The Silver Spurs 4-H Horse Club members rode many miles and worked hard on October 13 as they participated in the state wide 4-H community service project called One Day. The Silver Spurs cleaned trash off approximately 6 miles of equestrian trails as well as camp grounds and lake frontage area at Lake Bardwell’s Waxahachie Creek Park.

“Texas 4-H members have always been proud of the communities they call home. Whether they live in urban or in rural areas, they are contributing and caring citizens. One Day 4-H is a way for all 4-H members to take one day to say ‘thank you’ to their communities, county, and state for all the support they have provided to 4-H members for more than 100 years,” said an extension agency representative.

Seven 4-Hers and 7 adults participated in the Silver Spurs clean up project in which they collected a surprising amount of trash off the equestrian trails.

“I couldn’t believe how often we had to get on and off our horses and return to base camp to empty our trash bags,” said Sadie Hinz, a 9-year-old Silver Spurs officer. “We thought this was the perfect way to group together our horse project and a community service project. We actually thought we would get to do more riding, but we spent most of the time picking up trash – which was not fun!”

Silver Spurs members also helped with the county-wide 4-H service project benefiting the North Ellis County Outreach program. The youth collected 115 food and toiletry items and worked for one hour sorting food and stocking shelves at the Red Oak based food bank.

Silver Spurs 4-H members are making a big effort at increasing their service alongside their horse project this year. They have organized an additional service goal of collecting needed items to donate to SPCA of Ellis County. Our Silver Spurs are accepting donations of cat toys, cleaning supplies, dog toys, cat litter, brushes and combs.

The Silver Spurs 4-H Club meets the first Thursday of each month at the Flying Dollar Ranch located at 230 Chambers Drive, Italy, at 6 pm. The horse project includes horse judging, hippology, basic horse care, horse showing, speed events, public speaking, leadership and service. To find out more information about 4-H, please call the local extension office, or Silver Spurs club manager Julie Hinz at 972-483-7774.