Fall of 2014

by Josie Montoney, Reporter

Next FFA Meeting

Our next monthly FFA meeting will be held on October 20^th at 7:00 P.M. in the Ag Center. The ag challenge for this meeting will be the Team Pizza Eating contest! Each grade level will select one male and one female to represent them, who will then go against the other grades and attempt to eat an entire pizza first!

Upcoming Events

Fall Fruit Sale: The fruit sale this year starts on Thursday, October 17th and goes until Thursday, November 24th. This is by far the chapter's biggest fundraiser and all funds go to help pay for chapter award pins, hog roast, contest registrations, the banquet, and essentially everything the chapter does. All members are encouraged to participate. Any members who sell 25 or more boxes or baskets of fruit will be eligible to attend the Louisville Trip this February. Mr. Tilley, Mrs. Montoney and Mr. Sharp will give members more information about these events in class.

National FFA Convention: This year, National Convention will be held in Louisville, Kentucky from October 29^th until November 1^st. Due to the amount of participation within our chapter, members had to fill out an application to be eligible to attend. Members who participated in the most chapter activities and received the highest score will be able to attend this fall. Each year at convention, our chapter attends multiple sessions of the conference, the Buckeye Bash, and various educational tours that are set up by Mr. Tilley. There are nearly 55,000 FFA members and guests who attend the convention each year. All members who received a paper from Mr. Tilley should have already turned in their $75.00 deposit. Mr. Tilley should have a tentative schedule out to all of these members very soon!

Past Happenings

Ice Cream Social: On September 3^rd, the Amanda-Clearcreek FFA Chapter held its annual Ice Cream Social. It began at 7 P.M. for all new 8^th graders, freshmen, and sophomores, and 7:30 P.M. for all returning members. In the first half hour, all new members and their parents came to learn more about the FFA program. Members attended seven sessions led by the officer team, where they learned about the exciting opportunities they will have through the FFA, while their parents met with Mr. Tilley, Mr. Sharp, and Mrs. Montoney to get more information on the different activities their children may be participating in as the year progresses. Returning members came later in the night and joined the new members as they finish their sessions, and all members enjoyed a night of socializing, making new friends, and of course, enjoying some ice cream!

Ag Breakfast: We have already had two ag breakfast’s this fall. Ag breakfast is an excellent opportunity for members to socialize over great food. They are held on the first Friday of each month at 6:15 A.M.

Farm Science Review: Each year, our chapter sends students to the Farm Science Review, which is a large three-day expo of agricultural equipment and products that provides attendees with an opportunity to learn more about some of the agricultural practices that occur around them. Our chapter attended the Farm Science Review on Wednesday, September 17^th. Students met at the school at 6:45 A.M., and will be returnied at approximately 5:00 P.M.

Ohio Legislative Leadership Conference: On September 24^th, members from our chapter went to the Ohio State House to participate in the Ohio Legislative Leadership Conference (OLLC). In the morning, members from the Ohio Farm Bureau led workshops where they discussed how the government system works, lobbying, and how to inform elected government officials about out educational programs. Following this workshop, FFA members and State Legislators attended a luncheon and FFA members had a chance to put their new skills to the test. This was a great opportunity for students to learn more about how to approach their Legislators and to meet the officials who run their government. The members who attended this year from our chapter were Mary Schmelzer, Josie Montoney, Adrian Wymer, Devon Mullen, and Samantha Young.

Fall Trap Shoot: On Sunday, September 28^th, the chapter held the Fall Trap Shoot at the Green residence. Members and their parents were encouraged to come and shoot or watch. This event was an excellent opportunity for members to get to know each other better, and to learn firearm safety. Our chapter would like to thank Barb and Lonnie Green for hosting this event!

Big E Trip: On September 11^th through the 14^th, four members from our chapter (Kayla Luft, Adrian Wymer, Josh Metzon, and Josie Montoney) traveled to Massachusetts to compete in the Eastern Regional Environmental and Natural Resources contest. The members got the chance to participate in this contest at the regional level after placing second place in the state contest last spring. Enviromental and Natural Resources, or ENR, is a contest based around knowledge pertaining to water quality, soil, animals, waste management, GPS, and environmental analysis. The team ended up placing 4^th in the region. Also while on this rip, the team had a chance to attend many exciting tours. Congratulations to these members!

District 7 Forestry CDE: Members competing in the Forestry Career Development Event have the chance to learn how to identify different kinds of trees, forestry tools, how many board feet of lumber can be cut and used from a tree, how to use a compass and how to identify the type of wood used in everyday products. This CDE also consists of bark and leaf ID and an online test. Members who choose to sign up for this contest must also complete two practicums. The practicums for this year are chain saw parts ID, map reading and forest diseases/pest. Mr. Tilley is coached the Forestry CDE team again this year.

District 7 Soils CDEs: There are two different soil contests: Urban Soils and Rural Soils. The Urban Soils CDE teaches participants how to judge soil for urban usages, such as installing a driveway, basement or septic system. The Rural Soils CDE judges at the same site as the Urban team but for agricultural purposes. Contestants determine what needs to be done to the site so that it can be used to grow crops successfully or if it can be used for agricultural purposes at all. Both CDE teams must complete a test and judge four soil pits. At the district contest, the Urban Soils team place 9th and the Rural team placed 15^th.

Taste of Fairfield County: On September 4^th, members from our chapter attended the Taste of Fairfield County event, held at JD Equipment. At this event, which is sponsored by the Lancaster/Fairfield County Chamber of Commerce, Fairfield County Farm Bureau, Fairfield Soil and Water Conservation District, and OSU Extension, there was a cooking competition between three local chefs, farm machinery demonstrations, and plenty of opportunities to sample local foods.

Summer Happenings

Summer Ag Breakfasts: The summer Ag Breakfast’s were held at the Laurelville Diner on Friday, June 6^th at 8:00 A.M. For the month of July, it was held on July 1st at 8:00 A.M. at Frisch’s, and in August, it was held on the 8^th at 8:00 A.M. at Bob Evans in Lancaster. As always, ag breakfast was a good opportunity for members to come and socialize over good food, as well as see friends over summer break.

Adopt-A-Highway: Our chapter held two adopt-a-highway clean up’s this summer. The first was on June 5th, and the second was August 8^th. Members who participated cleaned up the roadsides along St. Rte. 159 between Oakland and Tommy Waynes. Our chapter has been participating in this community service activity for over 15 years.

Summer Trap Shoot: On June 6^th, our chapter held its annual summer trap shoot at the Sharp Residence. It was a great opportunity for members and their families to get to know each other better, and for many it was also a chance to learn firearm safety.

A-C Alumni Association Banquet: On May 30^th, members from our chapter helped set up for the A-C Alumni Banquet. Members met in the cafeteria at 9:30 A.M. to help set up tables and chairs. On May 31^st, helped collect food and perform other serving duties. The banquet itself is for alumni members to reunite and socialize, and for seniors and recent graduates who have applied for scholarships to be recognized. Our Alumni Association is one of the best in the nation, and gave out over $80,000 in scholarships this year alone.

Thad Davis Memorial 5K Run/Walk: Our chapter was asked to help with the Thad Davis Memorial 5K Run/Walk again this year, which is hosted by the A-C Alumni Association. It took place on June 14^th at 6:45 A.M. We helped with registration, traffic control, finish line duties, etc.

Tarlton Firemen’s Fish Fry: The Tarlton Fire Department’s annual Fish Fry was held on June 26^th this year. Members who attended assisted with serving and other duties. Our chapter as been assisting with this event for over 15 years. It was a great chance for members to get community service hours and eat great food!

Ohio FFA Leadership Camp: OLC will took place again this summer at Ohio FFA Camp Muskingum from June 20^th to the 23^rd. This camp is run by the State FFA Officers, and FFA members from around Ohio were all encouraged to attend. Those who attended spent the week learning leadership skills and meeting new people.

Annual Chapter Canoe Trip: We had the canoe trip at paint Creek again this year. Members who attended had a great day of socializing with friends, while getting summer hours at the same time.

5^th Session FFA Camp: Our chapter attended the 5^th session of FFA Camp again this year at FFA Camp Muskingum. At camp, members participated in countless leadership-building activities with other FFA members from across the state of Ohio. This was a fantastic opportunity for members to develop leadership skills, and develop life long friendships.

Washington Leadership Conference: The Washington Leadership Conference (WLC) is a week long national conference held in Washington, D.C. each summer. Chapters from around the country may send members to participate in the many leadership and community service activities that are held there, and the conference has continued to grow exceedingly larger each year. Attending members also get the chance to interact with FFA members from around the country and tour many of the monuments. This year, Katie Krile, Adrian Wymer, Susan householder, and Dylan Mullen attended WLC because they earned the Memorial Award. This award is given out each year at our chapter banquet in memory of Rusty Bowers and Becky Strickler. Also attending WLC this year were Katerina Sharp and Kaylee Reed, who both received a scholarship from the state at the Ohio FFA Convention.

Cross Mound Park Clean Up: Our chapter has been helping to clean up Cross Mound Park for almost 20 years. This years clean up was held on August 8^th, and members helped with trail and fence repair, along with other general cleaning duties.

Pelotonia Bike Tour: The Pelotonia Bike Tour is a bike tour that starts in Columbus each year. The point of this tour is to raise money for cancer research. Our chapter was asked by the organization in charge to help with preparation for the race. On August 8^th, participating members helped set up tables, as well as tear down tables, chairs, and assisted with other general clean up duties. It was an excellent chance for members to help out with a worthy cause.