During the last week of October, 12 members of the Bowling Green FFA chapter were selected to travel to Indianapolis to attend the 94th annual National FFA Convention and Expo.
The members chosen were seniors Arika Adams, Emma Walker, Kennedi Hendriks, Nathan Harris and Amanda Mantel, as well as junior members Eddie Eschedor, Emma Ferguson, Peyton Bosworth, Madison Carillo, Lindsay Eisle, Laney Crawford and sophomore member Drew Thomas.
BG FFA traveled to the event with Oak Harbor FFA and Otsego FFA.
The chapter departed the morning of Oct. 27, and arrived that afternoon. It was an exhilarating day for all of those in attendance, for some it was their first time at the convention and others it was their first time back after the 93rd convention had to be held virtually due to the coronavirus pandemic.
The events of the day were kicked off by the Opening Session where all members in attendance were treated to a performance from the FFA chorus and band, reflections from the National FFA officers, introduction of the states, and most notably the keynote speaker, Courtenay Dehoff. Dehoff presented a speech about being true to yourself no matter what others do, think, or say.
That evening, BG FFA members were treated to dinner at Harry and Izzy’s steak house. The food and service were amazing, but the company was even better and the members took this opportunity to develop stronger bonds amongst each other.
The night ended with a concert opened by FFA member and American Idol contestant Alex Miller. The headliner of the night was Brett Young who performed an amazing and heartwarming show.
Oct. 28 was packed full of excitement. Members spent much of the day at the expo center and the FFA shopping mall. At the expo, there were hundreds of agricultural colleges and businesses from all over the country for members to visit and interact with as well as a shopping area for FFA members to buy souvenirs.
Other than the extensive time spent at the convention center, BG FFA attended the general sessions of the day as well. In the first session, President Eddie Eschedor and Vice President Arika Adams got the honor to walk across the national stage to receive the 3-Star Chapter award for BG FFA. This is the highest rating a chapter can receive.
The first session of the day ended with the retiring address from the National FFA Secretary Anna Mathis. The speech given by Mathis was titled “A Time for Everything.” Mathis presented stories about her childhood that she believed helped her grow into the person she is now.
The morning of Oct. 29, BG FFA departed from Indianapolis, but the excitement wasn’t over yet. On the way home the members were given a tour of Platt Showpigs. They were educated about how the business is run as well as given a tour of the facilities. Members were shown the boars, sows, gilts and the farrowing rooms. The tour was educational and a wonderful way to end the trip.
The BG FFA American FFA Degree recipient for 2021 was Sidney Grames. The American FFA Degree is the highest degree a FFA member can achieve and over 3,800 American FFA Degrees were handed out this year at the National FFA Convention. That number represents less than half of one percent of all FFA members, making it one of the organization’s highest honors.
Sidney is the son of Jim and Connie Grames. Sidney’s SAE included forage production and job placement at TSC and Menards. Sidney served as Chapter Vice President and he participated in the Soils and Equine CDEs. Sidney currently attends Iowa State University. The chapter is proud of Sidney’s accomplishments.
