Brothers valley FFA Takes Top Honors
He explained that the safety and
demonstration teams practiced
for their state competitions, even
over Christmas break, and were
very serious about being pre
pared.
Although oftentimes agricul
ture clubs have dwindled in
numbers and interest, the Berlin
Chapter has grown in the past
few years. At Berlin, there are 70
members, with 33 members in
eighth grade alone. It is one of
the biggest clubs in the high
school.
(continued from Page A 1)
it notes: “As we read your essay,
it reminded each of us about
what FFA and obtaining new
goals really mean. You are cor
rect when stating it’s more than
the barbecues, CDEs, and show
ing livestock. It is the people,
other members, advisers, and all
we come in contact with that
make this great organization of
ours so special.”
Hartman’s future goals in
clude being a state FFA officer
and competing at nationals in
public speaking. She believes
that the Berlin FFA is a thriving
club because of Doyle Paul’s
leadership over the years and
now Mr. Clark’s ability to con
tinue the program with enthusi
asm.
“I never liked doing house
work and I’ve always been a
little bit of a tomboy. I love the
outdoors,” she said with a
laugh. “I watched my brothers
(Brian and Bruce) in FFA and I
couldn’t wait to join. FFA is
family. It’s comfortable and we
all help each other.” In addition
to the demonstration team, the
safety team, consisting of Becca
Hittie, Luke Horning, Joe
Knotts, and Blake Weigle, com
Holstein
Association Plans
(Continued from Page A 22)
ing began in the 1940 s in the state, with the
New Jersey Cooperative Artificial Breed
ing Association.
Entrance to the convention and trade
show are free, but sign-up is required by
May 15. More information will be available
at a later date.
Scheduled is a reception with National
Holstein President Joann Hartman,
Waterloo, 111. General sessions will be con
ducted midweek, with the luncheon and
banquet at the end of the week. The Out
standing Young Farmer Award will be
presented at the general session Thursday.
The banquet will be a “wrap-up” event, a
chance to renew friendships.
The convention will provide attendees
from around the country with message
that New Jersey is “alive, vibrant, an excit
ing place with a healthy ag industry,” said
Valen, “and a fun place to visit.”
The association still needs volunteers to
sign up in almost every facet of the conven
tion schedule.
But Valen assured members at the meet
ing last Saturday that “you are going to be
really pleased from a financial standpoint
that we did this,” he said.
Heidi Spencer, state alternative,
left, provides dairy treats at the
state Holstein annual meeting in
Ringoes, N.J.
PRODUCERS
peted against three other teams
to win the state title.
“It takes dedication but it’s
fun and a rewarding experi
ence,’" said Becca Hittie, chair
man on the safety quiz team and
also the chapter’s assistant re
porter.
Becca said that her team
practiced at least 10 hours to
gether before the state competi
tion. “It helps to learn how to
work as a team,’’ she said.
The safety team answer ques
tions about farm safety as a
team, much like a scholastic,
quiz competition. The safety
team started practicing in July
and competed at Ag Progress
Days in August at Penn State.
“I’d do anything for FFA,”
said Hittie, who has plans to
work in the dairy industry after
her high school graduation. “It’s
a great club and a great experi
ence.”
Hittie said she has learned a
great deal from agricultural ed
ucation and hopes to become
more active in FFA’s parliamen
tary procedure.
“If it wasn’t for the farmers,
where would your eggs, meat
and milk come from? A lot of
kids don’t think about that.
They think it grows on the store
shelf,” said Hittie.
In addition to the state com
petitions, Berlin received honors
at the 73rd annual Pennsylvania
FFA Mid-Winter Convention.
David Bittner, Jenny Fisher, Re
bekah Fox, and Stephanie Hart
man received their Keystone
degrees.
Jeff and Kathy Fisher, par
ents of Jenny Fisher, received
the honorary Keystone Degree
for having three children (Brian
in 1998, Becca in 1999, and
Jenny in 2002) earn a Keystone
Degree.
Agriculture teacher Michael
Clark couldn’t be happier that
as a first-year teacher, his stu
dents have received high honors.
Clark is originally from Perry
County in central Pennsylvania
and is a 2001 graduate of Penn
State University. While at West
Perry High School, he served as
the 1996 state FFA vice presi
dent and was also a State Star
Farmer.
“I am excited to be here and
to be a part of the program,”
said Clark. “I feel good about
these students and the way they
represent themselves and their
chapter. They are dedicated.”
“So far, it seems to be a
smooth transition,” said Clark,
referring to the ag program
2003 Pa. Farm Show
(Continued from Page A 1)
feet,
The project also includes
building renovations and con
struction of a second multipur
pose arena, a new equine center,
a two-level concourse connect 1 -
ing all of the new construction
with the existing facility, and a
new parking area.
“The Farm Show Complex
will be a hub of activity 12
months of the year,” Hayes said.
Lancaster Farming, Saturday, January 26,2002-A23
going from Doyle Paul’s over
seeing to his own. “Mr. Paul has
been here for many years and he
has been a mentor to me.” Clark
believes that agricultural educa
tion is essential because the
future productivity of the nation
depends on the farmer.
“Whether we live on a farm or
not, we are a part of agriculture
every day and oftentimes we
don’t even know it,” said Clark.
“The population is growing and
the farms are decreasing. As a
teacher, I instruct students to
think about what we need to do
as an industry and how we need
to change and at the same time
provide food for everyone.”
“This is good for agriculture.
This is good for the friends of
agriculture. We look forward to
starting next year with an ex
panded Farm Show with more
days, events, and exhibits than
ever before.”
Agriculture is Pennsylvania’s
No. 1 industry, employing more
than 800,000 people and con
tributing $44 billion to the
state’s annual economy.