There are some days where we can all use a little inspiration and even hope in our lives. I look at the headlines and I see war, wild fires, natural disasters, and a whole host of things that make us all worry about the future. Well I got a transfusion of inspiration and hope at the yearly FFA convention held in Indianapolis, Indiana. I knew of the FFA (Future Farmer's of America) when I was in high school, but it was an organization I never joined. However over the course of 3 days I have come see that organization is a force to be reckoned with as it prepares and builds leaders not only for agriculture, but for all aspects of life.
As I came down the escalator at the airport there was a big sign welcoming the FFA. This was my hint as to how big this conference was going to be. The motto for this year is "I CAN, I WLL" which I absolutely love.
The FFA literally takes over the downtown of Indianapolis for a few days. Everywhere you look you see blue jackets. On the back of those jackets is the state along with the high school, county, or other local area each student is from. I was fascinated all week on studying the backs of hundreds of jackets to see how far and wide the FFA, and our US farms are spread. Actually all the states and territories were represented at the conference except the US Virgin Islands. My colleague and I got into a competition to get autographs from all the states. I lost since she got every single signature (Next time Brittany!). But I met someone from almost everywhere as well.
I was at the FFA to represent Bayer CropScience with an awesome team. We had a beautiful booth surrounded by so many other brands. Tractor Supply company was right beside us doing karaoke and dancing all week so we also had a lively spot. Carhartt and Wrangler were also right beside us. And of course Monsanto, Syngenta, Dow and many others were all representing their businesses and showing these future leaders the types of opportunities available for them.
Besides sharing general information about Bayer CropScience we focused on information about bee health. We also wanted to share how important it is to Agvocate about agriculture in general. We had a huge Agvocate wall for FFA members to help us fill up. There were 5 "hands" and each person that visited our booth could choose 1 to throw on the board. The choices were
MENTOR - You love to teach!
LISTEN - You are a great listener!
JOIN - You join communities to share and talk about agriculture!
SHARE - You use all the social media outlets like Snapchat, Instagram, and Twitter to Agvocate!
PROVIDE - You use political channels like writing your local government officials to Agvocate!
On day 1 our wall was starting to fill up and when we left on the final day the wall looked awesome. The trends that showed up were we have lots of Mentors, Sharers, and Listeners. There was a much smaller group of the FFA that were posting about the political route to talk about how to agvocate and illicit change within agriculture. I found this intriguing. From conversations there seemed to be a level of distrust among this generation of the government, but all the more reason to get involved.
Other companies were sharing the same messages about being an Agvocate. And there were people (future leaders and farmers no less) talking about how good GMOs. What a refreshing environment to be in!
Through the course of the week, I spoke to so many kids. They were so engaged and well mannered. We are talking about over 50,000 kids in Indianapolis and NOT ONCE did a FFA member come through not tell me thank-you or use yes sir. This is how I was brought up in rural America and I could only smile and feel pride that this tradition of kindness and manners still survives throughout all of America.
As I talked to so many kids I would get involved in so many great conversations. I asked a few of the visiting FFA kids if they would mind sharing their impact statement or what inspires them. Here are just a few snippets of the type of leaders we have coming to help lead this country in agriculture and other parts of our society.
Doster Harper
"I plan to research beekeeping efforts to increase the sustainability of our environment and the world"
By the way at the very end of the conference Doster visited the booth again. He said his adviser asked each member of his group to go back and get a picture with their favorite booth. Doster, thanks a lot for making my day when you visited me again!
Allie Julian
"I had an amazing ag teacher and she made all the difference. She told me I had potential and I believed her!"
Zach Jacobs
"I want to be the voice for farming on capitol Hill and help bring a positive view to agriculture."
By the way, GO HOKIES! Zach!
Graceyn Newland
"An impact I would like to make on agriculture is educating the public about the industry and the people supporting it through social media. As the reporter of my (FFA) chapter, it is my passion to use the up coming scene of social media for educational purposes. Social media is the new way to reach and audience and I would love move than anything to seize the opportunity and make a difference to ensure the stability of agriculture as we progress.
Shane Stubblefield
"An impact I would like to make is to close the information gap between producers and consumers to create a better understanding of agriculture and its crucial role in feeding the world."
Dalton Beasley
I would like to alter crop genes to where pesticides are obsolete."
Bailey Morell
"I want to start a career in Ag law in order to promote the Ag industry from a positive perspective and from someone who has a personal tie to the ag industry."
Zannah Tyndau
"Coming from an agricultural family and growing up on my family's farm, I have seen the importance of agricultural advocacy. I aspire to become a lawyer to voice my opinion in government and stand up for those who work to food on my plate 3 times a day. I will have an impact on ag by advocating for agriculturalists in government and politics."
Makenzie Snyder
"I've grown up on a farm and seeing our family transition to GMO crops, the impact has been immense. I've spent so much time looking into GMO processes and impacts on the world. I want to be part of that impact, making more and more food for our growing world. I am a strong advocate for GMOs and everything involved."
Aleyana Boothe
"I would like to research and communicate what I learn about things happening in the environment. I believe that the knowledge is power so if I can teach and make people aware of anything then they can use what they learned to educate others. I would like to use education and use technology to impact the future of agriculture.
Grace Holzer
"I hope to communicate to and educate the public about the agriculture industry. I will do so by utilizing social media and the tools of broadcasting. My goal is to teach them about the past, present, and future of Ag!"
Lynnsey Winchell
"I hope to bring passion back to the industry. Many times we are caught up in the money and the politics. Remember why we continue and why we continue regardless of the struggles, both mental and physical. We love what we do, so remember it is worth it. Stay strong to your beliefs and in the beliefs in the society we live in today. For I believe that American agriculture can and will hold true because of the passion we hold in our hearts.
I cannot even begin to describe how impressed I was with the FFA and it members. This includes the advisers who took the time to help get these kids to their destination. In the majority of cases large groups were driving. This was routinely a 6-14 hours drive. The organization is a really a student led and it was running better and more organized than some bushiness I have seen. I will forever cherish my time at this convention and the conversations I had with these kids and my other Bayer Colleagues. I can't wait to try and touch base years from now and see where they are.
Chris, you rock!
ReplyDeleteWhat a great summary of an amazing event! Good job!
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