Paul's Risk Management Essay Contest

My time with the Risk Management Essay contest in Washington, DC was amazing. I had the chance to hang out for four days with some awesome FFA members who have taken their SAE and FFA experience to a new level by becoming involved in this contest. Matthew Earnest, Brandon Essink, Adam Francis, Hanah Georges, Kaitlyn Gill, Thad Gorczyca, Tyler Ray, Mitchell Ross, and Joe Schartz were the ten student winners this year. The ten of them and their advisor or parents came to DC for an all expense paid trip in cooperation with USDA and the Risk Management Agency. The Ten national winning essays were selected on the basis of content, adherence to the assigned topic, grammar, organization, originality and creativity. This is one program that I highly encourage every FFA out there to become involved in! Who doesn’t want to learn more about agriculture and get the chance to serve as an advocate during a free trip to Washington, DC?

The first night we arrived we had a kick-off session where we had the chance to meet everyone and Melissa Brown, Melissa Higdon, and Kent Scheske from National FFA told us what to expect this week. Later that night we went on an amazing night tour of DC and saw the Lincoln Memorial, Korean Memorial, Vietnam Wall, World War II Memorial and finally the Washington Monument. It was gorgeous!

The next day all ten students went to Capitol hill to meet with their respective congressmen. The students had a great chance to see the capitol. Learn more about government, and also to advocate for a nation’s most important industry. Later that night we had a leadership workshop and I took the ten winners to see the Jefferson and FDR memorials. We talked about our own vision for the future, and reflected on the vision that some influential leaders in American history have had.

Friday, we all had the chance to meet with USDA Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack. HE shared with us some words of wisdom and talked with us about the future of our industry. Michael Scuse and some other USDA representatives shared some brief remarks as well.

On Saturday we took a tour of the White House and it was a special day. All of us got the chance to see some really neat parts of the White House and learn about the history that went with it. It was a great last day to the trip!

Hannah's Happenings - New Hampshire State Convention

I traveled up to the Granite State from May 7th – 9th to help the New Hampshire FFA Association celebrate “Blue Jackets, Great Adventures”! I started the convention off by riding with FFA mom extraordinaire Mrs. Cox all the way up to Bartlett, a 2.5 hour scenic tour of the state.


As soon as I arrived at the hotel, I was greeted by the state officers, advisors and members from all across the state, which was my first indication that I was going to be right at home! I kicked off my time in NH with attending the first session of the convention and helping out throughout the evening with presenting Granite State FFA members with their much deserved awards.



The following morning, I spent time with about 70 members where we talked about how to become a V.I.P. and we definitely walked away as very important people! We celebrated student success for the rest of the afternoon with the parliamentary procedure demonstration and rocking convention sessions, and then we followed up the day with the dance. If you want to learn how to dance, definitely check out NH FFA members because they know how to get down (rubber chicken and all!)I had so much fun with everyone busting moves and even got to witness the magic as the Region 9 boys danced around their advisor to “Sandstorm”. Yes, it was truly priceless.



The final morning of convention I had breakfast with Tianna and L.J. before making my way to the banquet and rounding out the convention. We awarded the CDE winners and finally announced the 2009-2010 Granite State Officer Team. Congrats Courtney B., Courtney C., Derek, Becca, Emmalee, Arielle and Alicia!


I owe a BIG thanks to all the New Hampshire chapters that made me feel so welcome and invited me in with open arms. And I need to thank Caitlin for road-tripping with me all the way back to the airport (and I got to see my very first moose!) I had a blast and look forward to my next visit to New England in September! :)



God Bless,
Hannah

Pauls Puerto Rico Convention

Puerto Rico FFA State Convention was one of my favorite memories thus far! I arrived on Friday night and was picked up by Gaby, the state president from Puerto Rico and her mother. We stayed the night at her house and as we traveled I was able to see a large part of the island. It is so beautiful!
The next morning we woke up and went to the caves or “cuevas” in Puerto Rico with her brother Nefty as well as some past and current friends and state officers including Omar, Jose Ivan, William, Gaby, and Yair. The cuevas were gorgeous. I felt like I was on top of the world. We were led by Omar and our trusty guide dog Pachando Explorando. These were some of the most incredible sites that I have ever been to! It was also nice to get to know the FFA members that I went with. They are so much fun! That night we all went to the hotel at Isla Verde “Green Island” near San Juan, Puerto Rico.

Saturday Elisa and Sixto took me on a site seeing tour across San Juan to see everything from the capitol (where they were filming a Johnny Depp movie), to the San Juan Cristobal and El Morro old Spanish forts. Spain used to own Puerto Rico for several hundred years before it became a territory of the US so I learned more about that history. We saw the beach and many different tourist parts of PR. Then it happened… we ate some Mofongo! It is quite possibly one of my favorite foods ever. Me gusta Mofongo! It is mashed up plantains. It was very good. We then went back and met with many FFA members who were there at the hotel. I helped set up some stuff as well. That evening my roommate Albert Troche came! He is a cool guy and I have known him for many years now. I also met Isa and Freddie (two more state officers.) We had a great time together.
The next morning the students started to pour in and I made tons of new friends! The first session was on Sunday night and it was a blast. The state officer team did reflections and the history of Puerto Rico FFA. It was pretty incredible. I gave a keynote that night and shared with my new friends in Puerto Rico. After the session ended the CDEs started and I was able to watch many various speaking cdes. We also spent time together with music and dancing in the convention room. I met many collegiate members from Mayaguez who taught me how to Merenge and Salsa dance.

The next day all the students left the convention site to either go to more CDEs or to come to a workshop that I put on with my good buddy Albert. It was a lot of fun and I met ever more great members. That night was the state degree ceremony and more convention sessions. The state officers gave some awesome keynote addresses as well. Once the session was over the students left and got dressed up for a ball that night. We danced the night away and also watched the talent show.
Tuesday wrapped up convention with a bang! The state officers were elected and the final session was complete. I was very sad to leave all my new friends from Puerto Rico, but I hope to see them when I go back to visit!

Puerto Rico FFA Estado Convención fue uno de mis recuerdos favoritos hasta el momento! Llegué el viernes por la noche y fue recogido por Gaby, el Presidente del Estado de Puerto Rico y su madre. Nos quedamos la noche en su casa y viajamos como he podido ver una gran parte de la isla. Es tan hermoso! A la mañana siguiente nos despertamos y fuimos a las cuevas en Puerto Rico con su hermano Nefty así como algunos anteriores y actuales amigos y los funcionarios del Estado entre ellos Omar, José Iván, Guillermo, Gaby, y Yair. El cuevas fueron magníficos. Me sentía como si estuviera en la cima del mundo. Fuimos dirigido por Omar y nuestro fiel perro guía Pachando Explorando. Estos fueron algunos de los lugares más increíbles que he sido! También fue bueno conocer a los miembros de la FFA que fui con el. Son tan divertido! Esa noche, todos fuimos al hotel en Isla Verde Isla Verde "cerca de San Juan, Puerto Rico.

Sábado Aleca Sixto y me llevó a ver un sitio turístico en San Juan para ver de todo, desde la capital (donde estaban filmando una película de Johnny Depp), a San Juan Cristóbal y El Morro de edad Español fuertes. España utiliza a la propiedad de Puerto Rico por varios cientos de años antes de que se convirtió en un territorio de los EE.UU. por lo que aprendí más acerca de esa historia. Vimos la playa y de turismo diferentes partes del PR. Entonces ocurrió ... comíamos algunos Mofongo! Es posiblemente uno de mis comidas favoritas nunca. Me gusta Mofongo! Es puré de plátano. Es muy bueno. Luego volvió y se reunió con muchos miembros de FFA que estaban allí en el hotel. Me ayudó a establecer unas cosas también. Esa noche mi habitación Alberto Troche llegó! Él es un tipo fresco y lo he conocido desde hace muchos años. También me reuní y Freddie Isa (dos más los funcionarios del Estado.) Hemos tenido un gran tiempo juntos. A la mañana siguiente los estudiantes comenzaron a verter en toneladas y he hecho nuevos amigos! La primera sesión fue el domingo por la noche y era una explosión. El funcionario estatal hizo reflexiones del equipo y la historia de Puerto Rico FFA. Fue bastante increíble. Me dio un discurso de apertura la noche y que compartió con mis nuevos amigos en Puerto Rico. Después de terminado el período de sesiones comenzó el CDE y pude ver muchas diferentes hablando CDES. También pasó mucho tiempo junto con la música y el baile en el salón de convenciones. Conocí a muchos de los miembros colegiados Mayagüez que me enseñó a bailar Salsa y Merenge.

Al día siguiente todos los alumnos abandonaron la convención, o bien van al sitio a CDE o más para llegar a un taller que me pongo con mi buen amigo Albert. Fue muy divertido y nunca me reuní con los miembros más grandes. Esa noche fue la ceremonia de estado y grado de convención más sesiones. Los funcionarios estatales dieron algunos discursos impresionante también. Una vez que el período de sesiones fue de más de la izquierda y estudiantes se viste de una pelota que la noche. Bailamos toda la noche y también vieron los talentos. Martes convención envuelto con una explosión! El estado se eligieron y la sesión final fue completa. Yo estaba muy triste de dejar a todos mis nuevos amigos de Puerto Rico, pero espero a ver cuando vuelvo a visitar!

Maine Convention!

The Maine FFA Association held it's annual convention this past week. With 164 members, advisors, and guest present, it was certainly a good time! To kick things off, the office had to be organized. We all worked together to sort information, stuff packets, and get things ready for the convention at the Universtiy of Maine. Here, State Sentinel Erin takes a quick rest after working for hours on end.

Kicking off the 2009 Maine FFA convention! Building the Future of Maine FFA!

After day one, we all loaded up on school buses and headed over to the bowling alley for black light bowling. We basically rented out the whole place. Members bowled non stop for 2 hours and even took over the arcade. Props to the Ashland FFA Chapter for a good game of bowling :)

All good things must come to an end. I loved hanging out with everybody in Maine. The Easton FFA chapter is pretty sweet! They are home of the 08-09 State FFA President Ms. Kristen Boxwell.

I had a really good time at the convention. Day one was full of sessions, campus tours, and the banquet!! (rocked my socks off!). Members came out with their best and brightest to compete in CDE's for 2 days. Good luck to all the winners as they head on to Nationals in the fall.

If you have never been to Maine, you should go. It is a beautiful place with super nice people. Hey, you might even see a moose.

~Regina

Hannah's Happenings - Blast from the Past!

While I was home last week I spent some time at the house of my best friend Stewart’s grandparents, Jay and Linda Pfeiffer. After several cups of coffee and catching up on life, Linda noticed my FFA jacket lying on my luggage and mentioned that Jay’s old jacket was probably upstairs in the closet. Stewart dug around and found a faded blue corduroy jacket that is grandfather wore in his FFA days all those years ago.


Of course, I couldn’t resist taking a few pictures. Note the differences not only in color, but Jay’s jacket even has the old emblem with “vocational agriculture” around the top and the stitching on the name. Jay served as Treasurer of the Kenton FFA Chapter (Ohio) in 1954-1955.


Although there are many changes that our jacket has gone through over the years, it is so amazing to know that our organization still stands on the same values and mission for the past 81 years. With this much history, it’s no wonder we take such pride in the FFA and the amount that we’ve accomplished. Such a tradition of excellence! Not only that, but we continue to challenge ourselves by taking new risks and advancing the way we look at leadership and agriculture.


I won’t rant and rave much longer, but I would encourage you to try to experience some of our history. Whether you find an old jacket in a closet, sit and talk with a former member or actually listen to the crazy stories your ag teacher tells you about “the good ‘ol days”, embrace what was and what is the FFA.

God Bless,
Hannah

Hannah's Happenings - Cory-Rawson FFA Banquet

This past Wednesday, May 6th I had the opportunity to join the Cory-Rawson FFA Chapter for their annual parent member banquet where they celebrated how their chapter stepped up and stood out this past year. Mr. Marx and the chapter were very busy this year attending the Farm Science Review, taking vet science field trips, going on the annual Ohio Farm Tour, hosting a Leadership Night and conducting a chapter officer retreat. I had the pleasure of hanging out with Tessa Simpson and her family during the banquet and learned all about her six basset hound puppies (if I’m lucky, they said they would mail me one!). A big thank you goes out to Mr. Marx and the Cory-Rawson FFA for allowing me to be a part of their celebration.



God Bless,

Hannah

Hannah's Happenings - Ohio FFA Convention!

On Thursday, April 30th both Laila and I made our way to Columbus, Ohio, to dig in to the Ohio FFA Convention. We spent our first night in the Buckeye State visiting some friends on the campus of The Ohio State University. Go Bucks! The only downside to being back on campus was driving past The Shoe (our football stadium) and realizing that I don’t have season football tickets for this fall. :( Guess I’ll just have to watch my Buckeyes on TV this year.


Friday morning started out bright and early with Laila and I’s workshop where I had the chance to catch up with friends from camp this past summer and hang out with chapters I haven’t seen in years. After grabbing pizza with my home chapter, the Hillsdale FFA, we made our way over to the first convention session and listened to the hilarious Ed Gerety. Our afternoon workshop was particularly fun for me because for the first time ever, my parents were there watching! Although dad felt the need to make faces at me the whole time, it was still really nice to have them there for support.


Later that evening, we avoided the tornadoes swarming over the convention hall, and attended the Past State Officer Reunion. Last but not least, we watched Michael Peterson wow the audience with his message and his music.


The following morning, Laila and I rounded out the convention with the last two sessions which included the career development event winners and the state FFA degrees. Also, a big congrats goes out to Jeremy and the new 2009-2010 Ohio State Officer Team!

All in all, it was so good to be home and finally see some familiar faces! I had such a good time catching up with old friends and seeing past teammates from over the years. Plus, I got to teach Laila how to properly do an “O-H!” :)


The next stop on my journey is the Cory-Rawson FFA Banquet in northwest Ohio and then on to the New Hampshire State FFA Convention. It’s sure to be a busy May!

As promised...
Top Played Songs:
“Kiss a Girl” – Keith Urban
“Then” – Brad Paisley
"Sideways" - Dierks Bentley
“Six Feet Under the Stars” – All Time Low
“Jessie’s Girl” – Rick Springfield
Book I can’t get my nose out of:
None at the moment, but I plan to start another book by Stephanie Meyer called “The Host” very soon.

God Bless,

Hannah

Oregon State Convention!!

Hey Errebody! So… where have I been recently? From the East to West Coast and a few fabulous places in between! I started my adventure of state conventions in the Beaver State of Oregon! I have always loved Oregon as they are my neighbor and all; in fact my mom often expresses her desire to move there for their beautiful sights, no sales tax and kind people. Having spent about a week there I now know just what my mom was talking about.
Their State Convention was held in Le Grande, OR with approximately 1,600 people in attendance. Flying over and driving through Oregon I was surprised to see so many vastly different landscapes. There were rivers and lakes, surrounded in some areas by beautiful green pastures, and in other areas pine trees, snow and mountains. Le Grande was a small community but very welcoming and the perfect place for my first state convention. State officers- Thomas, Julie, Patty, Quad, Tiffany and Allen did an excellent job bringing their convention and Oregon FFA to Life (they even had really cool life-sized cut outs)!

This is a picture with a past Oregon State officer and the visiting state officers at their convention. They were a lot of fun! I wish them all the best as they celebrate their own conventions! From Left to Right: Laura from Idaho, PSO John from Oregon, Tammy from Washington, Levy from California, Luis from Washington, and Michelle from Colorado (who was actually just on a road trip and happened to come through Le Grande during convention- how cool).

Visiting State Officers at the Dance!


They even had fireworks at their convention! How cool is that! After watching the fireworks we all loaded mini-buses and headed to pizza!


Aboard the Perrydale Mini-bus!!

Astoria FFA!!

Perrrydale FFA- Winners of the 2007 Million Hour Challenge!



The above pictures are from a community marshmallow roasting, song singing and story-telling event. In attendance were the Astoria chapter, the Perrydale chapter and the Paisely chapter. The campfire was a blast! I inquisitively watched the craftsmanship of Ryan, Joe and Jesse from Perrydale who have roasting marshmallows down to a science. I also learned that the Paisley students also go to a really small school- it was fun to learn about their campuses’ unique activities and opportunities. Then we were serenaded by the ever talented Astoria chapter members with a variety of campfire songs. Hutch (As they call their advisor from Perrydale -you’d recognize him from his hat) also chimed in with some great campfire melodies. Thanks again for inviting us!


2009-2010 Oregon State Officers!
From Left to Right: Jordyn Coon, Jana Schiely, Derek Burbank, Tyson Snider, Nick West and Samuel Palacio!

This is a picture of the newly elected Oregon State Officer Team! I look forward to seeing them all again at Oregon’s NLCSO. They’ve started the year off great with their first executive meeting held at convention just hours after being elected. I had a unique experience that really helped me get to know many of the candidates for Oregon State office- I got to play a small part (as a stakeholder) in one of their interview rounds! My role in the conversation was to be an uninterested freshmen FFA member, not only did I enjoy this but I was extremely impressed with all candidates composure, articulation and caring nature in our conversation (with of course an uninterested freshmenJ they convinced me to stay in FFA lol).

Congrats to all of Oregon FFA!!

Michigan Region II Camp!

Michigan Region II Camp!

Region II camp was awesome! There were 125 members and guest that attended and I got the opportunity to hang out with them for a day and a half. Wow! It was so fun to just chill out with students and get to know them and who they are. I got to get to know people like Derek, Rose, Cody, Sondra and J.W. We had time to hang out, play basketball, volleyball, flag football and climb a rock wall called “Goliath.” I was able to do a workshop about Values, investing in your values and finding a way to live with purpose. I was also able to give my keynote address “Change the Headlines.” The regional officer team did an excellent job putting on camp. They worked so hard to make camp a success and it for sure was! I am so glad that I was able to meet the members of Region II. They really made an impact on my life! Here are so pictures from the weekend!

Hannah's Happenings - Oklahoma FFA Convention

On April 27th, I found myself in the Sooner State and as soon as I landed, I was escorted to the state capital in Oklahoma City by Laila. There, we were recognized on the House floor and met with several legislators. It was quite the way to kick off my time at the Oklahoma State FFA Convention, that’s for sure! For the next two days, I celebrated how FFA members are stepping up and standing out with the OK FFA and had an absolute blast! It was nice to hang out with Laila’s home chapter, the Guthrie FFA, meet the new state officer candidates, help congratulate the Honorary State Degree recipients and spend time with some rowdy Oklahoma FFA advisors. Major congratulations go out to the 08-09 Oklahoma State Officer Team: Chelsea, Chasity, Riley, Blake, Carly, Amy, Evan and Sarah; for an amazing job!




(^Laila giving her keynote address! She did an AMAZING job!)

God Bless,

Hannah