norway – The Oxford County 4-H club is several months into an ambitious fundraising campaign to attract local donors to help expand county programs.

Since January, the club has raised $135,000, but is hoping to reach $250,000 by the end of the year, according to Susan Jennings of Oxford County 4-H.

“This is the first time we’ve done this,” Jennings said Friday. “This is the first true county campaign, with the idea that people like to support their local youth programs.”

The money will be invested with the statewide 4-H program called the Pine Tree State 4-H Foundation, with the interest pulled down to fund clubs, livestock programs and after-school programs in the county.

Jennings said, too, that young people will be involved in the management of the money.

“We’ll have some kind of board with equal young people and investors so kids learn how to invest,” she said. “They’ll learn all about decisions about funding programs.”

In Oxford County, 350 kids ages 5 to 19 are involved in 4-H clubs, and 5,000 kids participate in other 4-H programs. The programs range in focuses, including technology, leadership and youth governance, health, and sustainable living and environmentalism, Jennings said.