Local FFA Members Attend Nebraska State Convention
By Natalie Endorf
The Pierce FFA Chapter recently returned from the State FFA Convention held in Lincoln, at the Pinnacle Bank Arena on March 25-27.
The Nebraska State FFA Convention is a large statewide event where students compete, develop leadership skills, explore careers, and celebrate their achievements in agriculture, which is done through competitions, general sessions, a career fair, and more.
A total of 32 members from Pierce competed.
Getting fourth place in forestry were Brandon Thomsen, Jessa Kraft, Alexzander Weinrich, and Kyle Abler.
The senior livestock evaluation team, consisting of Clay White, Alexandria Huwaldt, Cayden Holan, and Bailee Thelen, got 31st place.
Boston Krueger, C. White, Cole DeBoer, and Austin Kerber got 15th place in ag technology and mechanics.
Agronomy was awarded 28th place with their team consisting of Krueger, C. White, Holan, and Dierck White.
Receiving 27th place in vet science were Kate Anderson, Lillian Stern, Grace Behmer, and Jessica Suckstorf.
Emily Endorf, DeBoer, Eleanor Bauermeister, and Evelyn Skrdla got 31st in environmental and natural resources.
For quiz bowl, the first team included Lakin Prince, Corbyn Siebrandt, Grant Nelsen, and Benjamin Huwaldt. Participating in the second team were Quinn Streff, McKaylin Passyka, Easton Grothe, and Thayer Thelen.
“I did an LDE over the impact of social media in agriculture and learned a lot from it. In competition, I was asked a lot of difficult questions, so it was important to know my topic very well. My favorite part was the opening and closing ceremonies. Besides competing, we walked around campus (University of Nebraska Lincoln) and got to learn about different careers in agriculture, which was fun, and we got to see a lot of stuff. Overall, I learned that not everything will go the way it’s supposed to,” Hilkemann said.
In individual events, Josie Painter earned gold in senior prepared public speaking, and Hilkemann got silver in junior prepared public speaking.
Evelyn Skrdla received silver for cooperative speaking, and T. Thelen got silver in ag literacy.
Participants in the ag poster event included Jaymison Neal, Zoey Kraft, and Bristol Prince.
“State convention can be overwhelming for many students, but they usually settle in quickly, and it becomes a great experience. I'm really proud of the diversity of our chapter. We are fairly successful in a variety of competitions that meet the students' interests. Many chapters can become one-trick ponies and focus on a select few contests and interests. I really like to see the growth of our organization year after year and the growth of individual students who have attended State convention multiple years,” Matthew Neal, FFA sponsor, said.
Returning home, members bring back not just awards and results, but also have gained new knowledge and experiences. With continued growth and involvement, Pierce FFA looks to build on this year’s success and further develop its members as leaders in agriculture.
