Members of the Indian Lake High School/Ohio Hi-Point FFA are becoming more confident in their abilities as leaders in agriculture, and they celebrated this year’s many accomplishments recently during their annual banquet in the ILHS main gymnasium.
After serving a meal, ILHS FFA officers officially opened the meeting. They recognized several individuals and groups from the community that have helped them through the year by serving as members of the advisory board, assisting in their education or helping with fundraisers.
State FFA Officer Philip Eberly gave the keynote address with a personal story about learning to use his voice as an advocate for agriculture and challenged others to do the same.
“I put all my confidence into perfection, when I should have been perfecting my confidence.”
The banquet continued with a variety of awards. A record 40 first-year FFA members earned their Greenhand Degrees.
Several students were recognized for participating and placing in state agriculture contests, including Allix Cotterman and Nikita Scheifele, who earned second in the state for their agriscience project.
As the winner of the local speaking contest, Lexi Clem delivered the FFA Creed. Seniors Spencer Klauer and Kevin McLane were recognized for finishing fourth in the state in the Agriculture Power Diagnostic Contest.
Seniors Skylr Timbrook and Melanie Watkins were applauded for earning their FFA State Degrees. They were also named Outstanding FFA Students, along with Megan Keckler, Katie Dolan, Jacob King, Brittany Sturms, Nikita Scheifele and Lexi Clem.
FFA Adviser Tanner Schoen told the crowd he is proud of the chapter’s recent accomplishments and is excited about cultivating the growing program in the upcoming years.
At the conclusion of the banquet, the current team of officers announced elected leaders for the 2018-19 school year as follows: Lexi Clem, president; Brittany Sturms, vice president; Jacob King, sentinel; Megan Keckler, reporter; Nikita Scheifele, treasurer; Jazzlynn Goings, secretary; and Jarrett Monroe, student adviser.