They stand for Head, Heart, Hands and Health. But even though none of the letters that make up the name of the organization that serves 6 million youth nationwide stands for the word “heifer,” that’s often one of the first things people think of when they hear “4-H.”

“Our kids don’t just raise animals,” said Carla Moore, president of the Contra Costa County 4-H, as the frenetic activity of the livestock area at last weekend’s County Fair swirled around her. “They learn leadership, record keeping, public speaking, citizenship, grant writing, involvement in government, time management and conservation. It’s experiential living; they’re picking up life skills.”

More than 500 youth from 5 to 19 years of age participate in 4-H clubs in Contra Costa County alone, but proposed countywide budget cuts threaten the UC Cooperative Extensions Office that oversees the program. The $325,000 also supports the Extension’s Master Gardener, nutrition and food safety, urban horticulture, livestock management, commercial fruits and nuts, wine grapes, vegetable and field crop programs, and triggers an additional $3 million in federal money to support 4-H activities, Moore said.

So while white-clad kids sporting the 4-H clover watered, groomed, cleaned up after and showed their animals last weekend, they also worked to garner support in the effort to keep their group alive after current funding runs out in September.

“4-H creates a sense of belonging,” said Amanda Tonkin, 18, president of the Delta-Diablo 4-H. “It’s a community within itself that blossoms into so much more. Everything in 4-H is for youth, by youth. We run our own programs – with adult guidance – and it really broadens our horizons.” From writing letters to service members overseas, to sending books to the Philippines to learning about the connection between tree growth and forest fires, the hands-on education 4-Hers get extends well beyond the barnyard.

The denizens of barnyard are still a major focus of 4-H, however, literally providing lessons of life-or-death importance.

“The consequences of dealing with live animals are that (mistakes) can cripple them,” Tonkin said. “If you don’t feed them, they will die. It teaches you the realities of what life really is in what you do.”

And what of the fact that many 4-H animals will be sold at market? “It’s part of the process, the cycle of life,” Tonkin said. “Learning to live life also means learning to live with death.”

In the musky livestock area last weekend, Robert McLaughlin, 13, and James Wilson, 11, wielding pitchforks and rakes, were dealing with another of the realities of caring for large animals. Dung duty didn’t even faze them, though; it was just something that needed to be done and that they were glad to do.

“If there was no Knightsen 4-H, I’d go somewhere else where there was one,” Robert said. “Otherwise, I’d just be lazy.”

If you’d like to help save the UC Extension program and, along with it, 4-H, call the county 4-H office at 925-646-6543.