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Spotlight on Youth - March 25, 2009
MSU student selected as Michigan Dairy Ambassador
EAST LANSING, Mich. — Michigan State University (MSU) student Nicole Schaendorf, of Allegan, was named the 2009 senior division winner of the Michigan Dairy Ambassador Scholarship and Leadership Program during the Michigan Dairy Industry Recognition Night program at the 7th annual Great Lakes Regional Dairy Conference (GLRDC) in February.

Schaendorf, the daughter of John and Connie Schaendorf, is a junior pursuing a bachelor’s degree in agriculture and natural resources communications with a specialization in agribusiness management and public relations. She is a former Michigan FFA Region I state vice president.

The Michigan Dairy Ambassador Scholarship and Leadership Program was established by the GLRDC in 2006. The program provides young leaders with an opportunity to develop promotions and public service projects as well as represent the dairy industry at various functions throughout the year.

The senior division winner, reserved for college students up to age 22, receives a $1,500 scholarship. The junior division winner, a high school student, is awarded a $1,000 prize that can be applied toward higher education or the purchase of a dairy animal.
Applications for the 2010 program will be available in the fall. Individuals interested in applying for the Michigan Dairy Ambassador Scholarship and Leadership Program can learn more by visiting www.glrdc.msu.edu or by contacting Megghan Honke at 517-353-3175, ext. 229.

Miami East FFA hosts annual parent-member banquet
CASSTOWN, Ohio — The Miami East FFA Chapter recently held its 50th annual parent-member banquet. Over 280 parents, members, and guests were in attendance at Miami East Junior High Auditoria. Highlights of the evening were:

In 2008, the Chapter was ranked 7th out of 315 chapters in the National Chapter area. Also, Miami East was ranked a Top 10 Chapter in all the areas of Chapter and Community Development. Our application was then sent on for national judging.

One of the premier goals of the FFA is to promote leadership among its students.  The Miami East FFA Chapter would not be able to do special projects without some very special people. There was one individual recognized with the Honorary Chapter FFA Degree – Miami County Agricultural Society, represented by President Fred Green.

Proficiency awards are designed to recognize the efforts of members who have outstanding Supervised Agricultural Experience (SAE) programs and have keep accurate records. Winners of the 2009 Chapter Proficiency Awards were:

The agri-entrepreneurship proficiency award was presented to Eric Percel. Percel started his own business, Eric’s Honey Sales. Eric owns and operates 5 honey bee hives. Twice a year he collects the honey, processes it and sells it to his customers.

The agricultural processing proficiency award was also presented to Percel, who has been responsible for the processing of 100 percent natural honey in his business for the past three years.

The agricultural sales proficiency award was presented to Jessica Starry. For the past two years Starry has used the high school’s milk machine as her SAE. She is in charge of ordering milk, stocking the machine, and tabulating the sales total.

The beef production proficiency award was presented to Katelyn Fourman. Fourman exhibited her market beef at the Miami County Fair. At the 2008 Miami County Fair she exhibited the Champion Market Heifer. Katelyn is 100 percent in charge of making decisions and labor for the project.

The dairy production proficiency award was presented to Lucas Hershberger. Hershberger has secured job placement on the family dairy farm for the past two years. He is responsible for milking cows, feeding cows and calves, and assisting with other farm responsibilities.

The emerging agriculture technology proficiency award was presented to Logan Pyers. Pyers has had job placement at Buckeye Ag Testing, where he helped conduct field trials on corn and soybeans with 15,000 experiments in various aspects of weed control, pollination, ground compaction, and more.

The environmental sciences and natural resources management was presented to Sheena Roach. Roach has operated the chapter’s Test Your Well night for the past two years. As part of the Test Your Well night, Roach organizes her fellow FFA members to test water samples for nitrates and nitrites.

The equine science proficiency award was presented to Amanda Werling. For the past three years Werling has worked with her family’s horses as a job placement, where she trains horses for competitive shows and rodeos. The poultry production proficiency award was presented to Hannah Long. Long raised 25 market chickens for her 2008 SAE.

The specialty crop proficiency award was awarded to Corey Rindler. Rindler raised a quarter of an acre of all-natural Japanese white hull-less popcorn.

The vegetable production proficiency award was awarded to Hannah Allen. Allen raised several varieties of fruits and vegetables in her family’s garden.

In addition to other chapter awards, the new 2009-2010 officer team was installed. They are as follows: historian-Hannah Allen, chaplain-Katelyn Melvin, sentinel-Kyle Roeth, student advisor-Jacob Eidemiller, reporter-Jessica Starry, treasurer-Kelsey P. Wintrow, vice-president-Steven Hall and president-Sheena Roach.

New officer team installed at Amanda-Clearcreek FFA
ANNA, Ohio — The Amanda- Clearcreek FFA Chapter recently elected a new officer team for the 2009-2010 term. Eleven members ran for an office but only seven could be elected. There was one returning officer, Scott Loudermilk, who served as last year’s student advisor.

New officers include Tyler Genders as president, Teran Pinkstock as vice-president, Hannah Chenetski as secretary, Andrea Hollet as treasurer, Brittany Stevens as reporter, Scott Loudermilk as sentinel and Aaron Miller as student advisor.
3/25/2009