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About The Blue Mountain eagle. (John Day, Or.) 1972-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 7, 2018)
Community Blue Mountain Eagle Wednesday, November 7, 2018 A7 Contributed photo Contributed photo Gathering at the National FFA Convention & Expo are, from left, Grant Union Career Coordinator Kristi Moore, FFA adviser Adam Ineck, FFA members Cinch Anderson, Emilie Updegrave, Ellie Justice, Parker Manitsas, Kori Jo Girvin, Hailey Carter (2017 Grant Union graduate) and chaperones Jennifer Carter and Cori Anderson. Prairie City FFA Chapter members and one Dayville Chapter member enjoyed their experience together at the National FFA Convention & Expo in Indianapolis, Indiana. Front row, from left: Denali Twehues (Dayville), Shaelynn Bice, Abby Winegar, Hannah Wall, Haley Pfefferkorn and Maddy Way; back row, Declan Zweygardt, Lane Williams, Lucas McKinley, Abbey Pfefferkorn, Jonathan Lawrence, Levi Burke, Brett Copenhaver and Carson McKay. Chaperones, not pictured, were Mindy Winegar, Ryan Williams and Matt Twehues. Local students among ‘sea of blue jackets’ at National FFA Convention 19 Grant County students travel to Indiana convention By Angel Carpenter Blue Mountain Eagle Nineteen FFA members from three Grant County high schools joined 69,000 other members wearing the trade- mark blue jackets at the Oct. 24-27 National FFA Conven- tion & Expo in Indianapo- lis, Indiana, increasing their knowledge of the program. The national officers chose “Just One” as this year’s theme to highlight how each FFA member can make a dif- ference in the world, begin- ning with just one positive choice or action. Prairie City FFA chapter vice president Haley Pfeffer- korn said 13 of their mem- bers attended, along with one member from Dayville School’s chapter. “It really opened up their eyes to how FFA can help them with life skills, leader- ship skills and responsibility,” she said. Cinch Anderson, Grant Union’s FFA chapter vice president, said it was amazing to see so many FFA members gathered in one spot. “There is just a sea of blue jackets everywhere,” he said, speaking from the convention on Oct. 26. “It’s such a humbling experience to see everyone — it’s overwhelming,” said Grant Union FFA treasurer Parker Manitsas, who is also Strawberry Mountain District treasurer. Team building and lead- ership workshops, personal and professional workshops, including career exploration, were among scheduled ac- tivities, along with a Garth Brooks and Ned LeDoux con- cert. President Donald Trump delivered a keynote address on the final day. Pfefferkorn said only 7,000 FFA members could at- FFA National Convention theme Just One. One moment, one encounter, one opportunity is all it takes to radically change the course of our lives. This year, our team has chosen “Just One” as our theme be- cause we recognize the impor- tance of each individual “Just One” step toward growth as we work toward our vision of growing leaders, building communities, and strengthen- ing agriculture. Changing the world sounds like a daunting task at times, yet we believe FFA members can change the world every day by Just One tend Trump’s address because of high security, and although they tried, no one from Grant County received tickets. She said her group viewed the speech via livestream from the FFA Facebook page. Anderson said although his group was unable to see Trump, he was still impressed. “I think that’s really cool that we have a president that cares about agriculture,” An- simple action. Just One em- bodies the idea that our FFA experiences were powerful because we took Just One chance and stepped out of our comfort zones. We hope to encourage members to take Just One risk. Just One step. Just One moment of courage. We are capable of shaping the future of agriculture, our homes, communities and the United States of America, when we believe in the power of Just One! – 2017-18 National FFA Officer Team derson said. “It’s a youth or- ganization, so it’s cool that he is going to be addressing the youth on what he’s trying to do to help out agriculture.” Grant Union FFA advis- er Adam Ineck said he was pleased with the high-cali- ber presenters and govern- ment officials “acknowl- edging that these are the leaders of the future within agriculture and beyond.” Attending the national event is a “fantastic opportu- nity,” he said. “It’s the ‘Super Bowl’ of our year, for sure.” Five Grant Union FFA members attended, along with the school’s Career Coordi- nator Kristi Moore and 2017 Grant Union graduate Hailey Carter and her mother, Jen- nifer Carter. Hailey and her twin sister, Jessica Carter, both received American FFA degrees. “This is the highest degree that can be bestowed upon a member, and they aren’t eli- gible until the second conven- tion after their graduation,” Ineck said. “That’s six years of record books, and lots of requirements.” Grant Union chapter presi- dent Kori Jo Girvin said being at the convention opened their eyes to how many other stu- dents participate in FFA. “Most people get the wrong interpretation of FFA,” she said. “Coming to the convention gives me hope that we can actually get a larger chapter.” Some might think FFA is about “students with their cows, plows and sows,” Ineck said. “FFA is so much more.” He said the program, deep- ly rooted in agriculture, has a mission to “make a posi- tive difference in the lives of students by developing their potential for premiere lead- ership, personal growth and career success through agri- culture education.” Cruise said there are FFA chapters in cities such as Chi- cago and New York. Students can discover “it still can be for me even though I’m not interested in agriculture,” she said. Prairie City junior Mad- dy Way, who joined FFA this year, said her favorite work- shop had Army veterinarians who talked about how they care for service dogs and horses. She said attending the na- tional event gave her a greater appreciation of the program. “It really made me love it,” she said. “It made me want to do more in FFA.” True Value Hardware and The Outpost Pizza, Pub & Grill would like to thank our brave heroes with a FREE MEAL at The Outpost on Veteran’s Day Nov. 11, 2018 Les Schwab Tire Center JD Rents and Power Equipment Inc 727 W Main St. John Day 541-575-1156 Mobile Glass 27825 Wilderness Rd. John Day 541-575-1055 CCB#175517 Michael B. DeJardin Dentistry, PC 208 NW Canton St. John Day 541-575-2725 John Day Polaris 821 W Hwy. 26 John Day 541-575-0828 jdpolaris.com Bank of Eastern Oregon John Day 541-575-1862 Prairie City 541-820-3321 Grant County Building Supply 124 N Clark St. Canyon City 541-575-3550 Wright Chevrolet New and Used Cars and Trucks Fossil, Oregon 1-800-336-0057 Nydam’s Ace Hardware Gibco Ag & Industrial 652 W Main St. John Day 541-575-0549 312 N Canyon City Blvd. Canyon City 541-575-2050 Malheur Lumber Co. John Day Auto Parts NAPA 742 W Main St. John Day 541-575-1850 Timber’s Bistro 742 W Main St. John Day 541-575-0151 Subway of John Day 121 S Canyon Blvd. John Day 541-575-0782 Gardner Enterprises 195 NE 2nd Ave John Day 541-575-1410 R&S Auto 603 W Main St. John Day 541-575-1141 Solutions, CPAs 101 NE 1st Avenue John Day 541-575-2717 These Businesses SALUTE Those Who Served O n Veterans Day, we salute the American veterans and active-duty military whose courage and dedication have protected our freedom and our way of life for generations. We recognize their service and their sacrifice, their selflessness and bravery, their hard work and their faith. Please join us in celebrating the men and women of our military, past and present, this Veterans Day. Proudly fly your flag, thank a veteran and show your support for those who continue to serve today. Thank You, Veterans! 60339 Highway 26 John Day 541-575-2054 Jonna Joe’s Family Hair Care 112 N Canyon Blvd. John Day 541-575-5585 Radio Shack DP Home Entertainment 551 W Main St. 541-575-1346 1188 Brewing Co. 141 E Main St. John Day 541-575-1188 Duke Warner Realty “Your professional Real Estate choice in Grant County” Lori: 541-575-2617 Sally: 541-932-4493 Babette: 541-987-2363 Blue Mountain Eagle 195 N Canyon Blvd. John Day 541-575-0710 139 E Main St. John Day 541-575-1637 Grant County Automotive Len’s Drug 200 E Main St. John Day 541-575-0211 120 E Main St. John Day 541-575-0629 MD Enterprizes 116 N Clark Canyon City 541-575-2010 Columbia Power 311 Wilson St. Monument, OR 541-934-2311 Tidewater Contractors John Day 541-932-4888 Land Title of Grant County 145 NE Dayton St. John Day 541-575-1529 87791
