The year may have looked different, but the Wisconsin FFA State Stars took on the challenge and found success taking home the state title from the 4 different areas – Star Farmer, Star in Agricultural Placement, Star in Agribusiness, and Star in Agriscience.
Star Farmer, Randy Winch of Fennimore FFA, emotionally says, “It seems unreal, I have been working so hard for this.” He’s been working on the farm with his dairy herd of registered milking shorthorns.
Star In Agribusiness, Kaelyn Sumner of Pulaski FFA, manages her business of bees with selling honey, wax, and sometimes extra hives and has made $17,000 since she has began. She will be attending Kansas State University in the fall and will begin a project with the beekeeping association at the Manhattan Airport as a PTSD help for the local veterans. Sumner says, “Lots of airports will put hives on the land because it’s very soothing to go into the hive and work with your hands and veterans love the project across the county.”
Star In Agricultural Placement, Kendra Goplin of Whitehall FFA, has 3 different Supervised Agricultural Experiences which are Agricultural Education, Dairy Placement, and Agricultural Sales. In her agricultural education area Goplin says, “I started just by putting random agricultural facts on a sheet of paper printing them out and putting them on the back of stall doors in the bathroom and calling it a potty press and then once I learned I loved educating people I started by taking over our school’s agricultural literacy program.”
Star in Agriscience, Caleb Gotham of New Auburn FFA, has completed 3 agriscience projects and has competed at the National FFA Convention in Indianapolis, Indiana. Gotham says, “It’s important to me because we need to keep finding new ways to solve problems for the future.”
These Wisconsin FFA members has risen to the top chosen at the 92nd Wisconsin FFA State Convention held this week.
