I am the perfect choice …my amazing and award-winning career in FFA.

Pontoon….sunk.

State FFA speech contest…Extemp… “Hybrid Vigor”… I answered, judge looked at him incredulously, smiled, started clapping and laughing. “That was brilliant! And you have no idea what you’re talking about, do you?” I laughed and said, “No!”

Dairy judging…guessed…voted for the tallest cow…made it to state. (That method didn’t work well there.)

Great to speak to the FFA because I’m a believer… a believer in what you folks do and a believer in what you’re going to become. Been teaching for 40 years and have come to the conclusion that more than computer whizzes or math geniuses, we need leaders…the kind of leaders that FFA trains.

Me…I.C….farm boy…. Greek literature, advanced calculus…me: bailing hay and cutting hogs. I found that what I learned in FFA had little to do with welding or raising cattle or nailing boards…it was my ability to work, to get the job done, to be reliable, and to have a sense of serving others.

Your FFA creed ends with these words… I believe in being happy myself and playing square with those whose happiness depends upon me. Former student.. DOT foods in Mt. Sterling..in charge of hiring.3300 employees. 100,000 products. “The rarest thing to find in an employee…someone who’ll just tell the truth and when they say they’ll do something, they’ll do it.” If you are around the agricultural community you’ll see a lot of that. I live one block from a large implement dealer where deals are still sealed with a handshake. My dad…John Deere dealer…. “pay me when you’ve got it.” Bag of shoes.

I believe that I can exert an influence in my home and community, which will stand solid for my part in that inspiring task. JHS would like higher test scores…good. JHS would like more scholarships….good. JHS would like to win more football games…good. But what JHS needs the most…what any high school needs the most are students who can inspire other students. It is so easy to stop doing the right thing because others aren’t doing the right thing. Don’t…don’t ever stop. 2 senior boys at Triopia…schedules: must eat at Jr. High lunch hour..pick out the lonely.

Your motto: Learning to Do, Doing to Learn, Earning to Live, Living to Serve But the question tonight is…Do you believe it? Albert Sweitzer: the only ones among you who are going to be happy in life are those who’ve sought and found out how to serve others.

I used to take 8th-grade clowns to nursing homes. ..made 300 gifts. One year: a lady donated the gifts…no fun at all. We are happiest when we’re serving others.

Only 3 really important things in your life.. …when you’re born, when you die, when you make a difference in somebody else’s life

I hope so. I have no idea what’s going on inside your head. I hope you believe your creed…I hope you believe your motto. I look around the typical high school and see lots of teaching going on, but one organization that’s truly teaching people to be leaders….the FFA.

1928, 33 young farmboys crowded into a room in Kansas City’s Baltimore Hotel and began this thing called FFA. Those boys had no idea what they started. You don’t either… but be ready. The world is ready for your kind of leadership.

The Final Highlight of my FFA career:

Grandpa’s suspended ceiling. But you know what, we had a good time together.