National FFA Convention 2014 - Louisville KY
Elgin FFA Attends the 87th National FFA Convention - Dylan Widger, FFA Reporter
October 21st-November 1st members of the Elgin FFA Chapter traveled out to Louisville KY to attend the 87th National FFA Convention. Members included were; Morgan Carpenter, Ethan Fischer, Dylan Widger, Morgan Childers, Trey Baum, Taralyn Baum, Jon Meis, Marie Meis, and Baylie Schiltmeyer. Advisor Mrs. Schwartz and sponsor Lori Widger also attended.
The group flew out of Omaha early Wednesday morning. With a layover in Chicago the group made it to Louisville around 1pm Eastern Time. Wednesday night we attended the opening session. It was made known that there were 64,409 members registered for the convention which was a record attendance. The mayor of Louisville spoke that night and he said that if we would take all those members out of Louisville they would create the 4th largest city in Kentucky. I believe this would create the 3rd largest city in Nebraska! This new record is a 1,421-member jump in convention attendance from last year when 62,988 members attended, and up 8,233 from the 85th when 56,176 members were present.Current membership in the FFA stands at 610,240 members, which is up from 579,678 members in 2013. This increase of 30,500 members was accompanied by growth of new, local FFA chapters to 7,665.
The opening session also allowed us to listen to a great motivation speaker, Nick Vujicic. Imagine getting through you busy day without hands or feet. Picture you life without the ability to walk, care for you basic needs, or even embrace those you love. Mr. Vujicic did and still does experience all these things.Although his early days were difficult, this man has overcome and accomplished more that any of us could have imagined if we were born like he was. He now is world renown for his motivation speeches after creating the company, Attitude is Altitude. He also launched a non-profit ministry, Life without Limbs to spread a message of faith and hope around the world.
That same night after the opening session we went to a concert featuring Easton Corbin and Justin Moore. They were great!
Thursday morning we were allowed to "roam" the convention center to see what the HUGE career fair had to offer. Many large corporations were there including Dodge, Monsanto, Ford, John Deere, Case, and hundreds more! Others of us went to watch members compete in speaking contests, such as Public Speaking. That afternoon we loaded a tour bus and headed to Three Chimney Farms. This is a thoroughbred farm SE of Louisville. It is most famous for breeding the last Triple Crown Winner, Seattle Slew. We only toured the "Stud" division of the farm so we only saw the stallions. It was a very clean and beautiful place. They told us about the breeding process of the "very expensive" race horses and about the racing industry and the significance it plays on Kentucky's economy. It was very informative for all us that are use to crops and cattle here in Nebraska!
Thursday evening we went and ate at a famous restaurant called Joe's Crab Shack! It was fun to try crab, lobster and squid while sitting right next to the Ohio River!
Friday morning we all attended some sort of leadership session. These sessions were very interactive and you could pick one of many to attend that you found interesting. That afternoon we all volunteered for National Day of Service at National Safe House. This place is ran through the YMCA and offers a safe place for children in need. They had us to a variety of activities while there and then we packed bags with "essential" items that all of the kids they serve are usually in need of. They were simple items such as socks, toothbrushes and toothpaste. It was great for us to help kids that have very little and kids that also need a safe and caring environment.
Friday night was a night to have some fun at the Worlds Toughest Rodeo. This was a rough stock rodeo and I would say that the girls - all of the girls - enjoyed the rodeo a little more than us guys. Especially afterwards when we stayed for autographs of some of the cowboys. Although us "men" did get a picture with the clown, I don't think that was necessarily a good thing!
Saturday we flew home. Although our chapter did have two members receiving their American FFA Degree (Devon Baum and Tyler Childers) they were unable to come out. So, we did not attend that ceremony Saturday morning.
Overall this was a great experience for all of us! We are so happy that Lori was able to come at the last minute. We know she had fun and was able to experience some new things.