More Members Advance to State
Congratulations to the Floriculture Team for advancing on to state. They placed 2nd at regions with Andie Walz placing 1st and Charlotee Hayden 4th individually. Other team members were Laura Dahl, Hailey Ruhoff, and Destiny Baca. We also had 2 extras (no scores) for the contest Alexis Stafford and Anna Frenchick. The Horse Judging Team also competed and improved their placing from last year by placing 8th, but did not qualify as a team. Newcommer Cloey Kolb placed 5th individually which qualified her for state as an individual. Congratulations and great job!
First Team (of the Year) Advances to State
Congratulations to our FFA Nursery Landscaping Team for their 2nd place finish at regions! They are going to state!!! Ellary Jacoby placed 1st for the 3rd year in a row!!! Rookie Autumn Ellefson placed 8th and returning teammate Zoey VanKoevering placed 10th. Way to go girls.
FFA Alumni & Supporters Annual Plot Day
After taking a year off due to COVID restrictions, the FFA Alumni & Supporters brought back plot day to Paynesville Schools. This is a time where we show off our plot and the hard work that our volunteers, alumni & supporters, and student members have put into growing and caring for the plot. Students are invited out to listen to educational speakers and see demonstrations. Former FFA member and student (current Secretary/Treasurer for the Alumni & Supporters), Brittany Lenzmeier spoke on behalf of the soil and water conservation. She did a demostration for the students showing the importance of cover crops, buffers, and native plants that help filter water runoff and the importance to lakes, streams, and our environment. Karen Johnson of Compeer and Alumni & Supporters Vice President, discussed the importance of water and nutrients needed to achieve a goal yield. She then had the students estimate the approximate bushels of corn and beans we will get off the plot. Students were allowed to enter their guesses in a drawing and the winners closest will win a Kwik Trip gift card. Two representatives from Channel talked about the opportunities in agronomy, fertilizer, and internships within their company. They showed the students how to count the corn kernals on the cob and calculate that average bushel. We then tied it in with Karen's talk to see if they had guesses similar to what they had just calculate. It would be interesting to see if they went back and changed their guesses from the previous station. haha We had equipment there from A & C to show students different equipment that they might find on the farm. Battling the wind, alumni, supporters, and FFA members served a meal of hot dogs, baked beans, chips, Freda's famous cookies, and beverages. Thank you to all those that donated supplies, food & beverages, tent, tables & chairs, grill, stock tank, etc. to make the day a success.
The Great Minnesota Get Together
Some of our FFA members had the priviledge to attend the Great Minnesota Get Together in August-September. Spencer Eisenbraun showed his breeding gilt during the FFA encampment, he had a great show placing well with his gilt and in showmanship. There were many other FFA members that showed animals or brought exhibits earlier at the fair for the 4-H encampment. Dante Deppa represented the chapter as a Barny while working at the Miracle of Birth Center. He was interviewed on the news and for the FFA telethon. Here he educated fair goers on the importance of animal agriculture and the food supply. Prior to state fair, a group of members went up to do a landscaping display for the first time. The theme was "Native Gardens" and we chose a Native Encampment design that showed a tent, firepit, and native plants. They placed 4th, which was great for their first time doing this.
Plot Work
The Paynesville FFA members and Alumni & Supporters have been working on the plot just south of the school since May. We have approximately 10 acres and this year we went back to half corn and half beans. We even planted a few rows of sweet corn. There have been some alumni members & supporters, FFA members, and parents/guardians that have been involved with the planting during the spring and irrigation all summer long. With this hot and dry conditions, we have had to run the irrigator a lot. FFA members that were on the committee spent time out at the plot pulling weeds and trying to keep it looking good. We also had members and Alumni & Supporters sell sweet corn. It was delicious! We are looking forward to the planning of our plot day which is in September.
Summer Time Fun
We had an eventful summer this year. Members walked in the Town & Country Days parade with the float in June. Then we had the Meeker and Stearns County Fairs to attend. BugBee Hive Resort hosted the chapter right after school got out for our summer sizzler where members got to swim, go on a boat ride, have a pizza party, and hang out.
Officers Enjoy the Bee-utiful Bug Bee Hive Resort
The 8 FFA officers went to Bug Beehive for their officer retreat. This is when we plan the calendar for the next year, determine the budget, make new changes, and bond as an FFA officer team. The officers were able to go on pontoon rides, tubing, swimming, prepared meals, played games, and just hung out. The accommodations at Bug Beehive was fantastic and we really enjoyed the opportunity to be there. For some, this was their first time staying at the resort. It's great to have such a gem in our local community.