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Rocky Mountain Oyster Feed event is the year’s biggest 4-H fundraiser

Entertainment at the 2024 Rocky Mountain Oyster Fry includes a mechanical bull, live music and live and silent auctions.
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If You Go …

What: Rocky Mountain Oyster Feed.

When: Saturday, March 18. Dinner 6-8 p.m., followed by an auction and music by Derringer until 10:30 p.m.

Where: Eagle River Center at the Eagle County Fairgrounds, Eagle.

Cost: Tickets are available from 4-H members or at the door. Tickets are $18 for adults, $9 for children ages 6 to 12 and $9 for seniors 65 and older. Kids 5 and under are free. A cash bar will be open all evening.

More information: The money goes to 4-H scholarships and Eagle County Fair Awards. Call 970-328-8630 or go to http://www.eaglecounty.us/csu.

Get yer gun

The auction features a handcrafted 10-gun gun cabinet and a Demi-lune table. To fill that gun cabinet, Trip’s Guns Supply in Eagle is coordinating a long list of firearms to be auctioned, including:

• Henry 17HMR Golden Boy

• Weatherby S2 6.5 Creedmoor

• Weatherby S2 300WM

• Savage 111 Trophy Hunter XP 7MM

• Savage B.Mag 17WSM

• Savage Axis II Stainless 25-06

• Savage Axis II Stainless 243

• Remington 700 SPS 270

• Remington 700 SPS 30-06

• Marlin X7 308

• Glock 43 9mm

• Hard Shell Locking 2 Rifle Case

• Canon 42 Gun Safe

EAGLE — Bulls have made a total commitment to the annual Rocky Mountain Oyster Fry — if you know what we mean, and we think you do.

The Rocky Mountain Oyster Feed returns Saturday to the Eagle River Center — it’s the year’s biggest fundraiser for one of Eagle County’s biggest youth programs.

“The event raises the kind of money that allows local 4-H programs to be as extensive as they are in Eagle County,” said Jenny Leonetti, who helps run the local 4-H Club programs.



26 years of oysters

This is the 26th Rocky Mountain Oyster Feed. It ran for about 20 years, but went on sabbatical. Six years ago, when the budget-cut ax fell on local 4-H Club scholarships and awards, the kids stepped up to do something about it.

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The money they raise will go to 4-H Club Grand Champion awards and the college scholarships that the club’s senior members earn every year.

“This is the only event of the year that sponsors scholarships, awards and club support. Without it, none of that would be possible,” Leonetti said.

4-H Club members gather silent auction items, sell tickets and make homemade desserts.

By the way, Rocky Mountain oysters are a delicacy, but if your palate runs to less exotic fare, then they’ll have barbecue and everything that goes with it, as well as homemade desserts.

“We’ve had such an outpouring of support from so many generous donors and attendees,” Leonetti said.

They’ll auction 11 firearms, a gun safe and a gun case; you can buy raffle tickets for a Ford pickup truck,and a massive silent auction.

“It’s the best silent auction we’ve ever had,” Leonetti said.

The mechanical bull and the bouncy castle are free for attendees, because Dr. Susan O’Brien’s Colorado On-Site Vet Services is sponsoring it.

4-H Club for life

4-H Club is great training for life. It teaches kids to set long-term goals and work toward them, one step at a time. There’s very little instant gratification. There’s also room for success, along with the occasional failure, just like life.

4-H Club kids work on these projects all year. There’s the project and then there’s the book where they keep track of the project — how much time and money they spent on it.

Some of these kids will have six projects for three different clubs.

Horses are year-round. So is County Council, if you’re elected. Livestock projects begin in the fall and end when the fair does in late summer. All sorts of other clubs and projects require a kid’s attention for months at a time. Steers wander off like they’re in search of a support group for beleaguered bovines. Horses act up because, well … they’re horses and they don’t need a reason.

You get to be in 4-H Club for about 10 years and then you go off to college or work or life.

Staff Writer Randy Wyrick can be reached at 970-748-2935 and rwyrick@vaildaily.com.


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