alafarmnews

State FFA Convention a Success!

The 78th Annual Alabama FFA Convention was held June 6-8, 2007, on the campus of Auburn University.

The opening session began at 2 p.m. on Wednesday. Mr. Jordan Hamilton, 2005-2006 State President, delivered the invocation. The Past State Officers Alumni recognized the 2007 Wall of Honor recipients. The Parliamentary Procedure Career Development Event (CDE) and the Prepared Public Speaking awards were given to the winning teams and/or participants. Gary Claxton, the Mouth of the South, was the keynote speaker for this session. He entertained the crowd with his country humor.

The second session began in the evening at 7:30 p.m. National Chapter Award recipients were recognized along with the Top Five Chapters in the state. The State Officers honored their parents and advisors. William Brandon Smith from the Slocomb Chapter was named as the Future Farmer/Agribusinessman of the Year. His Supervised Agricultural Experience (SAE) included beef cattle and horses. Joshua Melson, from the Danville Chapter, was named the recipient of the Mindy Stringer Memorial Scholarship worth $1,000. Jennifer Himburg, National FFA Southern Region Vice-President from Ariton, addressed the Convention with her speech. Awards were also presented for the String Band competition and the Convention was privileged to hear the sounds of the Enterprise FFA String Band, winner of the 2007 String Band competition.

William Brandon Smith, 2007 Future Farmer/Agribusinessman of the Year, along with representatives from Chevron/Texaco and Interstate Oil Company. (l-r): Rick Norton, Vice President of Interstate Oil; William Brandon Smith, 2007 Future Farmer; Houston Gibbons, President of Interstate Oil; and Barry Reed, Retail Consultant with Chevron/Texaco Companies. Brandon is a member of the Slocomb FFA Chapter and his Advisors are Tony Watkins and Alvin Johnson.

Eight thirty a.m. on June 7 marked the opening of the third session. The crime prevention awards were distributed recognizing the top chapters in the state which have crime prevention activities included in their program of activities. Chapters which had 100% chapter membership were also recognized. CDE awards were given for the following areas: Agricultural Construction & Maintenance, Agricultural Mechanics, Creed Speaking, Extemporaneous Speaking, Floriculture, Forestry, Land, Livestock, Nursery & Landscape, Poultry, Safe Tractor Driving, and Small Engines. Proficiency Awards were given for Agricultural Mechanics, Agricultural Sales and/or Service, Beef Production, Diversified Crop Production, Environmental Science and Natural Resources Management, Equine Science, Floriculture, Forest Management, Fruit/Vegetable Production, Landscape Management, Nursery Operations, Poultry Production, Sheep Production, Specialty Animal Production, Swine Production, Turf Grass Management and Wildlife Management. Thursday afternoon, students also had an opportunity to attend one of many tours sponsored by the Auburn University College of Agriculture and six quartets vied for the top awards in their category as well.

James Paul Bailey, Sand Rock FFA Chapter, with his Advisor/Father, Barry Bailey, after being named the 2007 State Star Farmer for Alabama.

The fourth general session began promptly at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday. This session boasted a keynote address from Dr. Larry Case, National FFA Advisory. Dr. Case encouraged the members to consider the field of agriscience education. The members in attendance applauded Dr. Case as he filled in for Mr. Newton by reciting the advisor’s part of the opening ceremony. The Star Farmers of Alabama were brought on stage and James Paul Bailey from the Sand Rock FFA Chapter was named the Star Farmer of Alabama. His SAE included beef cattle, ferns, market hogs, watermelons, tomatoes and goats. Next, the Honorary State FFA Degree was bestowed on some well deserved supporters of our program. An appearance by Elizabeth Grimes, Miss Alabama Agriculture, was made. She brought a message of the importance of agriculture to the assembly. Awards were then given to the top four quartets in the quartet competition and the convention was also privileged to hear the harmony of the state winning quartet from the Oak Grove FFA Chapter. There was a FFA dance at the close of the fourth session for members to enjoy.

The fifth general session began at 9 a.m. on Friday. Salora Wright, 2006-2007

State President, delivered her retiring address and then the State Officers gave their State Officers’ Report. The State FFA Degree Ceremony was also on the agenda. Around 150 FFA members from across the state received their State FFA Degrees.

The convention closed with the installation of the 2007-2008 State FFA Officers. The state officers were assisted with the announcement of the new slate of officers by the Nominating Committee Chairman, Gary Aycock, who is one of the agriscience teachers at Pell City High School. The new officers for the 2007-2008 school year are: President – James Paul Bailey, Sand

Rock Chapter; Vice President – McKenzie Crabtree, East Limestone Chapter; Secretary – Brendon Boyd, Marbury Chapter; Treasurer – Scottie Hunter, Billingsley Chapter; Reporter – Melody Murrell, Red Bay Chapter; and Sentinel – Leah Blalock, Daphne Chapter.

The new State Officer Team participaed during the summer in two training workshops. The first was Blast Off, which was a leadership workshop held in Montgomery on June 12–14, 2007, at the Drury Inn and Suites. This was a FFA sanctioned training workshop, but Alabama includes all Career/Tech Student Organizations (CTSOs) in the training: FFA, FCCLA, HOSA, TSA, Skills USA, FBLA, and DECA. During the Blast Off conference, the officers learned items such as: dinner etiquette, speech development and delivery, how to address a group, along with various other leadership activities. The State FFA Officers then traveled to Helen, GA, to attend the National Leadership Conference for State Officers (NLCSO). There they were involved with a four-day training program conducted by two of the National FFA Officers. They were trained and ready to conduct and assist with the District Officers’ Leadership Conference and the Chapter Officer Leadership workshops held in the three districts across this state. They also had opportunities to meet with various public officials and become spokespersons for FFA and agriculture in the State of Alabama.

The 2007-2008 State Officers for the Alabama FFA Association (front: l-r): Melody Murrell, Reporter, Red Bay; McKenzie Crabtree, Vice President, East Limestone; Leah Blalock, Sentinel, Daphne; (rear: l-r) James Paul Bailey, President, Sand Rock; Brendon Boyd, Secretary, Marbury; Scottie Hunter, Treasurer, Billingsley.