Thriving Forward

Promoting healthy people and communities one family at a time.

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Navigating Youth Mental Health in Shooting Sports Projects

April 17th, 2025
By Matthew R Rodriguez
IntroductionRecently I had the privilege of speaking at the State 4-H shooting sports meeting in Red Bluff, CA, on the topic of youth mental well-being. Leading up to the presentation, I was a little nervous. I did not know the audience. Also, there can be stigma around the topic of mental health and I wasn…
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The Relation between Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) and Developmental Context

April 17th, 2025
By Matthew R Rodriguez, Liliana Vega, Kaitlyn A Murray
IntroductionYouth don’t learn in a vacuum—they learn in different places and with different people. Learning can happen at school, while hanging out with friends at the park, or in a 4-H community club. All of these contexts provide youth with opportunities to interact with others and with their environments…
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Extending the Reach of 4-H into the Classroom

March 25th, 2025
By Matthew R Rodriguez
Why 4-H partners with schoolsDid you know that 4-H offers youth programming for schools? In Placer, Nevada, Sutter, and Yuba Counties, our 4-H programming extends beyond clubs and camps and goes all the way into our school systems. Currently, we offer a variety of youth programming options for schools…
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Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs): The Original 10 ACEs (Part 1 of Series)

February 21st, 2025
By Kaitlyn A Murray, Sally E Neas, Matthew R Rodriguez, Liliana Vega
Research on Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) shows how traumatic events, or life experiences that cause psychological distress (Gradus & Galea, 2022), that occur during childhood (0-17 years) have profound implications on an individual's long-term health and well-being, physically, mentally, and...
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