No-interest Livestock Loans for 4-H and FFA market animals are available for youth residing in Santa Clara County. The money is available from the Ed Vargas Livestock Fund. Please select this link for the application: Livestock Purchase Loan and Promissory Note Fill out the top portion of the application, then contact us for an interview appointment (see below).
Applicant interviews will be short – approx. 10-15 min. The interviews are intended to compliment the real-life education provided by the FFA and 4-H programs. The deadlines for requesting an interview are: last Friday of September for Steers, Last Friday of February for Sheep, Swine, and Goat. Applicants will be notified of available times and places during the following week, but no later than the second Sunday following the deadline. The interviews will take place in mid-October for Steers and mid-March for other species. All that is needed for the request is your name, telephone number and/or email, and the species you wish to raise (see below). Loan amounts available are:
- $1,200 for steer
- $500 for sheep, swine and market goat
The number of loans granted may be limited by available funds, so do not delay in contacting the Foundation. Interviews will be granted to applicants in the order requested. The challenge for applicants is to market their animal such that they earn funds to buy any second animal in the following year.
Applicants must be residents of Santa Clara County. They must bring the application and an adult co-signer with them for their interview. Neither the applicant nor the co-signing adult should sign the application until the conclusion of a successful interview. Applicants need to request an interview time slot by sending an email to
MarketLoans@TheCloverFoundation.org.
For each applicant we need:
- Name
- Telephone Number and/or eMail address
- Species requested (Steer, sheep, swine or goat)
If they do not have access to email, applicants can send a fax to 913-523-0866, or they can leave a message at 408-927-9222. The deadlines for requesting an interview are as noted above.
If additional information is needed, please send an email to: MarketLoans@TheCloverFoundation.org.