MORAN — Marmaton Valley High School seniors Mallory Heim and Bailey LaRue have made a point of being active through high school.
It just so happens, both found an organization that catered to their myriad interests, from learning the ins and outs of the business world, conducting science experiments or even learning how to prepare a resume.
Welcome to today’s FFA. It’s much more than farming.
“There are so many avenues you can follow,” said Heim, Marmaton Valley’s chapter president, noting one recent project required her to learn about an animal’s anatomy. Another centered on public speaking.
LaRue, chapter vice president, said her first impression of the organization was farming. After all, for much of its history FFA stood for Future Farmers of America.
Recognizing the moniker excluded many of today’s youth, the national organization changed its official name in 1988 to the National FFA Organization, without a specific reference to farming but still under the umbrella of agriculture. As such, FFA exposes students to subjects concerning biology, engineering, veterinarian medicine and entrepreneurship.
“There are so many aspects I didn’t know were available,” said LaRue.
Joining FFA was a no-brainer for both as freshmen.
Heim was intent on following older sister Allison’s footsteps, having grown up as an active 4-H’er, but with little knowledge about life on the farm.
“I saw all the opportunities my sister had because of FFA,” Heim said. “Seeing her involvement allowed me to want the same things she had.”
LaRue, who like Heim, has been involved in 4-H and Allen County Fair competitions for years, also liked what she heard about FFA.
“I loved hearing about how they got to go to all those cool competitions,” LaRue said. “I’m pretty competitive and enjoyed that aspect, as well as learning more about the ag industry.”
THEIR schedules have been particularly busy in recent days because of National FFA Week.
They helped schedule Game Night activities on Monday, an FFA workers auction Tuesday, in which members agreed to provide up to six hours of labor to help folks around town.
Wednesday’s “train the trainer” sessions took center stage, in which FFA members hosted workshops for younger students to teach them about agriculture.
