Amanda-Clearcreek FFA News

September 2019

by Stephanie Bowers, Reporter

Next FFA Meeting

The next FFA meeting of this school year will take place Monday, September 16th, at 7:00 p.m. in the Ag Center. The meeting will be our second one of the year, and all are required to attend. If you cannot make it, make sure to give a note to your Ag teacher the day after the meeting. Also, after every FFA meeting, there is a challenge between grade levels; first place receives four points, second place earns three points, third place receives two points, and fourth place earns one point. At the May meeting, whichever class has the most points will be awarded a steak and ice cream dinner. The Ag Challenge for this meeting will be the Straw Bale Toss.

Upcoming Events

Ag Breakfast: The September Ag Breakfast will take place Friday, September 6th, at 6:15 a.m. at Frisch’s in Lancaster. All members and parents are invited to attend where they can enjoy a good breakfast with their fellow members!

Ice Cream Social: On September 9th at 6:00 p.m. in the cafeteria, the Amanda-Clearcreek FFA Chapter will hold its annual Ice Cream Social. All new freshman and sophomore members should arrive at 6:00 p.m. and returning members should arrive at 6:30 p.m. to learn more about the FFA program and to enjoy ice cream! All new members are encouraged to bring their parents with them to this event.

Farm Science Review: Each year, there is a three-day expo held for agricultural equipment and products near London, Ohio, at OSU’s Molly Caren Ag Center. This year, our chapter will be attending on September 18th. At this expo, members have the opportunity to learn about the newest agricultural technology and equipment that is used in the agricultural industry. Members who are attending this will meet at the school at 6:45 a.m. and will not return to the school until 5:00 p.m. unless in sports, band, or work release; those members will return on a separate bus by 2:45 p.m.

Forestry CDE: The Forestry CDE gives members 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. The County Forestry CDE contest will be held September 5th from 3-6 p.m. The District 7 contest at Knox Woods will be held September 19th. This Career Development Event also consists of bark and leaf ID as well as an online test that will take place September 24th. The state contest will take place September 28th at Hocking College.

OLLC: The Ohio Legislative Leadership Conference will be held on September 25th in the Ohio Statehouse Atrium. The morning workshop portion of this event, given by the Ohio Farm Bureau, will focus on advocating for agricultural education, informing students about important issues, and preparing them to speak with legislators. A luncheon with Ohio legislators will follow the workshop, and FFA members will have the chance to talk to them regarding events surrounding agricultural education.

National FFA Convention: This year, the National FFA Convention takes place from October 30th to November 2nd in Indianapolis, Indiana. The online applications are now available for returning members on the chapter website, and the application for new members will become available soon.

Past Happenings

Officer Retreat: The A-C FFA Officer Retreat was held on June 3rd-5th, where the officers and their assistants went to the lodge at FFA Camp Muskingum. On the first day of the retreat, the officers and their assistants went to the Wilds where they went ziplining. The main focus of the retreat was to plan the next year’s activities, so if you still have any ideas or suggestions, please tell an officer!

Ag Breakfast: The June Ag Breakfast took place Friday, June 7th at the Bob Evans in Lancaster. The July Ag Breakfast took place Friday, July 5th at Goodwin’s. The August Ag Breakfast took place on Friday, August 2nd at the Laurelville Cafe. These were good opportunities for members to meet, eat, and socialize throughout the summer.

A-C Alumni Banquet: Members were encouraged to help set up for the A-C Alumni Association Banquet on Friday, May 31st, at 9:30 a.m. The banquet was held June 1st. From 5:00 p.m. till 9:30 p.m., helpers collected food from attendees and cleaned up afterward. This was a prominent community service activity for an organization that gives a great deal back to the students. Many seniors enrolled in Ag received scholarships from the A-C Alumni this year.

A-C Alumni Thad Davis 5K Run/Walk: This event was held at the Amanda-Clearcreek High School, throughout the morning of Saturday, June 15th. Members helped set up tables, chairs, and other items to prepare for the run that day. This activity was set-up by the A-C Alumni Association and was a good community service activity for all of the members who attended.

OLC: Ohio Leadership Camp was held at Ohio FFA Camp Muskingum from June 21st-24th. Members who attended were able to learn how to become better leaders both in and out of their FFA chapters. Games and other activities were held there as well. The members who attended were Morgan Anderson, Audrey Butterbaugh, Olivia Hutchison, and Aaron Sharp.

Canoe Trip: Our Summer Canoe Trip was held on Friday, July 5th after the monthly Ag Breakfast at Paint Creek. Fourteen members attended this annual summer activity, including some of our new freshmen members. It was a fun activity for all who attended.

FFA Camp: Summer FFA Camp was held on July 8th-12th where members engaged in activities with other FFA members. Members had a week to spend time with friends, participate in daily competitions, and try new activities. This camp is for people who like to play paintball, learn responsibility, shoot guns, engage in team activities, use a bow and arrow, swim, canoe, hike, boat, dance, or meet new people. Most members can agree FFA Camp is one of the best activities our chapter participates in each year. There were 37 of our members, ranging from recent senior graduates to incoming freshmen, who attended the fifth session of Ohio FFA Camp. Noah Smith also attended all sessions of FFA Camp as a state officer and the chapter is very proud of everything he has accomplished throughout the summer while serving the Ohio FFA Association.

Summer Trap Shoot: The annual Summer Trap Shoot was held on July 16th at Mr. Sharp’s house. All of the members and parents who attended had a great time shooting clay pigeons, eating, and socializing with friends.

WLC: To go to the Washington Leadership Conference, a member had to sign-up and pay the fee or apply for the Memorial Award where a member has to go through a unique interview process to qualify to go on this trip. This year Stephanie Bowers, Kyle Hicks, and Jullian Scott all earned the Memorial Award to go on this trip on July 23rd-28th in Washington, D.C. The trio spent all week in the nation’s capital participating in leadership events, community service activities, and learning more about our nation's capital, how it functions, and its history. Stephanie, Kyle, and Jullian also got the opportunity to meet and speak with representatives from the office of Sherrod Brown and Steve Stivers. This is a once in a lifetime opportunity, and all three of our members had a fantastic time serving others, bettering themselves, and meeting other FFA members from across the United States.

Cross Mound Clean-Up: On Friday, August 2nd, members were asked to help at the Cross Mound Park in Tarlton to help clean it up. Members helped with general clean-up of the trails and picnic areas. The chapter has been helping with this particular Fairfield County Park for over 20 years.

Pelotonia: Here, members were able to enjoy a good meal, and then helped to clean up the tables and chairs, then set up more tables for the breakfast ceremony the next morning. This event was held on Friday, August 2nd. Pelotonia raises money for researching a cure for cancer and is a fantastic community service activity. The chapter has been helping with Pelotonia since its inception. For the first three years, the bike ride came through Amanda, but since then, organizers changed the bike route to not go through Fairfield County. Our chapter decided to continue to help with this worthy activity.

Fairfield County Antique Tractor Show: This was the third year our chapter has helped with this community service event, which was held August 17th and 18th at the Fairfield County Fairgrounds. Members that attended helped run the kiddie tractor pulls, direct traffic to enter and exit, and cleaned-up trash around the fairgrounds.

Adopt-a-Highway: Nearly 20 years ago, our chapter adopted a section of 159 from Tommy Wayne’s to Oakland; therefore, at least twice a year, the chapter must do a highway clean-up in that area. On August 19th, we had a great turn out of members who volunteered their time to pick up trash and keep our roads clean. Please do not forget this opportunity will also be available again in the spring for anyone wishing to gain some more community service hours!

Field to Table: On August 23rd, A-C FFA members assisted at the Franklin County Farm Bureau Dinner at Franklin Park Conservatory for their annual fundraiser event. This signature event welcomes 700 guests in celebration of Ohio’s harvest and to help raise funds for the conservatory.

A-C FFA Officers and their Assistants at the Wilds in Cumberland, Ohio, on the annual officer retreat.

A-C members at Ohio Leadership Camp at the Ohio FFA Camp Muskingum with state officer, Noah Smith.

From left to right: Olivia Hutchison, Audrey Butterbaugh, Noah Smith, Aaron Sharp, and Morgan Anderson.

The annual canoe trip held at Paint Creek.

From left to right: (back row) Trevor Spence, Caleb Steinmetz, AJ Dossman, Brant Poston, Paxton Andrews, Allie Poston, Emily Woida, Addy Jones, Luke Blackburn, (front row) Carly Spence, Cierra Andrews, Kaylee Sharp, Emily McCormick, and Emalee Slone.

The members of the A-C FFA Chapter who attended the fifth session of Ohio FFA Camp Muskingum this summer along with state officer, Noah Smith.

Kyle Hicks, Jullian Scott, and Stephanie Bowers in front of the Capitol in Washington, D.C. for Washington Leadership Conference.

A-C FFA members pose for a picture after moving tables and chairs at Pelotonia.

From left to right: (back row) Brandon Binkley, Stephanie Bowers, Abby Tooill, Nathan Heister, Abbie Stats, Cort Kleinline, AJ Dossman, Logan Craycraft, (middle row) Drew Evans, Garrett Dearth, Kiley Holbrook, Kyle Hicks, Morgan Anderson, Forrest Doersam, (front row) Ellie Duncan, Abby Workman, Kaylee Sharp, Courtney Metzon, Brant Poston, and Caleb Hayes.