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Steamboat Springs — Fear not, Routt County 4-H members: "Stimulus" money might be headed your way.

Several 4-H supporters, worried that the recession could depress prices at the Junior Livestock Sale, are starting a fund to help out. They're jokingly calling it a livestock stimulus fund, 4-H Agent Jay Whaley said. People and businesses can donate money to help increase overall prices for livestock sold at auction.

"If we have a set amount of money in there, we can divide it up by the number of animals," Whaley said, thereby raising the floor so every youth gets at least some money.

Mountain Valley Bank will handle the fund. Dean Vogelaar, president of the bank's Steamboat Springs branch, is among the organizers. They're trying to avoid losing ground in animal prices, Vogelaar said.

Youths make about $900 net for beef, sheep, swine and goat projects, according to a survey conducted in 2008. About 80 percent of youths put the money toward college, after they reimburse their parents for costs. About 15 percent put it toward the next year's livestock project.

Participant numbers increased this year across livestock categories, Whaley said.

"Knowing that the economy is a little bit soft right now and that we have an increase in animals to be sold at the auction, we thought we should start getting out in front of it a little bit and seeing what we could do to fortify, to support, to hold up the sale," Vogelaar said.

His team sent letters to businesses that have supported the sale and 4-H. Ideally, people and companies would just keep buying animals, Vogelaar said.

"We continue to encourage all the buyers to be there and buy as they have in the past," he said. "We're just trying to create another opportunity to drive some funds to supplement what happens at the sale."

Other organizers include Mike Bell, Medora Fralick, John Kerst, Dennis Kuntz and Bernard Petersen. Kerst, director of business development at Yampa Valley Bank, said he hopes to help the youths make money, learn the business and preserve the agriculture of the valley.

"4-H, FFA is what this community has been about for longer than it's been a resort community," Kerst said. "And we treasure this Western heritage that we have, and a lot of these kids are part of it."

Kuntz said he'd been a 4-H supporter since he was a member.

"It's probably the best program any kid can be involved in, in this community or area," he said.

Organizers will look at the sale and the size of the fund to determine how to divide the money, Vogelaar said.

They "thought this would be an equitable source that would create opportunities for buyers and create a level playing field in terms of being able to supplement the sale," he said.

People and businesses can donate at Mountain Valley Bank branches in Steamboat, Hayden, Meeker and Walden.

Whaley said he was grateful for the group's help.

"It's pretty amazing to me that we have these people in the community," he said.