Dassel-Cokato FFA teams shine through hard work
By Carol Stender
cstender@agrinews.com
Date Modified: 06/03/2010 9:22 AM
E-mail article | Print version
COKATO, Minn. — Dassel-Cokato's FFA chapter had good reason to celebrate after last month's Minnesota FFA Convention.
Three teams —parliamentary procedure, floriculture and marketing plan — each took first place honors at the state contest. All will compete at the National FFA Convention in Indianapolis this fall.
They will be taking the chapter's National FFA Chapter application with them. The application took second place in state and is one of the top five applications eligible for the national contest.
Joining the group will be chapter members Rachel Dahlman and Darin Davis, who will receive their American Degrees, said D-C FFA Chapter advisor Seena Glessing. And there could be more. Some FFA members have also applied for the National FFA choir.
Amid all the excitement over the teams' success, Glessing keeps the group grounded.
She's equally thrilled about their top finishes and the chapter's strong showing at the State FFA contest, but she gives them a gentle reminder.
"The road to Indianapolis starts now," she said. And the teams began their practices for the National FFA Convention in October.
This marks the first time Dassel-Cokato has taken first at the state contest in floriculture, marketing plan and parliamentary procedure, she said.
Chapter president Luke Dahlman and chapter vice president Lucas Salfer have been fine-tuning the National FFA Chapter application since the state convention. The application lists the student, chapter and community activities that have included chapter members, the eh two said. It includes the goals of the chapter and its activities, the plan of action and the result.
A college career fair was started by the chapter. It was conducted on the same evening as the school's fall conferences. They had 20 colleges taking part in the event, they said.
The chapter also worked with the Howard Lake-Waverly-Winsted FFA at Wright County's Breakfast on the Farm event a year ago. Goldview Farms, operated by Greg, Faye and Pat Bakeberg, hosted the event last year and will open their farm again this year for the event.
D-C FFA members and HLWW explained farm safety at the 2009 event using the Farm Bureaus safety trailer and operated a petting zoo.
Salfer and Dahlman, with Austin Davis, Jasper Asplin, Katie Davis, Katie Peterson, Jordann Hoememann and Carlie Hedlund make up the National FFA Convention-bound parliamentary procedure team. Kevin Dahlman is the team's coach and a valuable asset to the chapter.
"I provide assistance where needed but (Dahlman) puts in 99 percent of the work," Glessing said.
As the teams prepare for the national competition, they will call on other key leaders in the area for assistance.
"We do tap into other resources as we prepare," she said.
The preparations actually start in the fall as the teams are selected. Each students writes goal statements for the year including individual and team goals.
"We establish a game plan to accomplish the goals," Glessing said.
The marketing plan team includes junior members Megan Piepgras and Lisa Hohenstein plus sophomore Alex Piepenburg. They developed a powerpoint presentation and proposal packet for the local company McCone Foods. The business works with the FFA chapter and other school organizations in fundraising using its specialty food times like herring, meats and cheeses.
D-C's marketing team prepared for competitions by talking to company officials. The marketing team's proposal considered ways the food company could work with other FFA chapters in fundraising efforts.
Piepgras competed with the chapter's food science team, which took third in a past National FFA contest. She also received a $1,000 scholarship.
The floriculture team is made up of sophomores Janina Peterson and Rachel Ylitalo and juniors Caitlin Keskey and Heidi Hendrickson. Each team member must prepare a bud vase and identify 40 flowers in a written test.
At the national contest, the team must identify the flowers by their scientific name, Glessing said
They practice often even when they're not in the ag room.
As Glessing checked the FFA chapter into a Twin Cities hotel for the State FFA Convention, she turned to the floriculture team and told them to identify the plants in main lobby.
"They already had done that," Glessing said.