Why I Want To Become An FFA

The National FFA Organization (The Future Farmers of America) is not only for farmers anymore. It used to be only for farmers to help improve their crops and livestock. Now they opened it up to anyone who wants to improve themselves and their talents. The organization has turned into a community who rely on each other and help each other. Anyone who joins FFA will benefit Anyone who joins FFA will benefit because as a member students acquire skills such as responsibility, leadership, and teamwork.

Throughout my high school years I have achieved more than I thought I ever could. I began to get involved with the Evergreen FFA due to my family background of farming. As I got more involved I decided to run for an office and today I am president of the Evergreen FFA and a State Degree recipient. One thing I love about my experience in FFA is getting to help people in need and making our community a better place through all of the community service that we do. For example we go to christmas cheer to help local people in need during the holiday season. We also collect can food items for thanksgiving dinners for the less fortunate in the area.

As a St. James middle school boy, I was all about hunting, even though I hadn’t ever been. My dad, being the awesome guy that he is, said he’d take me if I genuinely wanted to go. Little did I know, my dad had been studying up for this on YouTube because he knew the worst part comes after you shoot a deer and have to clean it. He watched video after video learning how to properly clean a deer before you take it to a shop for it to be processed. The only thing that I knew I wanted to do was shoot a deer!

Some people who show get inspired to work with animals in the future. Some of them end up going to college to become a judge for livestock shows. My friend morgan who’s been showing with my sisters since I was like three, is going Cal Poly right now for that reason. Doing this activity takes a lot of dedication, from around May to about October I am waking up early to feed my goats, then working and feeding them every night. Also I have to weigh them every weekend and keep track of their weight. Showing and taking care of goats is a lot of work, but in the end it is so much fun. When you win something big and you know that all your hard work paid off is the best feeling. Anybody can show an animal, you can join a 4-H club, or when in high school you can do FFA, and doing both clubs will teach and help you with your project. I love showing and all that comes with it, even the work. Working with my sisters and friends from my 4-H group on my animals, are some of my favorite memories. People never really see this part of the fair, but to me it’s my favorite part and always will be. Nevertheless showing will forever be a part of my life, even when I am not doing it

Future Business Leaders of America is a fast organization that has taught me a lot about leadership. I have held the office as secretary for our FBLA chapter for two years, and held the position as annual reporter the previous year. Myself and two other individuals created a community service project to raise money and awareness for Cystic Fibrosis; we competed at the state conference in Topeka, Kansas and received first place which qualified us to compete at the national level last summer in Atlanta, Georgia. It was an experience that I will never forget. I have also been a dedicated member of FFA for four years, I have held the position as Class vice president for three years, and I have been a member of National Honor Society for two years. National Honor Society is a service club that gives to the community and school. Service has taught me compassion and understanding. I trust that service is contagious. When people help others it can cause a chain reaction; one good deed leads to another. I enjoy helping others and realizing that I have made a positive impact on an individual’s

As a child of a coon hunter, I personally love the sport. But there is more to it than just the sport that I love. When I started getting into hunting and showing hounds, I was about 12. Not because I was forced to, but it was because I watched my Dad do it and I wanted to be like him. So I started off at YEP events. I did everything I could there. If there was a field race, I entered my dog. If there was a treeing contest, I entered my dog. Did I do all of them? No, because I would be at another event when the one I signed up for was. I was either in it or watching my sister. When I started hunting more than anything, I started at a YEP event also. I hunted a dog named Jeb, he was my mom’s hound. In my first competition hunt ever, I had won high scoring male and second place. I was knocked out of first because of 25 circle points.

Through the AFA Animal Institute, my final goal is to experience Midwestern agriculture and the animal health corridor during this once in a lifetime opportunity available to someone like me from Florida, to be able to share my experiences in the future and appreciate animal agriculture in Florida and across the

My interest in the FFA is more meaningful than just raising animals or going to LDE and CDE competitions that teach us life skills we will use in the future like public speaking yes those things are important to me but it is the people and family like atmosphere that make me love the FFA I could not see my life being complete without it.The FFA has shaped me to become the person I am today.A person that is not afraid to to stand up in front of hundreds of unknown people. A person who no matter the circumstances always tries to include everyone. A person who is a leader but also knows how to follow when necessary. Without the FFA or future farmers of america I don't see my life turning out the way it has.I would be incomplete lacking all

Have you ever been hunting in the woods? Have you ever shot something that has four legs, each one has a hoof on them. It can get gigantuan antlers and sheer size, but yet I don't harm hunters often even though people still want to eat me for dinner. If so, have you ever shot a deer while 20 feet up in the air?Have you ever had your legs shake so bad you think you might collapse? If you have gone hunting you know what I have felt.When we have time we go out to our farm in Fulton County (which is prime hunting land). We have been hunting there since I was seven years old . My dad has been hunting for over 20 years and yet he still has feelings for hunting. Although

After this I still love hunting and always will, and will look forward to hunting season with the same excitement that I did before I shot my first

“Giving public speeches and listening to others speak about agriculture was inspiring to me,” Mitchell said. “My involvement in the FFA program in high school definitely had an impact on me becoming an agricultural advocate.”

Four years ago, in my girlfriend's basement, the question came up “What are we doing for spring break?” Nobody knew what to do. Some ideas arose like going to the beach but nothing really caught anyone's attention. Then finally, her dad mentioned going on a hunt. Immediately, my eyes lit up. This was going to be my first major hunt that wasn’t a duck or turkey. Then the thought of what kind of hunt came to me. I thought for a while but I couldn't think of anything so her dad and I went to the computer to do some research. We were looking for a cheap hunt that wasn’t too far away and something that wouldn’t take longer than a week. We came up with the idea of doing a 4 day hog hunt in Tennessee. I was all for this

For as long as I can remember, I have been showing sheep. My mom likes to tell the story of when I was little and we lived in Texas, we were showing sheep at the Houston Stock Show and Rodeo for Texas A&M and one of the ewes had a baby. We were not expecting it at all. Well when it was time for the ewe to go in the show ring I took the lamb in and pretended I was my dad, showing this little lamb right next to her mother. That is one of the first memories I have. Since then I have become very active in 4-H and FFA. Even though some people think that 4-H and FFA are evil organizations that are desensitizing kids to death, I have had the most incredible experiences and learned some of life's most important lessons because I was given the opportunity to be a part of

Hunting is very valuable to me, but the value is deeper than just hunting. There are so many aspects of hunting that I love but I hold my bow above all of them. Having my bow with me when I’m in the stand gives me a since of dominance, also brings pride knowing I’ve worked hard and stayed committed to something I truly love. Even though I would have liked to been given all my hunting needs, I’m proud of myself for going out and getting those needs by myself. While hunting in general I like to follow a code of ethics, which is a set of rules based on personal ethical values. With all the different animals to hunt and ways to hunt them, I take the most interest in hunting the allusive whitetail deer with my cherished bow. Buying my bow then getting into bow hunting caused me to take responsibility and taught me to stay committed to my true values in my life.

On July 12 at 10:46 a.m., I met with my advisor and future livestock judging coach Mr. Ben Williamson. I was very excited to see that my advisor was Mr. Williamson. As I believe we will work well together, and that he will be able to help guide me through these next few years. I was very appreciative of the time he took out of his day to talk with me. First, I briefly introduced myself and talked about my involvement in various activities in high school and agriculture. We then talked about the livestock judging team and what they do. Afterwards, Mr. Williamson proceeded to tell me a little bit about himself. Growing up on a stereotypical midwestern family farm in southwest Ohio, Mr. Williamson has had a great depth of exposure to agriculture. The family farm he grew up on grew grain and primarily raised cattle and hogs. However, his brother had a few goats through 4-H. Concurrently, Mr. Williamson was in 4-H for eleven years. During this time, he showed goats for a year then transitioned to showing cattle and hogs for the rest of his 4-H career. He earned his B.S. degree in animal science at Morehead State University, Kentucky. This is where he met his wife. She was there on softball scholarship and they both lived on the university`s farm. To further his studies, he went to the University of Arkansas for a Master`s in Animal Science with a focus on reproduction, genetics, and technology. Mr. Williamson said that all these agricultural experiences he had during his youth