Ziploc bag. Take the bag to school and give it to your school club leader. They will turn it into the 4-H Office. Each club’s tabs will be weighed to see which club turns in the most tabs.
What do we do with the tabs? We recycle them and receive money!
What do we do with money? We send the money to the Ronald McDonald House in Lafayette, LA.
To learn more about the Ronald McDonald House, visit their website at: http://www.rmhc-memphis.org
Did you know that sweet potatoes are the most popular vegetable in Louisiana? They are high in nutrients like fiber and vitamin A and low in calories. That makes them nutrients dense. Fiber keeps you full longer and vitamin A is important for healthy eyes, skin, heart, and immune system. Sweet potatoes can help you stay alert in class and fight flu season. They can be enjoyed baked, smashed, boiled, or grilled.
Before you begin wash your hands, surfaces, utensils, and vegetables.
Nutrition Agent
St. Martin & St. Mary Parishes
Below are many important dates for livestock exhibitors and their families. Good luck with your projects! If you need assistance or have questions, please contact Mrs. Ashley Istre at 337-332-2181 or aistre@agcenter.lsu.edu
Anyone not raising their animals on their property (home or farm) MUST contact the 4-H Office to request a possession hardship application. Completed hardship forms must be turned into the 4-H Office by the animal’s possession date.
Validation will consist of ear tagging the animal and pulling a hair sample for DNA Testing.
November 10, 2025: All Commercial Beef Heifers, Commercial Dairy Heifers, Commercial Ewes, Commercial Does, Market Lambs, and Market Goats must be validated by the exhibitor and the properly identified validation envelope including the hair sample must be submitted to the 4-H Office along with the validation fees of $7 per animal.
December 1, 2025: All Market Hogs and Commercial Gilts must be validated by the exhibitor and the properly identified validation envelope including the hair sample must be submitted to the 4-H Office along with the validation fees of $7 per animal.
November 10, 2025 YQCA Ethics Training at 5 pm 4-H Office
Registered shooting sports participants received their project book(s) at the mandatory safety meetings. Reminders: Everyone must sign in and sign out at the designated location for each discipline. You will only get credit for the actual hours that you practice. No Exceptions. You must have the required 8 practice hours in each of your disciplines before the paperwork for the Regional Match is due. If you have not put in the required hours, you will not be allowed to register for the Regional Match. You must also turn in your completed 4-H portfolio in order to participate in the Regional Match.
Each month, we will have a trivia contest in the Bayou Gazette newsletter. If you email the correct answer to us, along with your full name, school you attend, and your grade level, by the deadline, you will receive a prize at your next club meeting. Remember, your answer must be correct!
November 4-H Trivia Question:
What topic was covered in the lesson this month?
Email us the answer with you full name, the school you attend and your grade level by 11/21/25 to: stmartin4h@yahoo.com or 4-H@saintmartinschools.org if using a school email account.
Congratulations to the September 4-H Trivia Contest Winners: Maylee Bonin, Lily Boudreaux Atom Mize, Alex Leger, Knight Landry, Lyric Alexander, Brynn Guidry, Fransece Flugence, Anna Savoie, and Hayden Defils. Last month’s trivia question was “What topic was covered in the lesson this month?” The correct answer was “hand, heart, hands and health”.
Activity: The 4 B’s of Pollination
Making a bird feeder from a plastic bottle is a quick and cheap way of
attracting more birds to your garden. Birds might not visit the bird feeder on the first day. However, it might take a few days for the birds to discover the food. Make sure that the feeder is hanging high above the ground to prevent cats from catching the birds. And also, try to find bird seed that is for a variety of birds.
1. Remove the cap from a clean plastic bottle. Use the pin to puncture several small drainage holes in the base of the bottle.
2. Use the pin to make two level holes on opposite sides of the bottle, near to the base. Use scissors to widen them slightly.
3. Push a stick through the holes. There should be around 5 centimeters of stick left outside the bottle on each side for the perches.
4. Slightly above each perch, use scissors to cut a feeding hole the size of a coin.
5. Create a second set of perches and feeding holes: repeat steps 2 to 4 further up the sides of the bottle and offset by 90° from the original.
6. Use the pin to make two holes in the neck of the bottle, on opposite sides and level with each other. Widen these with scissors.
7. Thread the string through the holes, then fill the bottle with bird food and replace the bottle cap. You may need to make a funnel with a sheet of paper to make filling the bottle easier.
8. Find a sheltered location outside to hang your feeder - tying it onto a tree branch or washing line would work well.
9. Watch from a distance or indoors for birds to begin landing on your feeder. It may take a few days before this begins to happen.
10. Identify the birds that come to feed. You can use books, mobile apps and the internet to help you.
Resource: Natural History Museum
How to make a bird feeder | Natural History Museum (nhm.ac.uk)
Birds can be found almost everywhere! They are at the playground, along the sidewalk, and in your local park. Here are some more ideas of where you can go birdwatching.
Open Areas: Gardens, lawns, small meadows, and field edges For birds that nest in the woods, these nearby openings are great places to find seeds and worms, grubs, and other insects.
Woodlands: Places where many trees grow close together Tree branches form a canopy, shading the plants and animals below. A number of different kinds of birds make their home in woodland areas. This is where they find a variety of food: insects, spiders, seeds, berries, and even small mammals such as mice.
Freshwater Habitats: Lakes, small streams, and rivers Birds depend on fresh water for drinking and bathing. Some birds also rely on it for food: fish, aquatic insects, or underwater vegetation. The water’s edge or islands can also provide shelter from predators or nesting sites. (SourceAmnh.org)
Sincerely,
Mrs. Ashley Mrs. Erica
Ashley Istre Erica Poirier
4-H Agent 4-H Agent
It is the policy of the LSU AgCenter, Louisiana Cooperative Extension Service that no person shall be subjected to discrimination on the grounds of race, color, national origin, religion, gender, age, veteran status, or disability. Should you need an ADA accommodation for your participation in any aforementioned activity, please contact the St. Martin 4-H office at 337-332-2181 no later than 2 weeks prior to the event. The LSU AgCenter provides equal opportunities and employment. Cooperating agencies: LSU AgCenter, Louisiana parish governing bodies, and the United States Department of Agriculture
