What we've been up to...

It has been a really long time since we last wrote.  Sorry!  Life has been crazy!

November was pretty peaceful...busy, but peaceful.  The freshmen members had the opportunity to attend the EDGE conference.  This is a conference that is fairly new, and the first time that District 7 decided to host it.  It is meant to prepare freshmen members for what the FFA can offer.  It also helps to build on leadership skills, which is why the Chapter officers were invited to attend.

 The members that attended, went to Central City and met in their theater.

 They were taught leadership building skills and were giving a chance to bond.

We were able to have some students attend Pathways to Careers.  This event was held in Grand Island at the State Fair Grounds.  Students who attended were able to learn a little more about a variety of agricultural pathways and the professions that are in each.  It was a lot of fun to take our students, who willingly decided that their phones were not going to distract them from learning.  They took every opportunity that they could, and I think really enjoyed the time spent not only with each other but learning about future possibilities.


We also were able to have our annual Thanksgiving meal with the FBLA students.  After we ate, and cleaned, we held a short meeting.


During the month of December, we were busy with Contests and the Freshmen finishing up earning their Greenhand Degree.  Members Vanessa Hiebner and Sidney Hurlbut participated in Job Interview, receiving a blue and red respectively.  Krynn Arbuck and Karah Joyner both received a red in Junior Public Speaking.  Kyle Ott received a blue and Kori Siebert received a red in Extemporaneous speaking.  Addie Swartzendruber received a red in Natural Resources.  Brooklyn Epp received a purple and Peyton Ott received a blue in Creed Speaking.

The next week, we did our annual "Caroling for Cans" where we were able to collect quite a bit of food for the NHS food drive.  We also were able to help deliver the packages of food to the families.

The "Greenhands" tried their hand at learning how to tie ties!  This is always a fun time, as it is both fun to watch and fun to teach.

This is a picture of the Greenhands trying to tie ties this year.

This is a picture from 4 years ago, when the seniors were freshmen and learning how to tie ties.

The Greenhands were also able to add their hands to the wall, after they dyed their hands green.

Before Christmas break, we held our monthly meeting.  Afterwards, some members stayed around to play a game of "Never Have I Ever."  Though they were a bit confused as to whether the topics pertained to them, they did seem to have fun.

After Christmas break, we started working on cleaning up our record books so that they were ready for Proficiency Awards and State Degrees.  Keeping track of a record book is an integral part of the agriculture education three circle component.  By doing this, we are hoping to help students keep track of their financial records that way when they become upstanding citizens, they will know what they can and cannot afford.

The Ag Project students were also in charge of creating a pallet project.  It was interesting to see their ideas!

In the middle of January we hosted our third annual Welding competition.  It is always a lot of fun to see who can weld, and just to be able to socialize with people that we don't get to see everyday.

Even though we had two snow days last week, the freshmen class was able to have two guest speakers.  These speakers talked about the importance of nutrients in the soil.  The first speaker, Melissa Buehler, talked about how we don't have a lot of topsoil to be able to raise crops on.  She also got the students to think about possible ways that they could promote the important roles that nutrients play.

Our other speaker, Tammy Ott, talked about her involvement in FFA.  She also spent some time talking about the importance of nutrients from an agronomist's point of view, as she works for Channel Seed.  Her information was great knowledge for the kids.  Sometimes, I wish we could have school in the summer so that the kids could actually see the issues that nutrient deficiencies present on a crop.  And then I think, how nice it would be to just have a greenhouse so that we can demonstrate this importance at any time of the year. ;)

We have some good news that came yesterday.  After four years of tracking records and interviewing, seniors Trevor Friesen and Vanessa Hiebner were selected to receive their Nebraska State FFA degrees.

Also, we had 5 out of 8 proficiency awards be selected to go on to state review.  In Outdoor Recreation, we had Vanessa Hiebner and Lane Huebert selected.  In Swine Production-Placement, we had Trevor Friesen.  In Grain Production-Placement we had Addie Swartzendruber.  In Diversified Crop Production-Placement we had Austin Stuhr.  Others who entered their proficiencies were: Cheyenne Hiebner-Ag Services, Karah Joyner-Ag Services, and Connor Boehr-Diversified Crop Production.  Congratulations to everyone!

Things that we are looking forward to: Cattlemen's Classic on February 17.  FFA week will be February 22-26.  Also, the Henderson Homeshow will be held on February 27.  The Freshmen are creating a presentation to promote Nutrients in raising healthy plants.  Be sure to come see their presentation and stop by our booth.

P.S. I'm sorry about the lack of pictures.  Technology is not agreeing with this update!

Back where I come from; where I'll be when it's said and done.

Good morning!

This post is coming to you as I reflect on everything that has gone on in the past.  I recently brought my FFA jacket in to school.  As I was going through those treasures that I left in my pockets back in 2001, it made me think back at how fortunate I have been.  It also helped me to reflect on all of the wonderful memories that I now have...because of that good ole corduroy blue!  You see, I didn't come from a traditional farming family.  I grew up on a tract of land that was 1.5 acres....part of which my parents bought...and part of which was gifted to them from my dad's parents.  We grew up right down the hill from one set of grandparents, and the farm was a good size operation.  However, it's not what you see around here.  We didn't have any row crops.  I grew up in a time where my grandpa raised a few head of hogs...but mostly it was a cow/calf operation.  What wasn't being used to graze on, was used for hay production.  At the time that I grew up, my grandpa wouldn't allow my dad to help too much with the farm giving the reason that he needed to be at home with the family.  While I appreciate everything that my family has, and continues to give me, I realize that I missed out on some special family times that people have while being raised on a farm.  I will never say that I wasn't raised to not work hard.  There were plenty of times where we had to do a lot of wood hauling, splitting, and stacking to prepare for the cold winter months.  My parents taught me to be the way that I am; a hard worker, willing to help others, and always to just be able to listen.  They also taught me to do what I know is right...even if others think that it may be wrong.

As a young FFA member, I was hesitant to really get involved.  However, I was also one of two girls in a class full of boys....and I felt like I had something to prove: Girls can be a part of agriculture.

I was fortunate enough to get the opportunity to build leadership skills through the FFA organization.  In Missouri, we have a summer leadership camp that is held at Lake of the Ozarks State Park.  What better time could you ask for...a week at the lake, with about 120 other FFA members.  The friendships and memories that are built are incredible.

What's more incredible are the memories that one jacket can hold.  On the jacket itself, I have numerous pins from awards, leadership positions, and degrees that I was able to achieve through the help of hard-work, a loving family, and an awesome Ag Advisor.  Inside the jacket pockets are memories that will never fade...name tags from a convention I attended when I received my American Degree, business cards from State officers that touched my life, pennies picked up along the way, and funeral programs from a fellow member that passed away in a car accident.  All of these are memories...and they are mine!

My hope, as an FFA advisor, is to give my students' jackets memories that will be treasured for the rest of their lives...whether by the pins that are earned, or the trips that are made.

The last few weeks have been busy for us...making memories.

On October 20, we were fortunate enough to take Addie Swartzendruber and her mom out to Scottsbluff, NE for State Land Judging.

This was the view of the judging site.

 

Because it was just Addie that qualified, she was in the group of Advisors and Individuals.  Addie did well enough at state to receive a pink ribbon.  I did well enough to get bragging rights over the state, as I placed 5th out of 22 other Advisors that chose to compete.

And, because out site was so close to the Wyoming border (6 miles) we decided to make a trip to the state sign.  Never fear, we also took a picture at the Nebraska sign too!  

While in Scottsbluff, we took a little bit of time to witness what the pioneers got to see.  We traveled up the Scotts Bluff National monument to see the sights.  Alas, no rattlesnakes were spotted!  It's said that at one point in time, the prairie was as high as the bluffs.  However, with erosion and glaciers, the sandstone was weathered aways to leave these massive bluffs.  These bluffs were a welcome to travelers as they were nearly done with the tough prairie travel and halfway done with their journey to the west.

On October 27, I departed with seven students towards Louisville, KY.  This is the last year that National Convention will be held in Louisville for a while.  Next year, convention will move back to Indianapolis, IN (though it would be nicer if we could get them to move the convention back to Kansas City!!).

We arrived in Louisville on Wednesday in time to tour the Louisville Slugger Museum.  The kids got to see how the bats used for the MLB are made.  This was an exciting moment...as they were making commemorative bats for the NY Mets in case they won the World Series.  I don't mind saying that I'm glad that those bats weren't needed!!!

On Thursday of Convention we always go to opening session.  While there, the members got to listen to Dr. Rick Rigsby.  He did an amazing job of talking about listening to your teachers and your mama's and daddy's.  He reminded us that our "servant towel" should be bigger than our ego.

After the session was over, students were given a scavenger hunt to use to walk around the career show.  The scavenger hunt tasked them to visit a booth from every sector of agriculture: natural resources, plant science, animal science, ag mechanics, environment, etc.  Students were also expected to go to at least one workshop to build upon their knowledge of leadership, scholarships available, and possible job opportunities.

 The group of Heartland members that attended the 2015 National Convention.

 One of the exhibitors at the Career Show!  Yes, if you are wondering...those are penguins!

On Friday of National Convention, we were able to tour two very different farms.  The first farm was a sheep/csa/mushroom farm.  The CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) was set up to sell garden produce baskets to 30 community people that do not have the ability/time to produce their own garden crops.  The couple that had the CSA also raised sheep for their meat, and mushrooms for local restaurants....when they weren't eating them for themselves.  

This is one of the sweet potatoes that she had left over from her garden.

After touring this farm, we went to another "naturalist" farm.  The lady that headed this farm also participated in a CSA, supplying her consumers with garlic, onion, and corn.  She is more about bringing the land back to it's natural environment.

This is the group standing outside of one of her multiple gardens.  In this garden she produced popcorn and native corns.

Though this lady was vastly different than what we were used to, she had some yummy handouts for us: chocolate chip scones and hand-ground corn bread.

After lunch, we toured Churchill Downs.  Since the Breeders' Cup was getting ready to happen, there were no horses at the track during this time.  However, we did get to learn quite a bit of the history of Churchill Downs and tour the museum.

 Here Vanessa and Olivia are posed with the historic twin spires behind them.  The Twin Spires are the oldest part of the stadium at Churchill Downs.  If you watch the movie "Secretariat" you would get to see several parts of the Downs that we were not able to see due to paid patrons coming to watch the Breeders Cup.

On Saturday, we attending the American Degree Ceremony and then headed back to Nebraska!  We returned home at 1:30 on Sunday morning!

In Ag classes, we have been working on putting together an Ag Demonstration, learning the FFA creed, learning the basics of ARC and MIG welding, and the importance of nutrients for plants.

This is what the room looked like as the freshmen were reviewing the 4th paragraph of the FFA creed.

Next week, the freshmen and officers have the opportunity to attend a leadership workshop (EDGE conference) in Central City.  All members have the opportunity to attend a Pathways to Careers workshop on Friday evening and Saturday day.  Hopefully they will learn a little more about future career opportunities as well as making new friends.

For now, I feel like I'm doing a fairly good job of creating memories and opportunities for the kids.

October update...so far!

Well, for most of the area, we're mid-harvest.  For the FFA chapter, we're mid activities during the month of October.

Last week, we had District Land Judging.  It was held in Hamilton County this year.  Who would have guessed that they put us along the Platte River banks?  Let me tell you, for the type of soil that we worked with that day (October 7) we sure didn't do too bad.  In fact, I am extremely happy with how the kiddos did!  If I would have put the kids on different teams....we could have easily received third place...possibly even 2nd.

Just a reminder, and for those who are unfamiliar with land judging, we were looking at what the soil is capable of doing.  We have to forget what the land is currently being used for, and look at several factors to determine what it's best use would be...all while keeping soil conservation in mind.

 This is a picture of one of the four soil pits the kids use to judge.  Here they are looking at how thick the horizon layers.  They can also use some of this information to figure out how much erosion has taken place, and to help determine soil texture.

 The picture above and the picture below is of field information notes that are given to the students so that they can correctly treat the land.

 Again, another example of a pit that the kids had to judge.  They are not allowed to make marks or touch the area between the two pink ribbons.

 The kids are taking some time before the competition starts to relax.  There is a lot of walking and standing around during the competition, so this was actually a good time to take a group shot.  Unfortunately, the reason why they had this chance, is because a sheet that the students were supposed to be able to use was forgotten.  This put the competition behind by an hour and a half.

 Connor Peters is taking some time during the competition to fill out his score card.  Each hole is worth 100 points.  Making the competition worth 400 points total.

 Austin Stuhr is contemplating some choices that need to be made on his score card.

 Calvin Harper and Bryce Allen were placed in the same group during the competition.  The competition is an individual event, but they walk to each of the four pits as a group.

 Karah Joyner is trying to figure out how to calculate the slope of the land when there are 70 other students that she has to share the space with.

 Emily Goertzen in the gray shirt, and Olivia Casper in the orange shirt are taking their turn to ribbon the soil so they can put the correct soil texture on their card.  This is important because of 1) how to treat the land and 2) the water holding capacity of the soil.  Plants can only take up nutrients through the absorption of water.  If the water moves through too fast, as it would with sand, the plants don't get enough time to soak up the water before gravity moves it deeper into the soil profile.  Likewise, if the soil has more clay, the water won't move through it at all...and therefore drowns the roots.

 Trevor Friesen is trying to double check some of his answers before finally handing in one of his four score cards.

 Nate Rogers is observing other students in the pit before he takes his own turn in.  By observing, he is able to get somewhat of an idea of what the answers on his card should be.

 Connor Peters is taking his turn to feel and ribbon the soil.

Olivia Casper, in orange, and Emily Goertzen, in gray, are waiting their turn in the pit.

Out of 334 competitors, we had 8 place in the top 50.  Addie Swartzendruber placed 2nd (earning a chance to compete at state), Emily Goertzen placed 11, Matthew Buller placed 17, Cheyenne Hiebner placed 23, Trevor Friesen placed 24, Kyle Ott placed 31, Vanessa Hiebner placed 33, and Peyton Ott received 39.  At this time, we do not have any ribbon placings...but I'll get you updated when we receive them.

On Friday, October 9, members took some time from their day off to feed local farmers.  This event took place in Bradshaw, at Progressive Ag Inc.  This is the third year of the Heartland Chapter hosting the event.  I think that the kids enjoy it as much as the farmers appreciate it.

 Kyle Ott and Austin Stuhr are prepping the "to go" boxes with chips and a cookie.  The chips were donated by Progressive Ag Inc., water was donated by Fontanelle, and the cookies were donated by Central Valley Ag.  A special thank you goes out to these companies for helping support this cause...which in turn supports our farmers!

 Bailey Ulmer has found that they boys weren't quite ready for her to hand a cookie to their productivity line so she takes a moment to take a picture.

 Angelica Bassett waits to hand over a "to go" box to the next patron in line.

The Quirings took some time out of their busy harvest schedule to feed their workers.


Several members were also chosen to receive a free FFA jacket through various supporters that live throughout the state of Nebraska.  These supporters sponsored over 315 jackets.  Heartland was fortunate enough to receive 8 jackets.

Members receiving jackets (from Left to Right): Jade Hiebner, Katrina Hiebner, Olivia Casper, Brooklyn Epp, Ben Mestl, Peyton Ott, Noah Hiebner, and not pictured Shauna Spencer.

Lastly, Tuesday evening, October 13.  FFA members worked the David City volleyball concessions.  The money earned from concessions will help to pay for the chapter dues.

Peyton Ott, Ben Mestl, and Reid Huebert were just three of the 16 members that came to help work the concessions.

Members will also work during the conference volleyball games on Monday, October 19 and then December 15 during basketball concessions.

Money earned at concessions on Monday will go towards helping members pay for National Convention.  Money earned from concessions in December will go to finish helping pay for dues, and any other activities that we will hold throughout the year.

Looking towards the rest of the month, next week is State Land Judging out in Scottsbluff, NE.  Then 7 FFA members will attend National FFA Convention in Louisville, KY in two weeks - October 27-31.  Keep looking for some updates.