FFA members experience state convention in many ways
By Janet Kubat Willette
jkubat@agrinews.com
Date Modified: 05/13/2010 8:59 AM
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ST. PAUL — Members of the Wabasso FFA chapter reclined under the meeting tree on the lawn of the Continuing Education Conference Center Tuesday morning, catching some sun before boarding the bus for home.
Forty members of the chapter came to the University of Minnesota Twin Cities campus on April 25 to compete in career development events and attend workshops during the 81st annual Minnesota State FFA Convention.
Sophomore Nicole Dudgeon, competed in the dairy foods CDE, and was uncertain as to how her team did. In the dairy foods CDE, team members taste milk to identify foreign flavors, identify cheeses, identify parts of a milker and use the California mastitis test.
It was her first trip to convention and Dudgeon enjoyed it.
"It's pretty cool," she said. There are FFA jackets everywhere, she added.
Classmate Shane Irlbeck competed in dairy foods last year at state convention and in forestry this year. Meeting people from other schools and being with friends were the highlight of the convention for him.
For Belle Plaine FFA members Jackson Ruehling, Andy Olson and Adam Meierbachtol, the entire convention was full of learning experiences.
The trio participated in dairy cattle evaluation where they rank cows based on their statue and strengths. They judged several classes of Holsteins at the state FFA convention, competing both as a team and as individuals. They qualified for state competition at a regional event at Sibley East last fall.
Olson, a junior, said they should have studied a bit more so they could have placed higher. The trio said they think they will try dairy cattle evaluation again next year.
They competed the morning of April 26 and found other adventures after that.
They went to the dairy barn on the St. Paul campus and helped feed cows. They toured the barn and learned about the crossbreeding program. They learned about the fraternities on the U of M and Olson said he's considering attending the U after graduation from high school.
Meierbachtol, a freshman, enjoys judging and learning about breeds. His family has a Holstein steer feedlot.
Olson, a junior who shows cattle for 4-H, said his FFA judging experience helps him when prepping an animal for the fair. He thinks about what a judge will be looking for and works with his animal to be what the judge wants to see. He also practices for FFA dairy cattle evaluation by picking classes at the fair.
Ruehling, a freshman, said it was fun going to the state convention with friends, learning about cows and meeting new people.
The Poultry Evaluation team from Sleepy Eye was going home with hardware. The team placed second in 2009 and took the top prize in the state in 2010.
"We're going to nationals," sophomore Nathan McMullen cheered as the group exited the stage, hugging their adviser and coach as they headed outside for photos.
Team member Josie Fischer, a sophomore, was the high individual in the career development event. She had checked her answers on the written exam with the answer key put out after the test and found out she had all the answers right.
The team practiced once to twice a week, with coach Larry Baumgardt at school from 7:30 a.m. to 8:30 a.m. FFA adviser Mary Hoffmann phoned with wake-up calls to get everyone there.
They qualified in regional competition last fall and competed against the same tough teams at state. Lincoln High School FFA placed second and Fulda placed third.
In addition to the written test, participants in the poultry evaluation CDE grade eggs, place four ready-to-cut turkey carcasses, grade broiler-fryers or roasters, candle eggs, identify poultry parts and judge live birds.
The Sleepy Eye chapter has won the contest six out of the last 15 years.
"This is awesome," Hoffmann said.
Caledonia High School junior Amy Meyer had her own awesome experience at the state FFA convention. She was the first state degree recipient to walk across the stage during the April 26 evening awards program.
The state degrees started with Region 8 and Caledonia was the first school in alphabetical order.
Her supervised agricultural experience was milking cows and mowing lawns.
She also met the national FFA secretary during the third general session. There was an open seat next to her and Bethany Bohnenblust sat next to her, introduced herself, gave Meyer her card and told her she could be her friend on Facebook.
Freshmen Tracy Heim and Hannah Hendel spent a good deal of the convention in rehearsal. Hendel plays alto sax and Heim plays trombone. Both played in the state FFA band.
They practiced five hours the first day and one hour the second with other FFA band members. They played for the award ceremony on April 26 and at the Orville L. Freeman office building on April 27.
It was cool, wonderful and fun to play in a band comprised of FFA members from across the state, the girls said.