Hello world, welcome to WFHR's Rapids Report for this Thursday, November 13th, 2025.
Big thank you, Crocatseptic Sponsor, and the time given us a chance to talk to our good
friends like Laura Huba forage, coordinate forage educator with UW-Madison Extension
Wood County.
Thanks for being here, Laura.
How you been?
It's great to be here.
Thanks for having me again.
Always appreciate the time and appreciate you and the team put into this community with
our kids and forage and all the great stuff that you all do, and love talking forage with
you.
You've got a couple of places we wanted to go today, and first we're going to head on over
to Pittsville with their after-school forage club.
Talk a little bit about that.
Yeah, so the magic of forage is really face-to-face connection, activities, hands-on stuff, and we
recognize that for many families it's really difficult to be able to make special meetings
in the evenings or what have you with parents working different jobs in different shifts
and multiple kids and all of the things.
So, last year I started just to go and visit Pittsville's after-school program every now and
again, and we'll do an activity with the kids and it was great.
But now this year, actually next week for the first time we are introducing an after-school
forage club.
So the youth will get to work with me.
It's like the same crew from kindergarten through eighth grade come and work with me, work
with each other.
So they'll be able to get that repeated, continuous kind of club experience, and this is brand
new for us.
So I'm really excited, and one of the things that I've been hearing as parents is, you
know what?
We've wanted to be able to enroll our kids in other kinds of programs, whether it's for
age or scouts or whatever, but that getting out and getting kids from place to place is
really a challenge, so how cool to be able to combine it with the after-school program.
And I'd like it noted for anybody that doesn't pick up on this or not and read between the
lines a little bit.
This program happens because our 4-H and the people work and they're paying attention
to the community.
You're talking to people in the community, and not just doing something and just doing
it, you know, and let whatever happen happen, the chips fall where they do.
Like literally going above and beyond to find different ways to get 4-H and the households,
get the 4-H, the kids involved in 4-H.
I know that I think it's very cool to go do that and everything.
It has such a great added bonus to it.
Now you and I have talked for years about the benefits of 4-H to kids and everything,
but now we're able to reach more kids doing this kind of thing.
Lord, I don't want to put you on the spot or anything, but is this something that you
think would be an interest or would be really beneficial for other schools?
I think so, you know, so long as the schools already have that after-school program, and
I'm going to tell you, after-school programs are amazing because they give young people
like a safe spot to continue to socialize, to continue to learn, and do the things, you
know, when I was growing up, there was no such thing as after-school, you know, like we
were the original latch key generation.
Yes, yes.
So who knows what kinds of fun we could get up to, right?
Oh my God.
The after-school program, you know, allows parents to know that their kids are someplace
safe until they can get off work and pick the kids up.
The kids aren't at home getting into who knows what or out in the community getting up
into who knows what.
So this, I think, is a really cool partnership.
And the unique thing now for 4-H is we don't end when the after-school program ends.
We don't end when the school year ends, so our members are going to be invited to participate
in all of the different things that 4-H has to offer throughout the year, whether it's
summer camp, or it's exhibiting at the fair, or if it's, you know, creative arts day in
the spring.
Like, let's give those kids who aren't able to make a community club meeting, still give
them all of the opportunities that the other 4-H kids have.
And so I don't know what schools do have after-school programs in which ones don't.
I'm more connected to Pittsville just because of the proximity of where I live and the
people that I know.
So if there are other schools out there that would be interested, I would absolutely be
eager to talk with folks who are managing those programs to see if what we can do together
to offer something like 4-H.
Before I wrap up, we always get Laura's contact information.
We'll have that for you if you're a school out there or a principal or something like that
can I encourage you enough to reach out to Laura and find out if this is something that
will work for your school.
Because again, with going above and beyond, if I'm using the right term, extras that the
4-H offers, like you mentioned, camp, creative arts day in those things, to give those, make
those accessible for these kids as well, certainly not only spreads the word about this great
stuff, but it gets these kids, the benefits of these programs as well.
That's a really cool thing to offer.
Yeah, and you know, I really think that there is power in those county run events because
it's really cool to have your friends in this circle that you see all the time in that
kind of stuff, but it is really cool to meet kids from a wider audience, and that's one
of the magical things about summer camp.
It's what happens in Project Discovery Day, kids from all across the county come together
and they take classes together that they're interested in.
So it's like, hey, you know what, there's more kids like me, and I don't know, there's
magic in that, right?
I think especially as older people, and we see everybody on phones and social media,
and we figure, oh, everybody's connected, everybody knows each other.
It's not like when we were kids, you didn't always know the kid in the school next to
the town next to you or something, but that still exists.
There's still, there's little bubbles here, you know, that they don't necessarily always
talk to kids in another town or something like that.
4-H, and these after school programs and things like this, to Laura's point, that open
opportunity for that.
You know, no kid is hurt by having more friends or more opportunities or anything.
It's really great.
I don't know, I was thinking about this the other day when I saw you on the schedule, Laura.
I don't know if I have another, like I'm good with my age.
I don't mind getting older.
I'm fine with it, but I talked to you, and sometimes I'm like, man, I wish I was a kid again.
Like, these programs and everything sound awesome.
I kind of wish I was young again.
Right, like, can I rewind and get to do all of those things?
I will say to tap on the tag onto that and everything, if you are an adult and you are looking
for volunteer opportunities and you really would like to be a part of things of 4-H,
always looking for good volunteers over there at the 4-H.
Again, we'll give you Laura's contact information before we wrap up.
I was excited about this and not just because I'm a very stereotypical Italian,
but I love Lasagna, and I love the name Lasagna Love.
Let's dive into this one, Laura.
Yeah, so in 4-H, the 4-H is actually stand for things within our pledge.
We pledge our heads, we pledge our hearts, we pledge our hands, and we pledge our health.
So we pledge our hands to larger service, and the service learning is critically important.
It helps young people understand what is going on in the world around them,
in the greater space beyond the space that they're living in.
And so Lasagna Love is actually a global organization that will match
neighbors with others in their community who are just willing to spread some kindness
and in time of need. So we've partnered with Lasagna Love,
and what happens is somebody who's just whatever is going on in life can say,
you know what, I could use a little bit of kindness, and volunteers throughout the community
will make and deliver a Lasagna to them.
And so this is one, okay, let's tie this in with Thanksgiving and all the things.
We don't normally connect Lasagna with Thanksgiving, but we do connect gratitude and kindness
with Thanksgiving. So the Saturday after Thanksgiving, we are getting 4-H's together,
and we are going to use the space at McMillan Library to teach the kids how to make Lasagna.
But more than that, we're also going to be talking about family budgeting issues.
So the kids will learn how to make Lasagna. We're going to have some fellowship,
and we're going to enjoy a delightful lunch together.
But we're also going to go through some exercises that I first learned through
the United Way of Southwood and Adams counties, where, you know what, we have a given
amount of money throughout the month, and we have those decisions to make. How do we spend
that money so that we can get all of our needs met? But every now and again, you know,
what happens? The car breaks down, or we have a fender bender, or somebody gets sick and needs
to go to the hospital and it just changes things. So we'll run through that exercise. So kids understand
like how difficult it can be to decide to pay the babysitter, the car insurance bill, the rent,
or the mortgage, all of those sorts of things, because we're really trying to help them understand
why it is that we do the things that we do, and how it impacts other people when we do those
good things, and we spread that kindness. You know, when you're young, everything is so big. The
world is so big, and it can be hard to wrap your mind around sometimes. But when you're giving,
and when you're putting into your community, especially when it's strangers, you're helping
and everything, no matter what the child or what the age, they tend to start to, almost is the
beginning of them seeing, oh, this is bigger than me. And understanding that a lot in life,
almost all of life is bigger than us. And being a part of these things is how we, we really keep
the world moving. We, you know, in small communities, we talk about this all the time. If I do something
in my neighborhood, and somebody does it in the next neighborhood, and then the next neighborhood,
and before you know it, we got a whole community that is a little bit better. The lasagna love part of
this is so much fun. For one thing, this organization has been around for a while. I encourage people
to look into what they've done and everything. It's kind of funny, Laura, of all the weird coincidences.
You mentioned that we don't often think of lasagna with Thanksgiving. You're 100% right,
unless you're talking about the mail-off family, where my not-up would make pasta for me every
Thanksgiving, because I didn't like turkey. I miss her, and I love my not-up. But I bring that up,
because it's when you talk about the budgeting of things and stuff, which is important for almost
every family. Learning to make lasagna is actually a really smart idea when it comes to that.
Lasagna is one of those meals that goes a long way. It goes a lot farther than the ingredients
may look like and stuff, and what a perfect meal to learn to make spaghetti and all those things.
You might not notice a theme with Italian meals that they tend to go out of the bank for your buck
you get and everything. So a great meal, a great partnership there, and a really smart idea of them.
Where is this going to take place? What are the details of this event?
Yeah, but there's two pieces where I'm broadcasting out there are different ways to help. So one is
actually to come and make the lasagna, right? And that's going to be on Saturday, the 29th,
you know, Saturday after Thanksgiving, from 10.30 in the morning till about one. And we are asking
folks to register for that, because we are feeding everybody as well, and I need to know how much
lasagna we need and the things to go alongside as well. But the other part was donations to
use to make the lasagna's themselves. And I'm going to tell you, we have had an incredible
outpouring everything from meat and cheese right down to the sauce being donated. But we do still
have some need for the noodles, and we need a little bit more mozzarella cheese. So if there's
anybody out there who's willing or interested in helping, I would be so happy. Wisconsin
Rapids specifically is the community that's going to be benefiting from this program.
The lasagna love organization has a backlog for helping folks in Wisconsin Rapids of over 20 families.
So we are going to meet and exceed that need on the 29th. So if you're concerned about where your
donations go, it is staying right here in Wisconsin Rapids. That's a great note. Thank you for that.
Also, eye opening, I think, to hear that number and a reminder to our community of how many of our
locals, how many of our neighbors are struggling right now. Those items that she could use,
that the 4-H could use, please keep that in mind. Maybe if you grab an extra thing or something like
that, help out, especially with the mozzarella, because I'm not giving them any in mind. I love
mozzarella, Laura. I'm not kidding. I'm kidding. I'm kidding, I'm kidding.
Please, I know from me and my family, we usually grab a bag or two. Grab an extra one,
donate it, because there's few things that feel better than not only putting in your community,
but on top of that, putting in your community with the love of food.
One last thing I think that these kids can pick up from this, among many, many other things.
And I imagine things that we're not even thinking about, Laura, that we don't always think about
that added things that kids learn, but the joy of cooking for someone and them enjoying that meal.
There are a few things in the world that feel better than that, and to be a little part of that,
whether they make the whole meal themselves or they're just adding a little bit here or there,
they're going to get to experience that feeling. Maybe for the first time,
and boy, they will have a love affair with that the rest of their lives, because there's very
few things that feel so good as that. Yeah, so I'm going to tell you that we've done lasagna love
before in Marshfield, and getting emails from parents back saying, you know what, my kid learned
that they could make lasagna, and last week they made us one, and here's a picture. Look at the
pride on my kid's face, because they learned something, and it's for other people, it's for family,
whatever. But wow, that independence, that pride, that self-satisfaction, awesome.
Go so far. And again, this is an event that we encourage you. We need you to register for everybody.
So if people want to register for Laura, how can they do that? So you know what, we have a website,
but I think the easiest thing to do here on air is to share my phone number. So you can reach me
at 715-421-8439, or you could email me, and my address is Laura, l-a-u-r-a dot huber-hu-b-e-r at
whisk. That's w-i-s-c dot edu. Encourage you to do that everybody. If you're listening to this on
the podcast, Laura, you should does a great job of putting links in there for you and everything.
The producer, Laura, that Laura I'm talking to, but shout out to both Laura's. Both do great work.
And we appreciate all the work that 4-H does in our community. All of our friends at extension.
Love talking with you guys. Find out more also at their website 4-H dot extension dot whisk dot edu.
If you throw in their wood county 4-H, it will pop up first. I tried to test it again this morning.
I'm encouraged to do that everybody. Laura, always good talking with you. Thank you for the time.
Thanks so much for helping us spread the word. We'll talk again real soon.
And thank you everybody for joining us for another edition of WFHR's Rapids Report.
