April… is over already?

What happened? Did anyone see where April went?!?

 

                Well I guess there were a few things that happened in April that made it go quite fast… for example- BANQUET SEASON was up in full swing! Although I had only been to two banquets prior to April, I had the opportunity to travel around in this beautiful weather and attend quite a few banquets! However, before any banquets, Sam and I got to do Midd-West’s Chapter Visit on April 6th! It’s been a while since my last Chapter Visit, so it was pretty exciting to see everyone and do some activities on that very very warm April day…

                Sam stuck around for the one and only Northern Region SOCS, where we met Alex, on April 7th at the Aungst Restaurant in Mill Hall. While the teachers were doing less fun stuff for PAAE, we were having a blast with our 12 SOCS participants from the great North! SOCS, or State Officer Candidacy School, is vitally important in informing the future leaders of this Association because, unfortunately, we have to pass on our positions as state officers in less than 2 months… Regardless, Alex, Sam and I had a great time at SOCS with some awesome members!

                On April 8th, I had the opportunity to attend another PSU Ag Council meeting with Mr. Brammer. This one was focused on our country’s food industry and issues associated with it, so we watched Food, Inc. which was quite an interesting film. Also on the 8th was my first banquet of April at Selinsgrove! The members and officers put on quite an awesome presentation and I had a great time seeing everyone and, of course, eating banquet food!

                After a few days break and some family time, I found myself driving up to Clinton County for the first banquet hosted by our newly chartered Sugar Valley Rural Charter School (SVRCS) FFA Chapter! They did an amazing job and it was pretty cool to see all of the chapter members receive their Greenhand degree (since they’re all first year members)!

                Tuesday, April 13th brought with it the attendance to my 5th ever State College Little Lions FFA Banquet. It was quite a different experience seeing the banquet from the outside rather than from behind the scenes! And I should say that this was probably the best State College banquet that I can remember, so I guess that’s not saying much about my years as a member! Either way, I had a great time seeing some pretty familiar State College members.

                After my home chapter banquet, I had about a week break filled with more quality family time before Midd-West’s banquet on April 20th. Sam and I went to Middleburg to see some outstanding members and their accomplishments at their banquet… plus, we got to eat this AMAZING cake that looked exactly like the FFA emblem!

                On Thursday, April 22nd, I drove in some beautiful weather on my way to the city of Bradford (in McKean County) for the Bradford FFA banquet. I always love traveling into the spectacular northern region and I had quite an eventful time with the Bradford members!

                April 27th brought with it my first NON-Northern Region Banquet:  Brockway! However, I must say Brockway is a pretty cool chapter, even if they are in the West (Jefferson County)! (jk) I experienced quite a few firsts at Brockway’s awesome banquet, like all glass dining-ware, fancy table cloths, and SING-A-LONG songs!! I’m sure the community members around Brockway will not soon forget singing the Princess Pat along with some of their chapter officers… J

                I was soon back in the beautiful North on April 28th for Wellsboro’s banquet in Tioga County. For their second banquet, they did an awesome job and had some outstanding members! Plus, I got a cool Wellsboro FFA t-shirt!

                From Wellsboro, I drove to Molly’s to be ready for the Wenger Praise Dinner on the 29th of April. The officer team got to help set up for the Dinner by setting up 80 tables and table cloths, putting out 800 chairs and programs, and folding 800 cloth napkins to look like fans. We did, however, have a good time while doing so, even if some people do get delirious while folding their 200th napkin… That evening brought tons of guests and sponsors of the Wenger Foundation, a group that supports many community organizations (as well as PA FFA). There were two Southern Gospel music groups that performed and the food was great, so we had an awesome time!

                April is over, but that doesn’t mean it wasn’t jam-packed and amazing! The end of our 10th month marks a countdown to State Convention and although it is hard to think that my Association jacket will expire in less than 40 days, I know that this unforgettable and incredible opportunity will be given to someone else on June 17th.

 

            Until next time…

 

Blessings and Love,

Alli Hoover

 

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February and March

Now that they’re over, that means there’s only 3 months left…!!!

 

                So now that the snow has all blown away and the sun has decided to join us again, it seems things are going as swell as ever in beautiful Pennsylvania. February started off with a trip to Williamsport for Region 7 Farm Bureau Day on Feb 2nd where I was able to meet with various Farm Bureau representatives from my region and hear about current Ag issues and legislative affairs. Then we all had a nice little break before traveling to our beautiful State Capitol on Feb 8th to receive recognition from the Senate Floor (Senator Mike Brubaker) for National FFA Week! Once the Career and Technical Education State Officer conference was cancelled (due to a blizzard), we ended up being snowed in at Molly’s for a few days. After recovering from some cabin fever via a few rounds of snow tubing, we geared ourselves up for ACES! You wouldn’t imagine how long it would take for 11 people to stuff 1100 folders… but at least we had a good time, as always! Then, before we knew it, we were watching as 600 members and advisors flooded into the Harrisburg Sheraton for the FIRST WEEKEND OF ACES!!!!  After some fishy workshops on board the U.S.S. PA FFA, we rocked it out at the DANCE (my favorite) and reflected a bit before heading to bed. The sunrise found most of us at an awesome Time of Inspiration with the “Prasin’ Puppets.” Then, after some delicious breakfast, we split up for Regional Workshop brainstorming sessions (and I got to be with the coolest region ever!). Time to say goodbye was bittersweet, but before we knew it, everyone was headed home for their Valentine’s Day plans and we were ½ done with ACES. A week later, we were ALL ABOARD again, with JUST as much AWESOMENESS and amazing members at ACES week 2! As ACES 2 was wrapping up, National FFA Week was just beginning and we were honored to have Chase Rose, the National Central Region VP come to PA for the whole week! On his first day, Chase was blessed with the incredible opportunity of touring the beautiful Northern Region of PA with myself, Billy Boring, Heather, and Caleb. We visited Central Columbia high school and middle school, Benton high school, State College high school, and then wrapped up the day with a visit to Penn State and one of their Collegiate FFA meetings! I’m pretty sure Chase had an awesome time as we certainly did for the chance we had to hang out with him. On Tuesday of National FFA Week, we all met at the Central Pennsylvania Food Bank to officially donate our 3300 pounds of food that was collected at both weekends of ACES. AWESOME JOB to ALL of our members and chapters for feeding this great state! We were able to also spend a few hours LIVING TO SERVE while sorting some food at the food bank. Then, later that evening, we all made our way to our respective Hoss’s for “Meet your State Officer at Hoss’s Night.” I was privileged to chill with members from Brockway, Clearfield, and Bradford at the Dubois Hoss’s!!! I had an AWESOME time and met quite a few fantastic people! So ends February, the shortest but one of the busiest months of the year!

 

                March was always the month that felt like the start of spring to me. So, it usually means some spring cleaning around the house, more time spent outside, and a generally happier me! My first banquet of the year was held on Wednesday, March 3rd in Ulysses, PA for Northern Potter (Headwaters FFA)! It was an awesome banquet, congrats to the award winners!! Although there was still a few feet of snow up near the NY line, it was a very nice drive. Then, on Friday, March 5th, we had our first Board Meeting of the year and what a good, productive meeting it was! Then we all had a few days break before meeting at the Farm Show Complex on Thursday, March 11th for a SUPER SPECIAL opportunity. The Nuffield Farm Scholars program was holding an international conference in PA and an Ag Issues forum that we were invited to. It was SO AWESOME meeting with farmer scholars from all across the globe and talking about the diversity of Agriculture around the world. Also that evening, we had the opportunity to help at the Penn Ag Industries annual Banquet at the splendid Lancaster Convention Center. Then, the fun begins… Preparation for the ONE AND ONLY State Legislative Leadership Conference (SLLC) began on Friday when we put the binders together for the conference. On Saturday, we met at the Holiday Inn in Grantville to set up before watching as 400 members and advisors flooded in on Sunday morning. We had some really awesome bills to work on that the members seemed to be interested in. The educational tours were new this year: Greater Lebanon Area Refuse Authority (lots of landfills), Middlecreek Wildlife Preserve (with thousands of snow geese!), and Wenger’s of Myerstown (awesome supporter of PA FFA)! Then, after we ALL ate at the Annville Hoss’s, we headed back to the hotel for our very own dance and GRAFFITI PARTY!!!! I always loved seeing who signed my shirt after the night was over but, I loveeeeeee the dance! Then, we all found ourselves bleary-eyed bright (or dark) and early on Tuesday morning at the Harrisburg Hilton for our super special Legislative Breakfast. Hopefully our members enjoyed meeting with their legislators and seeing our fantastic sponsors: Range Resources, Columbia Gas, and Keystone Biofuels! Without them the conference wouldn’t be possible. SLLC has always been my favorite conference, but I had quite a different perspective this year seeing some behind-the-scenes work. I hope the members had an unforgettable experience and learned a lot about legislation, parli pro, and how to have a GOOD time. I’m sure everyone enjoyed the sleep they got once home on Tuesday evening, I certainly did! After some recovery time, and a nice little weekend trip with my mom to visit my grandma, we geared up again for the National Keystone Indoor Truck and Tractor Pull! From March 25th-27th, we found ourselves at the Farm Show complex selling tickets, collecting stubs, selling programs, or just enjoying the pulls (all in Official Dress, of course!). It was an awesome time and the staff was always very generous and kind. We also saw some super-cool members from Big Spring, Franklin County CTC, and Juniata, as they also helped at the pull! After a day of cleaning our ears of the dust, we had a meeting on March 29th at PDA to discuss SOCS and… believe it or not… State Convention! It’s hard to imagine that States is less than 3 months away! I hope everyone is studying for their CDE or getting ready for the BEST convention ever at PSU! March may be over, but that doesn’t mean the fun stops. And hopefully Spring will spring up a little more, as the flowers and tree buds are starting to do! I’m looking forward to the start of Banquet Season to see all the honorable accomplishments of our incredible members across the state! Hope to see you soon!!!!!

 

Blessings and love,

 

Alli Hoover

 

 

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December (2009) and January (2010?!)

WHAT? IT’S 2010??!?

 

No way… it can’t be! That means that it’s been 10 years since 2000… does anyone else remember the new Millennium and the worries it brought? Well now I am worried that I am getting old since it has been 10 years since then! Oh well, we mustn’t look back but only look forward to the future and all the blessings it holds, for I know of quite a few blessings that 2010 will hold!

 

Looking back at December, I can reflect on quite a few things, but the most predominant occurrences were the continuation of CHAPTER VISITS!! From State College (that’s right, home chapter!) on December 3rd, to Chambersburg on December 22nd, we have had quite a few as a team! My Chapter Visits have included:

Chapter Visits are, for the most part, over for the year and it makes me very upset, but it certainly has been a vital and unforgettable part of serving as a State Officer. My Chapter Visit count is up to 26!!!! There may be a few more in the spring, but the fall was fun-filled with visits all across the state!

         

          Between all those chapter visits, we had another PA FFA Board Meeting on Friday, December 4th where we discussed Keystones, Mid-Winter, a new Chapter Charter (SVRCS in Clinton County!), and a few other things before adjourning for the evening. After the Chambersburg visit, the only things left in December were a couple of meetings for the team at PDA to discuss Mid-winter convention, ACES, and SLLC!!! ALL COMING UP (way too fast) IN THE NEW YEAR!

 

          January brought quite a few things, but the first and foremost would have to be the Pennsylvania Farm Show and our very own PA FFA Mid-Winter Convention! This year was the 94th annual Farm Show and let me tell you, 10 days of Farm Show can not only get interesting, but it can also give you the chance to see things you’ve never seen! For example, because we had the opportunity to be at the Farm Show for the duration, I was able to walk around the entire complex (at least twice) to see all of the booths, demonstrations, events, and PEOPLE! Oh! And we got to see the Official Unveiling of the Butter Sculpture on Thursday, January 7th. Then, on Friday, we assisted at the newly re-organized Farm Show Reception where we were able to check coats for the thousands of individuals who came to test some amazing PA Preferred food products and see the program which included Governor Ed Rendell, Senator Arlen Specter, and, of course, our 24th Secretary of Agriculture, Mr. Russell Redding! Saturday brought the Grand Opening of the Farm Show which found us escorting VIPs into seating in the Large Arena for the ceremony and the high school rodeo (AWESOME!). After some rehearsal on Sunday, Monday finally came…

         

          Monday, January 11th found a few of us up bright and early to be at the Farm Show by 7 AM for a short interview by a local news station, and then we found our places in the meeting rooms for the Star Interviews! For me, this was a treat to see all the PA Stars after having served as one myself last year! The entire team hung around for a few minutes before leaving us regional VPs to stay for the interviews. There were some amazing Stars, but we unfortunately only could pick 4: one for each of the categories of Agriscience, Ag Production, Ag Business, and Ag Placement. Congratulations to the Stars who were presented later in the day at our 81st Annual Mid-Winter Convention!

          And then the show begins. Before we knew, we found ourselves in the Large Arena at 1 PM, watching as the seats filled in for our first Convention ever! Then, the warning music struck up and we began… “Your 2009-2010 Pennsylvania FFA State Officer Team…” and then it all went fast and smooth from then on until the final “I declare this meeting adjourned” and tap of the gavel. From our own PA Senator, Robert P. Casey Jr. to our State Attorney General Tom Corbett, we had quite a selection of fabulous speakers. Then, we watched as 165 first-year members put on their own blue corduroy for the VERY FIRST TIME! After honoring some parents and Stars, we finally watched as 247 extraordinary Senior FFA Members walked across stage to receive their Pennsylvania FFA Keystone Degree! Whew. Two hours flew by with some minor surprises (like the helicopter landing on the roof of the Large Arena escorting the President… but he had a change of plans and was unable to come to the Convention : ) and the entrance of our two special guest speakers, Senator Casey (see photo: courtesy of Dr. M. Fernandez) and Attorney General Corbett. Hopefully the members had as good of a time as the State Officer Team did on stage! Congratulations to all award winners, Keystone recipients, Stars, and Jacket recipients!!!! You all are FABULOUS!

          After Monday, the rest of Farm Show seemed simple and casual in comparison, but we had some pretty exciting things to do the rest of the week! We watched as this year’s Farm Show Scholarship Recipients were awarded at breakfast on Tuesday, we helped at our own PA FFA Foundation Food Booth and Orchard Freeze Slushie stand with some awesome chapters, we attended a very important Legislative Luncheon on Thursday that found Molly giving some AWESOME and very congratulated remarks about our organization, and, finally, we watched as some superb chapters were awarded for their hard work on the large Ag Ed displays! All throughout the week, I REALLY enjoyed seeing and meeting members, seeing the chapter displays and the livestock shows, and let’s not forget the incredible FARM SHOW FOOD! : )

 

          January is pretty much over for the team, but we realized (on the last day of Farm Show) that there was less than 4 weeks left until ACES!!!!!!! AHH!!! I am so excited! We are truly looking forward to the two weekends coming up in February that will host a record-breaking 1200 members for one of our superb conferences and then, not too long after; SLLC! The only one of its kind (because it is so incredible, of course!). February (and all too soon, June) will be coming up fast but we are certainly looking forward to it!

 

“Because life is a living, breathing work of art, you are a painting as you go. Be a masterpiece. Drink in life. Laugh too loud. Compliment others constantly.”   ~~Nicole Johnson

 

Blessings and Love always,

Alli Hoover

 

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October & November

The two months that seem to go the fastest in school… and even out of school!

 

Over the past few years, I would glance at the State Officer journals every now and then and I would see that they would have some months missing… and now I know why! It seems like October and November flew by without even a chance to sit down! From Chapter Visits all across the State to a week at the National FFA Convention, these past two months have been CRAZY and UNFORGETTABLE!

 

So, I’ll start back in October and go from there! October 1st would technically be the start of October, wouldn’t you say so? But that day is mentioned in my September Journal (see below!), so I don’t need to tell you that I was at McGuffy High School in Washington County with Billy B! Anyways, the first official documented FFA event of October would be the Blue and Gold Ball, held in Harrisburg on Saturday, October 3rd. We enjoyed a lovely dinner then danced all night long with various Past State Officers, as the Blue and Gold Ball also serves as a PSO Reunion!

 

After a few days break, I jumped right into my FIRST Northern Region Chapter Visit Spree!!!! Now, why not make it officially a NORTHERN Region spree by going all the way to New York?? Well, that’s exactly what Molly and I did when we visited Northern Potter High School (Headwaters FFA) on October 5th. The visit was very welcoming with some awesome leadership activities and Mr. Irish’s home made meatball sandwiches… yum! After school, Molly and I drove to the New York line, and then we received a very informative tour of Austin Dam Memorial Park and of the historic Coudersport, Pennsylvania. October 6th found us at Wellsboro Area High School (Grand Canyon FFA) where we had some fun with the awesome animals (snake and bearded dragon included!) as well as the almost-as-awesome students☺. When the school day was over, our fun with Grand Canyon members did not end, as we were given a short tour of the Pennsylvania Grand Canyon before we went with the chapter to Hoss’s FFA Alumni Benefit Night in Williamsport! On October 7th, Molly and I travelled across the Northern Region to visit Bradford High School in McKean County. We had an unforgettable time with the students at Bradford and then received another awesome Northern Region tour after school! Mr. Sam Heyler let Molly and I climb the old-fashioned model oil derrick that was set up just above the school and then we received a tour of Bradford; including a run-through of the Zippo lighter factory and a drive-by of a McDonald’s drive-thru that had an active oil pump! Then we got to do a little hiking in the Allegheny State Forest, where we (again) drove into New York, then to Warren County to see the beautiful woods. Our final visit of the week came on Thursday, October 8th at Cowanesque High School in Tioga County. After some superb Ninja games and some delicious pizza, we travelled home again, but not before stopping at another outlook of the Grand Canyon and driving through the quaint little Wellsboro one last time!

 

On Monday, October 12th, I had the opportunity to attend a Penn State Ag Council meeting here in State College with Mr. Brammer. The topic of the meeting was the Marcellus Shale Project and I learned a ton about Marcellus Shale, its impact, and its effects on Agriculture. A few days later, I was able to be a part of another very informative event. The State Officer Team was given a tour of the Penn Nationals Horse Raceway in Grantville, PA. Although it was a little rainy, we still were given a really neat and informative tour of the grounds, buildings and barns. The Pennsylvania Horse Racing Industry is pretty exciting and very successful, so we were honored to be able to learn more about it!

 

And finally, you thought I’d never get to it, but there is only one of its kind… the NATIONAL FFA CONVENTION!!!! Although it was my 4th convention, it was absolutely the most exciting! We left from Mechanicsburg at noon on Saturday, October 17th, and the drive was only the first chapter of an outstanding week! We stayed overnight at an old grain mill in Ohio, then arrived in Indianapolis on Sunday! On Monday, we were given the amazing opportunity to help build a home in Indy for the National FFA Day of Service through Habitat for Humanity. Hammering siding in all day can leave some marks (like a nice purple bruise on my thumb) but it still was a blast, as we were able to talk to the future homeowner and work with other State Officers from across the country. Tuesday and Wednesday were filled with Delegate Sessions, where we discussed National FFA Delegate Issues. Of course, where else would I be Wednesday night than at the Toby Keith Concert!!!! Thursday began with the 3rd Opening Session with keynote speaker Mike Rowe! You know Convention has truly started when you see thousands of blue corduroy jackets flooding the streets of Indy between the Field House and the Convention Center. From sessions with speakers and National Officer retiring addresses to walking around the career show and meeting members from across the country, Thursday and Friday flew by, leaving Saturday to be our final day in Indy. Saturday morning brought on the hundreds of American Degree Recipients (congrats to our PA recips!) and Saturday afternoon brought the Final Session where our National CDE winners were recognized and the new National Officer Team was elected.

Congratulations to all the teams and individuals that competed and participated at the National Convention!! A special little congrats also goes out to my mother for receiving her honorary American Degree and my own fabulous Ag Teacher, Mr. Paul Heasley, for being a finalist for National Agriscience Teacher of the Year! This year’s National Convention seemed to be gone with the blink of an eye, but it certainly was a tremendous week.

 

After a day or two of rest from Convention, I went out west to Jefferson County with Billy B on October 27th to visit Brockway High School where we had some human table time and worked with the awesome members! Three short days later, we were all in Philadelphia for W.B. Saul’s Chapter Visit! Working with the Philly members was rockin’, as we played ninja, toured the meat lab and barns, and were fed some delicious Food Science productsJ .

 

November? Already? Well, here goes! Sam, Alex, Caleb, Heather, and I had the opportunity to visit Chief Oil and Gas in Montoursville and learn more about the Marcellus Shale Project, as we visited one of their natural gas drill sites. Friday, November 6th had Heather, Caleb, and I in Wilkes Barre for the Fall Leadership Conference with some Northern Region Chapters. We had an awesome time with our workshops and working with the members!

 

Northern Region Visit sprees are the best, as I ventured North again with Molly on November 9th to visit Northeast Bradford High School and Athens High School in Bradford County. On Tuesday, November 10th, we were at Canton High School and very much enjoyed spending time with the members and enjoying dinner with them! Tuesday night brought me back home to Centre County for the Centre County Farm City Dinner, where I got to be the emcee for the evening! It was a ton of fun and I enjoyed meeting members of my own Agricultural community! Back north again on Wednesday, but this time with Billy B to visit Troy High School and their awesome members! Wednesday night, we were in the lovely Coudersport, PA, this time for the Coudersport FFA Banquet! Then, the day after, we did Coudersport’s Chapter Visit (Ninja, anyone?) and got a taste of some local maple syrup! My 6-visit week ended nicely in Indiana County at Penns Manor High School with Billy B. Whew!

 

The sweetest place on earth (duh, Hershey!) was host to the Pennsylvania Farm Bureau’s Annual Meeting on November 16th-17th where the Officer Team was able to help with the delegate sessions and meet many Farm Bureau members from across the state! On Tuesday, November 17th, I drove a bit north to attend Midd-West’s fall Parent-Member Banquet where the chapter’s Greenhand and Chapter degree recipients were recognized. You can always expect to have a good time up North, as I did with the Midd-West officers and members! We had a very efficient team meeting in Harrisburg on November 18th and then I was up in the Northern Region again on Thursday, November 19th for Selinsgrove’s Chapter Visit! Sam and I travelled up the road from her house to have a fabulous time with the Selinsgrove students before coming home and prepping for an early morning on Friday! We were invited to attend the PA Farm City Day in Philadelphia on Friday, November 20th where we met with many Agricultural Organizations from the Philadelphia area and across the state. Along with W.B. Saul-made Ice Cream, we enjoyed a small reception in celebration of Secretary Redding’s Birthday!

 

Finally, Thanksgiving week! It seemed to come too fast, but was nonetheless appreciated for some good ole family time! Not before I got to visit Clearfield Area High School with Heather for their Chapter Visit! We had some good times with Ninja and leadership activities before heading home. While Thanksgiving is usually for the blood-related family, I got to spend Thanksgiving morning with my FFA Family (the Officer Team) as we travelled again to Philadelphia for the second time in one week! Walking in the Philadelphia Thanksgiving Day Parade was so much fun! We got to walk with the Campbell’s Soup Float and hand out tomato seeds to the friendly crowd. The parade flew by, however, and we were all happily home by turkey time for some good Thanksgiving food and fun.

 

November is one of my favorite months because it usually means one thing… December is coming!!!! Christmas is my favorite Holiday of the year and even as we were digesting our Thanksgiving turkey, my family was playing Jingle Bells and decorating the house for Christmas! December also will bring some more memorable Chapter Visits before everyone gets to enjoy a nice long Holiday Break, so until next time…

 

Love and Blessings as always (and a VERY MERRY CHIRSTMAS!),

 

Alli Hoover

 

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September… time for School!

 

Wait, it’s October? Already? Where did September go??? It seems like just yesterday we were enjoying the warmth of summer, but the trees have been rapidly shifting their green leaves to the stunning colors of gold, orange, and auburn. Fall is probably my favorite season of the year due to the weather, football season, and apples! And now, I get to affiliate fall with the start of something even more exciting than football (yes, more exciting than football…): Chapter Visits!!!

 

This past September flew by, but that doesn’t mean it was empty of events! Our first September event was on Friday, the 11th (Patriot Day) at the Department of Agriculture, where we had a meeting to go over some items of business. On the 12th, Billy B, Caleb, and I traveled to Lancaster County to assist at the Grand Opening of JB Zimmerman’s second True Value store. We spent the day serving hot dog meals outside of the store to benefit the Grassland FFA Chapter. Everyone at the store was really generous and we got to hang out with two awesome guys from STIHL and some members of the Grassland FFA as well (see photo)! After a long hot dog-filled day, we headed home to rest up before a jam-packed 10-day plethora of events!

 

          As I mentioned, Chapter Visits are pretty exciting, so you could probably guess that we all were super ready for our first official Chapter Visit of the year! On Wednesday, September 16th, the whole team (minus Molly who was at Big E already) met at Bermudian Springs High School to put our workshops into action for the day. We had an awesome time with the students and we hoped they enjoyed it as well!

         

          We were up bright and early on Thursday to meet up at PDA for our first (official) departure from the state. Six hours in a 15-passenger van can turn out to be whatever you want it to be and, though it was a little cramped, we certainly stayed excited for our final destination of Springfield, Massachusetts for the Eastern States Exposition (Big E)! We were able to relax for the evening before setting out for the Springfield Sheraton on Friday morning. The officers were divided and distributed to help at certain competitions that were being held that day. Billy B and I really enjoyed helping with the Parliamentary Procedure competition, and I certainly learned a lot more about Parli Pro than I had ever known! We had the opportunity to watch Heather and the Captain Jack FFA Chapter compete (they got 3rd place!). Alex Spease also competed on Friday for Senior Prepared public speaking and won First place for Pennsylvania! Saturday morning came mildly early, as we left the hotel at 6 AM to arrive at the Big E Fairgrounds for the day. While the rest of the team was again paired off to help with various competitions, I was given the opportunity to represent PA in the Big E Stars Program, so I got to spend the day (after interviews) with the Stars from all the other Eastern Region states! There was a ceremony held in the Circus Tent (that’s right, a Circus Tent) and then everyone was welcome to the CDE Awards Banquet that evening at the Springfield Sheraton. The results came in and Pennsylvania had quite a few first, second, and third place winners! Congratulations to all of the competitors and chapters that represented this awesome state! After an exciting few days in New England, we headed home on Sunday to get ready for some dairy cows and heifers.

 

On the morning of Monday, September 21st, we entered the Equine Arena at the PA Farm Show Complex to start our time at the All-American Dairy Show! Not only did I get to hand out ribbons with Royalty, but I also learned much more about the incredible dairy cow! We got to hang out with the PA Dairy Princesses and some other members of Dairy Royalty throughout the week. On Tuesday, I was handed a yearling Jersey heifer and told to lead her in a circle while being judged by a few hundred people… it may sound crazy, but it was certainly a memorable experience, as I had never witnessed a 4-H/FFA Dairy Judging Contest! We all got to lead some animals around to be judged, then we had to take them back to their owners (I was really getting attached to the cow I walked : ). After a few more ribbons and some ultra-sounds that we helped with on Tuesday, we were all invited to attend a reception for the former Secretary of Ag, Mr. Dennis Wolff. After a few presentations and a Milk Toast by the Dairy Princesses, a few of us stayed to partake in a wonderful meal at the annual Exhibitor’s banquet. Wednesday brought more ribbons needing to be handed out and some extra helping hands, but after All-American, some of the team traveled to Greenwood High School for some super-intense Ag Olympics (where my “Ferocious Dairy Heifers” won!!). We had a few more final hours on Thursday morning at the Farm Show Complex before leaving for Gettysburg!

The Adams/Franklin/York Leadership Conference was held at Gettysburg High School on Thursday evening and we had quite a blast with officers and members from chapters across southern PA! After a few amazing workshops (one given by Britney Marsh, our National Officer Candidate), we had some yummy pizza and said goodbye to all of the conference participants!

 

Home again for a few days before leaving for WESTERN Pennsylvania with Mr. Billy Boring! Billy and I had our first paired Chapter Visit on Tuesday, September 29th, at Laurel High School in Lawrence County! After a day full of workshops and activities, we were invited to stay for the Jr. High FFA meeting, at which a really neat apple taste test was conducted! We ate some caramel apples and played some games before heading home for the evening. On Wednesday, Billy and I traveled down to Washington County for a visit to Fort Cherry High School. Following a crazy exciting visit day, we were invited to attend and assist at the Washington County Leadership Conference. After a delicious dinner, we jumped right into some workshops. Hopefully the members from McGuffy and Fort Cherry had fun swabbing the deck, building a pipeline, and getting dressed up before heading home to their chapters! : ) Technically, Wednesday marked the end of September, but Billy and I’s Chapter Visit spree ensued into October, so I’ll include one more detail in this journal. Thursday, October 1st held the McGuffy High School Chapter Visit. There were some interesting 3-headed monsters and a few hidden eggs at McGuffy that we hope were enjoyable! Finally, Billy and I headed home after an unforgettable Chapter Visit-packed week out west! I really liked driving home through western PA; it’s quite a beautiful part of the state. Hopefully I’ll get to see it again on our way to Indianapolis in a few weeks… for NATIONAL CONVENTION!!!!!

Good Luck to all the teams and members who will be traveling to Indiana for the National FFA Convention! And Good Luck to our National Officer Candidate, Britney Marsh! See you guys there!

Much love and blessings,

 

Alli Hoover

 

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August… gone too fast!

Not nearly as busy as July, but still jam-packed with FFA excitement!

 

Although August started slow, it certainly didn’t remain that way! Soon after returning from PANTS, a few of us had a meeting at Sam’s house to work on our Ag Progress Days display! After about 5 hours of cutting out holes in plates, we were ready to be done with them, but we only had ¼ of what we needed. All is good, however, as we were able to make it fun as always! Our first official team event for August was a PA FFA Association Board meeting. Held on August 6th, we met in my backyard at PSU for the meeting. From regional Ag teacher representatives to Penn State representatives, the board had diverse yet very cooperative and efficient members. We discussed many aspects of our state’s Association and achieved some great conclusions. After a few hours, we were able to take a break to meet with the PA FFA Foundation board members over a few ice cream sundaes that were generously provided by the local and state Dairy Princesses! After the nice break, we went back to work for a few hours and finished in a satisfied manner.

          Everyone got a one-day break before we all headed down to Gettysburg for the National Leadership Conference for State Officers (NLCSO) on Saturday, August 8th. Along with the State Officers from Maryland, New Jersey, Delaware, Virginia, and West Virginia, we spent 5 days at a very nice hotel on the outskirts of the historic city. We were honored to have two of our National Officers, Riley Branch and Regina Holliday, as our facilitators for the conference. From learning about presentation skills to understanding our team’s strengths, we were able to capture and absorb much from the various workshops and sessions.      

On Monday, after a few sessions, we were able to go on a tour of historic Gettysburg and the battlefields. The tour bus wasn’t able to hold all of the State Officers and staff at NLCSO, so PA had its own van and tour guide! It was really an awesome learning experience and we even got to re-enact some of the battle scenes! After a grand tour of historic Gettysburg, we all ventured to the Gettysburg High School to be served an EXCELLENT dinner which was provided by Mr. Dick Waybright and served by the awesome Battlefield FFA Chapter!

Tuesday held more sessions where we got to partake in some interesting hands-on activities, such as completing brain puzzles and performing soap opera scenes! We were all super-excited for Tuesday evenings’ dance, which was held after a formal banquet at which Ms. Jean Lonie came to speak. It was really fun rockin’ it out and meeting the other State Officers from around PA at the dance, but we were all pretty tired at its end.

Wednesday was our final day at NLCSO and we had a few morning sessions before Riley and Regina had to leave. They were really cool and they did a fantastic job as facilitators! After our final session, we left the hotel to journey to the southern-most part of Pennsylvania in search of Mason Dixon Farms, the largest dairy farm in PA (and home to your 08-09 State Sentinel, Lance Waybright)! Mr. Dick Waybright invited all of the State Officer teams to attend a tour of his amazing farm and he was also very gracious for sponsoring the Gettysburg tour and other NLCSO events. So, with the majority of the teams travelling with us in convoy, we made our way down to the 2,500 head dairy farm that includes enough crop acreage to spread across two states.  It was really cool to see all of the progressive aspects of this incredible farm! Some of these included; robotic milking systems, robotic silage loading trucks, “cow heaven” ventilation system barns, and methane digesters that produce enough energy to run the entire farm AND sell energy back to the local power company! All in all, NLCSO was an unforgettable conference that not only taught us more about improving out State Officer teams, but also taught us more about progressive agriculture and Pennsylvania history!

          After returning from NLCSO, everyone got a few days to rest up before the hottest three days of the summer… Ag Progress Days. Personally, I have been involved with APD for the past 6 years, and it has always seemed to be held on the same week that our summer record temperatures occur. However, it was always a week to remember, and this year, having 10 team mates with me made it even more memorable! Everyone arrived in State College on Monday, August 17th to help set up. Throughout the week, we helped at the PA FFA Foundation Hatfield food booth and we ran our own PA FFA youth exhibit. So after setting up both of these booths on Monday, we were able to go to our hotel (located 30 minutes from my house!) for the evening.

Tuesday started bright and early as we were able to put together our booth and inflate the 15-foot pig, Smiley, for the food booth. The team was then split into three groups so that one group would always be with our interactive youth exhibit, one group would be helping serve hot dogs at the food booth, and one booth would have some time to walk the grounds at Rock Springs. Tuesday went very smoothly and we were all rested up for Wednesday, as we knew it would be a long one!

On Wednesday morning, we arrived in Official Dress to attend some meetings before getting back to the dirty work of serving BBQ sandwiches. Our interactive youth display was focused on the different faces of Agriculture and we made over 2,000 plates with eye-holes cut out and popsicle sticks glued on in order to hand out to the kids at APD. They would come through our station, make a mask using various coloring utensils, and then take it home with them and cherish it forever. Just kidding, but we hope they had fun as we certainly did! We also had some FFA and Ag facts as well as a large map of PA for the kids to put sticky notes on for where they are from.  It was interesting to see how many kids came to APD and where they were from!

Thursday came and went smoothly, due to the fact that we were used to serving various pork products and assisting children in making paper-plate masks. The end of the day came with much relief, as everyone was getting a little worn out. So, after packing everything up and saying some hot and sweaty goodbyes, we departed for about a week before meeting up again.

The team met again on August 26th (the day after my 18th B-day!) at the Department of Agriculture for a truly unique and awesome opportunity. Ms. Jean Lonie set up a job-shadowing experience for all of the State Officers in the Department of Ag! She paired us with individuals in the department who were within a range of interest for each of us, so I was able to work with a member of the Bureau of Food Safety. Dr. Lydia Johnson was my body to shadow for the morning and it was an awesome experience getting to see all aspects of the Bureau. Although I was supposed to be shadowing Dr. Johnson, I only spent minutes with her before being taken away to talk to Mr. Bill Chirdon, the director of the Bureau of Food Safety and Laboratory Services at PDA. After hearing some great career advice from Mr. Chirdon, I was able to go on a tour of the State’s official food safety inspection laboratories! The biological and chemical labs had everything from Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) machines to fluorescent absorption machines that look for bacterial colonies. These tours took up most of my time with the Bureau and, unfortunately, I didn’t get to spend much time with Dr. Johnson. However, we were able to talk as we walked over to the Farm Show building for a lunch and round-table discussion of Ag Issues. All of the other State Officers and their PDA partners were in attendance, and we got to discuss some truly vital and upcoming issues in our industry.

After our luncheon and discussion, we said our goodbyes and thank-yous to the generous PDA members and departed for the USDA building. Director Bill Wehry (former Deputy Secretary of Agriculture at PDA) invited us into his new home at the Farm Service Agency (FSA) office so that we could learn more about how the Agency assists in agricultural communities. After hearing from some members of his department, we were also able to hear about the Rural Development department of USDA. Finally, we were given a short yet very informative presentation on the Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS) department of the USDA. We learned a lot about Agriculture and walked away with some awesome information about our State and Nation’s position in Ag. The day was one that we won’t soon forget due to all of the knowledge gained and opportunities discovered!

All in all, August went very quickly and I’m sad to see it gone… however, I know that with September comes something to REALLY be excited about… CHAPTER VISITS!!!!! =) And I am certainly energized! But August won’t be forgotten, as it was quite an unforgettable third month of one treasured year of extraordinary service.

Love always,

Allison Hoover

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July July July… a whirlwind of adventure!

 

From Erie (and Ohio) to center-city Philly, we’ve had our fair share of travel this month! And from canoeing down a creek to driving golf carts, we had quite a variety of experiences as well!

On July 7th, we had our first ever meeting at PDA! The morning brought in Ms. Charlene Espenshade, our awesome Lancaster Farming staff writer. Hopefully we’ll see some of the amazing things that our PA chapters do in the Blue and Gold Pages this year! Soon to follow, we got to meet with the Executive Deputy Secretary of Agriculture, Russell Redding and his super-cool assistant, Jean Lonie! Following lunch, we were able to go on a tour of the Pennsylvania Veterinary Laboratory, which held quite a few interesting surprises… if you have a weak stomach, I wouldn’t recommend this tour, but we all really enjoyed it! Finally, we were privileged to have a short meeting with the Secretary of Agriculture, Dennis Wolff! He and Deputy Secretary Michael Pechart were very kind and gracious as they met with us. All in all, it was a wonderful day spent at the Department of Agriculture in Harrisburg and we know we will be back there often!

July 9th was the start of our first member-oriented event, WPLC! For our first, it certainly was incredibly unforgettable! The Western Pennsylvania Leadership Conference was held at the Conneaut Lake Hotel on the shores of Conneaut Lake in Conneaut Lake, PA! As you can guess, this is in the Western Region and a tad bit of a drive for most of us. Nonetheless, we arrived on Thursday, just in time to see the chapters arriving. From Conneaut Valley to Big Spring, there were 14 amazing chapters that came out to the lake to get “Hooked on FFA” (conference theme)! After a few workshop sessions, everyone headed down to the beach for some dancing, a party, a wonderful dinner, and then some games before enjoying the campfire. Included in the campfire were some ghost stories about the supposed inhabitants of the 100-year old Conneaut Lake Hotel… you may have to ask one of the WPLC participants or an SO about these stories, as they vary by the individual… finally, we closed the wonderful day with our first Reflections ever, a reflection of the theme; “Hooked on FFA”.

Friday, July 10th brought the end to the short conference, but hopefully, we were able to leave the members with some memories of our workshops on the beach! After a guest speaker on manufacturing and Harleys, everyone headed home! Gladly, the weather for the conference was sunny and beautiful!

Considering that we were all from other parts of the state, and we had driven about 4 to 6 hours to get to Conneaut Lake, we were glad to be able to stay for a few days until the Ag Teacher’s conference, PAAE, began. In the between time, the team had some great bonding time which included, but was not limited to: driving to Ohio, feeding some really big fish at Pymatuning Reservoir, going for a swim, getting scared out of our skins from a lightning storm (that was centered on the lake… and hotel), having a party for Ms. Samantha Barrick-Poust (who turned 18 during this time!), canoeing down an unforgettable “creek”, team-building through some creek rescue, attending a gracious cook-out, and sleeping. Whew! It was quite a break, although we were happy to get back to work on Monday when the teachers arrived!

The Pennsylvania Association of Agricultural Educators Conference (PAAE) was held from Monday, July 13th to Thursday, July 16th. There were over 100 teachers there and they were all really awesome, despite what you think about them! Just kidding! There were some really cool Ag tours, very diverse workshop sessions, and some more beach dances (with teachers… weird, right?) But all in all, it was a successful conference at which we were able to learn a little more about the incredible PA Ag Ed Teachers and FFA Advisors! Also at this conference, we were proud to announce our 2009-2010 PA FFA Theme: Beyond the Blue! We hope that it reaches many members and non-members as an insight to see that the FFA is pretty much beyond anything that we see it as. Beyond those blue jackets, you’ll find some amazing and unique people. Beyond these years in the FFA, you’ll get to achieve so much more because of this amazing organization. Even beyond agriculture in itself, the FFA is about anything you make it! WPLC and PAAE brought quite a long week, but nonetheless an incredible one that will not be forgotten!

          Not too long after we all got home and rested up, we were on the road again, this time to another PA FFA Foundation Golf Tournament! On Monday, July 20th, we met in Lancaster to have the opportunity to tour the Lancaster Farming building! To think, this building in downtown Ephrata produces 61,000 newspapers and sends them out across the country weekly! After this tour, we went to Myerstown for a tour of the Wenger’s of Myerstown Company and all of its branches! Molly’s grandpa was very gracious in leading us through the equipment shop, which ships used machinery parts all across the country, the bike shop, and the machine shop, where the used parts are cleaned and fixed. Mr. Tyler Funk certainly had a great birthday present, as Monday was his birthday, and he loves tractors! On Monday evening, we helped set up for the Monsanto Fore FFA Golf Tournament at the Foxchase Golf Course in Ephrata.

          Tuesday morning came early, as we were on the golf course around dawn to prepare for the 100 golfers who came to benefit the PA FFA Foundation! Driving golf carts was fun, but we did some work too! The dinner and auction were a success, as the State Officer team was yet again sold for labor and many chapters donated items for the auction!

          Ok, so I realize this is getting pretty long… but I’m almost done! How could I forget PANTS!? (Not what you’re thinking!) Again in our cars we were, as we traveled to the Philadelphia area on Sunday, July 26th for the start of PANTS! The Penn-Atlantic Nursery Trade Show is an event run by the PLNA (Pennsylvania Landscape & Nursery Association) that hosts over 500 exhibitors for a 2.5 day trade show. These exhibitors have a total of over 900 booths that were visited by over 6,000 people in those 2.5 days! The attendees are other Nursery and Landscape industry members that are interested in buying or doing business with the exhibitors. This was the first year that the PA FFA was involved with PANTS, as we were invited to attend and volunteer at the event in order to publicize both the FFA and the involvement of the PLNA with the community. Also, PANTS is now the sponsor of the state-winning Nursery Landscape teams from Pennsylvania! We are very grateful for their sponsorship! But we most certainly got more than a partner out of the week! On Sunday, we met with some really fun committee members who run the show! After a lovely dinner with the committee, we headed back to the hotel to turn in, as we had to be up quite early the next morning.

We got to wear special PANTS shirts on Monday as the endless exhibitors checked in and moved in… By the end of the day, the empty exhibit hall became unrecognizable due to the masses of trees, flowers, plants, and booths. It literally looked like a forest just sprouted up in a few hours! Then the show began!

Tuesday and Wednesday brought in quite a few attendees who came in and out as the days went on. We got to walk around in our stunning, unforgettable Official Dress and meet with exhibitors and possible PA FFA sponsors. Everyone was always so generous and kind, as we’ve found that this industry is very family-oriented and friendly!

On Thursday, we were back in another PANTS shirt for tear-down. The exhibitors were keen to leave as soon as the show was over, but they were very cooperative and thankful for our help. There was an opportunity to donate any leftover or unwanted plant material to the PLNA for an auction which benefited their Foundation (which awards scholarships and grants in the industry). Many exhibitors were very gracious, as we had a lot of material to auction off that evening. We ended Thursday with a satisfied glance around the nearly-empty exhibit hall before saying goodbye to the wonderful PANTS committee members and heading to the hotel. It was a bit late, so we stayed till Friday morning, when we took Brittany to her home in central Philly… the other end of the state from where we were 2 weeks prior!  

Wow, this was a long entry… but then again, July was a jam-packed month! I believe I was home for a grand total of 8 days for the entire month! Never to be forgotten, this was quite a glorious second month of service to the Pennsylvania FFA Association and I am still grateful as ever to have the opportunity to serve as a State Officer.

Thanks for reading my superfluously-long journal!

 

Love always,

Allison Hoover

 

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June 2009

 

The first incredible, unforgettable month of the most marvelous year ever!

 

June FFA activities started with a weekend-long FFA State Officer Candidate Training Session in Mechanicsburg. From egg-drops to late-night Titanic viewings, we all had a blast and the State Officer Candidates were incredible! Unfortunately, we couldn’t have a 19-member team, because it would have been an awesome one!

 

Soon after, as in, 2 days later, Activities Week started… and let me tell you, it was one of the most stressful, exciting, long, draining weeks of ever. However, this stress was relieved by a few hundred incredible members and one jammin’ dance (which was actually my first activities week dance… nonetheless an unforgettable one!). Through sessions and walking around campus, seeing all the blue corduroy was good motivation to keep me going during the week. Two days of interviews led into Thursday morning’s session… the third and final, one that caused much emotion, screaming, and tears. All for the new State Officers, PSOs, and CDE winners!

 

Then, on Saturday, June 13th, I graduated from high school! An unforgettable 4 years of FFA will always be with me as I move forward in my life. After graduation, I was able to chill a little at home before packing for BLAST Off! We all met at Wenger’s Cabin and attended officer training each day in Grantville with our trainer, Jesse Eller (Past California SO). After an amazing week, we helped at the Huntington Fore FFA Golf Tournament. Meeting officials and helping with the auction was tiring, but we made it through our first official event! There were some really cool auction items from chapters like Linesville, Blue Juniata, and Crawford County. Awesome job to all the chapters that made or donated something for the Silent Auction! The proceeds benefited everyone!

 

After the golf tournament, June FFA Activities were pretty much over… We had 2 weeks of home time and then it was July! I would have to say, though, that this past June was probably the best June of my life! Thanks to everyone who made it possible!

 

Love always,

Allison Hoover

Northern Region Vice President