Goat Club well on its way to meeting donation goals

Nearly 50 Goat Club members stand tall inside the Community Building at the 4-H Fairgrounds after receiving a check for $3,500 from Hendricks Power to go toward the cost of much-needed new goat pens. A matching grant through CoBank brought the total to $7,000, moving the Goat Club even closer to its goal of $31,000.

Banner Graphic/NICK WILSON

The ever-busy Goat Barn, an epicenter for the annual Putnam County 4-H Fair and a myriad of events throughout the year at the Putnam County Fairgrounds, is in need of new pens to house the animals for which it is named.

Seeking a total of $31,000 to purchase and install 156 removable galvanized-steel pens, each measuring five-feet long by five-feet wide (25 total square feet), the pens will be used as a permanent replacement for the aging pens currently in place.

Helping toward that total was Hendricks Power, presenting a check for $3,500 during the Goat Club’s monthly meeting.

Furthermore, a matching grant through CoBank (a nationally-recognized financial services company) raised that amount to $7,000, bringing the Goat Club’s official total to more than $20,000 raised, nearly two-thirds of its original goal of $31,000.

Katrina Asher, superintendent of the Goat Club, took the time to explain a little about the donation process and the club’s overall goals.

“One thing I really want people to know is just how much our club has grown,” she said. “What I love about the goat project is that, if you have a kid who is just starting out (in 4-H) and wants to be in livestock, beef and cattle are very expensive -- even pigs can rack up a lot of money. Goats are easy to care for, they’re not very expensive and they don’t require a lot of room.

“If there are people out there who are as passionate about this as we are, we would love for them to donate to our project,” Asher continued, noting that only $9,000 is remains for the club to meet its goal.

“That $9,000 is really attainable,” she said. “We have an account set up at North Salem State Bank ... our account is PC Kids Goat Barn so they can donate to that or they can send it to me.”

Those looking to make a donation directly to Asher can make checks payable to Katrina Asher; they can send a check or money order to 4 N. Rush St., Roachdale, IN 46172; or they can contact her via phone or email at 522-1571 or kasher@tds.net. All donations are tax deductible and each pen can be covered with a $200 contribution.

Also, each sponsorship of $200 or more will include the family and/or business name displayed on a pen and on the sponsor banner inside the Goat Barn.

Also on hand at Thursday’s Goat Club meeting were two representatives from Hendricks Power.

“Our (donation) is actually part of our Operation Roundup grant,” CEO Greg Ternet explained of the $3,500 Hendricks Power donated. “Which, if our members elect to do this, they round their bills up every month to the next dollar amount. So those extra cents gets put into the Community Foundation.”

Ternet was joined by Vice President of Corporate Marketing Dana Cochran, who helped present an oversized check to the Goat Club.

“We started communicating and I began to look at the project and thought that it was a great project,” Cochran said. “We like to choose projects that affect a lot of families and a lot of kids, and these will be used for many years.”

Other ways the Goat Club has been raising funds has been through flower sales, garage sales, concession stands and public breakfasts.

For more information about the Goat Club, its many efforts or further instructions how to donate, persons may call Asher at 522-1571 or email kasher@tds.net.