Program Impacts

Health & Nutrition SNAP-Ed

Taught healthy eating at the “Kids Day at the Park” events hosted by Lyon County Human Services at Dayton, Fernley, and Yerington. During the event, we provided healthy eating and exercise handouts, Nutritional Education reinforcement items, and at one event, a taste of freezer-dried produce (apples, bananas, and sweet peppers). The SNAP-Ed booth was visited by 447 youth during these events. The tasting event alone had 218 participants.

A Memorandum of Understanding for Extension was obtained by the Boys & Girls Club of Mason Valley and District Management at Lyon County School District to begin programming for the next year. 

On June 23rd, a Pick a Better Snack lesson on bell peppers was delivered to the Boys & Girls Club in Fernley. Five students were present and got to sample freeze-dried bell peppers. 

4-H Youth Development

• 4-H in Lyon County ran ten clubs, offered youth development and programming with 40 different projects and 35 volunteers. 4-H club enrollment increased to 203 members. Below are some of our highlights of our program this year: 
• We received an NRA grant worth $12,923.00. This helped us offer our first pistol project and expand our existing shooting sports projects. We had a group of seven youth from our county travel to the National Shooting Sports competition to compete and we now have three youth from our county serving as National Shooting Sports Ambassadors. We offered two shooting sports competitions for our county that were also open to other counties, and we have had 13 youth qualify to go to the shooting sports competition during the summer of 2026.
• In addition to our joint 4-H summer camp, we offered a new fall leadership camp. Participants enjoyed games, crafts, archery, and science, along with teamwork activities and leadership training. Our Lyon County AmeriCorps employee led the Counselor-In-Training Program for the summer 4-H camp youth who plan to become camp counselors in the future. This program was aimed at improving teen counselors’ quality and expanding their comfort level with their role as camp counselors. 32 Lyon County teens attended the fall camp, and 15 youth attended the summer Northern/Central 4-H Camp. 
• For the final portion of our Nevada First-Gen micro grant, we took 11 teens to the National 4-H Congress in Atlanta, where they learned about leadership. They also participated in Service Learning in various places in the Atlanta community, learned about American history, and other cultures during the five days of the trip. The final pieces of this grant included offering learning experiences in mental health to 53 Lyon County 4-H members as well as learning to be an entrepreneur using games and activities from an entrepreneur program developed by the University of Utah.
• We provided Quality Assurance Training in Yerington, Fernley, and Silver Springs to 14 4-H youth and 9 FFA members. This program helps to train young people in raising their animals and using best practices in animal husbandry and care. Additionally, they learned about their role in food production and how to speak publicly about their role in our food chain.
• We hosted successful recruitment and outreach events in Dayton, Fernley, Silver Springs, and Yerington to provide information about our 4-H programs, while offering activities to a total of 823 youth in attendance. As part of our outreach and educational efforts, Mason Valley 4-H and Central Lyon 4-H partnered with the Yerington Library and held a 4-H Fun Day, which included STEM activities, Art, a blow-up archery experience, and games, while sharing about 4-H.
• Mason Valley hosted a 4-H table at the local Trunk or Treat event offered by the City of Yerington, and Central Lyon hosted their annual Haunted House event, which is both a community event and a fundraiser for that club. 4-H was represented by Lyon County 4-H Community Based Instructor III, Hillary Dashiell, at Riverview Elementary’s school-wide Farmer’s Market. She offered activities and 4-H information to 329 students and 78 adults in attendance.
• 4-H partnered with Walker Basin Conservancy to hold two educational sessions. The first taught the importance of wildflowers. The second session focused on the importance of agriculture and water in our community and in our world. Lyon County 4-H Community Based Instructor III, Hillary Dashiell, taught both sessions to a total of 97 youth.
• We had an AmeriCorps member working with 4-H in our office to offer various outdoor learning opportunities at the Dayton and Silver Springs libraries, and the respective Boys & Girls clubs in those communities. There was a total of 7 sessions scheduled throughout June and July to teach 4 different outdoor educational activities with 85 kids in attendance. The AmeriCorps member also presented on “Minerals” at the Silver Springs 4-H Club meeting held at Lake Lahontan, with 9 youth in attendance. 
• We also offered five different learning sessions to youth in 1st-5th grade, at the Boys and Girls Club in Fernley, over the summer. The members learned about several topics in art and science, such as how to make a NASA Star Shade, Engineering with Marshmallows, and Art in the Stars. A total of 162 youth participated.
• Our annual awards for the county were held in November, where Lyon County youth get recognized for their work in 4-H projects during the year. This year’s awards included three teens earning their All-Stars and multiple youth earning their white, red, and blue stars. One teen earned their gold star. 
• Multiple clubs in our county performed community service including canned food drives, raising money to give to food banks, Christmas Angel Tree gifts for needy families, and helping to raise money for the Make-a-Wish Foundation. A total of $1036 was raised or donated to the various organizations who were supported by these activities.
• Lyon County 4-H offered a Livestock Judging Competition at the Silver State Livestock Show which was open to all counties and other organizations, such as FFA. 22 youth participated in this event.
• Central Lyon 4-H Club hosted a teen leadership retreat for 54 youth in Silver Springs at Silver Stage Middle School in the spring. During the retreat, youth learned about leadership, cooperation, and teamwork.
• 4-H held another successful Lyon County Jr. Livestock Show open to all youth in our county who were eligible to participate. We also expanded the event to include a Herpetology Competition and a Static Entry Competition. 49 youth in total participated in these competitions.
• Fernley Little Critters 4-H hosted their annual Rabbit and Cavy Show. They had a total of 49 participants, including participants who competed in a Lego building competition that was held simultaneously with the Rabbit and Cavy Show.
• Lyon County 4-H had a total of 25 participants in the Nevada 4-H Expo event in Fallon.

Radon Education

In January, Christine Kelly gave a presentation on Radon at the Yerington Library, with 2 people in attendance. 

January is the officially recognized Radon Action Month by the University of Nevada, Reno Extension’s Radon Program, though that also extends into February. 

Radon is an odorless, tasteless, and colorless radioactive gas that, at high levels, raises the risk of lung cancer. A large portion of Lyon County has an elevated risk of radon, so it’s important to test homes, which is the first step in preventing radon caused illnesses. Educational materials and testing kits are available to the public at the Lyon office year-round.

Fiscal Overview 

Lyon County Extension Expenses:

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County Funds Summary:

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