Keota FFA looks back on a year of success

KEOTA — As 2021 ended, it was evident that this past year was full of growth and success for the Keota FFA Chapter. The chapter started the year off by celebrating National FFA Week, where the Keota FFA held events like the faculty breakfast and tractor day. There were also dress up days to help get all students involved.

With spring quickly approaching, the Plant Science class began to prep the FFA greenhouse for the annual plant sale by cleaning, planting seeds and plugs, and watering seedlings. In April, Mr. Jamison took 3 FFA members to Ames to participate in events at the 2021 FFA State Convention. Members included Bryce Greiner, Carson Sprouse and Conner Woltering. These members attended workshops, sessions, career fairs, and served as voting delegates for the chapter.

At the end of April and throughout May the Annual Plant Sale was hosted in the Keota FFA greenhouse. Members volunteered their time to sell a variety of plants to community members. The greenhouse included a variety of annual flowers as well as vegetables.

The month of May also entailed the Annual Spring Awards Banquet. Certificates were given to members for their hard work in contests throughout the years and new officers were inducted. Officers for the 2021-22 school year were elected as listed: President- Colten Clarahan, Vice President- Grant Garman, Secretary- Taylor Garman, Reporter- Hunter Sieren, Treasurer- Drew Sieren, and Sentinel- Dalton Dodd. These newly elected officers attended Chapter Officer Leadership Training in June to prepare for the upcoming school year.

July saw FFA members working hard at county fairs. Ava Greiner, Izzi Chalupa, Jace Chalupa, Brody Greiner, Hunter Sieren, and Isaac Strigel all represented the chapter by showing livestock at the Keokuk County Expo. At the Washington County Fair the chapter was represented by Garret Greiner and Caden Sprouse.

The Keota FFA Chapter also had several members show at the Iowa State Fair including Garret Greiner, Luke Greiner, Lauren Sieren, Caden Sprouse, and Isaac Striegel.

With the new school year starting, Mr. Jamison began preparing the soils team for the upcoming soils contests in September. This year’s soil judging team consisted of Dalton Dodd, Aiden McGuire, Drew Sieren, and Jax Weber. The teams first contest was the Quad County Contest outside of Montezuma, where the team placed second. Next, the team traveled to Muscatine for the district contest. Here, the team placed first, making them the District Champion Soil Judging team for the first time in chapter history. With the team feeling confident, they headed to Ames for the State Soil Judging contest. The team placed sixth at this contest, one spot short of advancing to nationals.

Keota FFA members spent lots of time fundraising during the month of September. All participated in selling fruit, meat, cheese, and candy for the chapter’s largest fundraiser of the year. The Plant Science class also sold mums as another fundraiser for the chapter.

In October, Mr. Jamison took 17 freshmen to the Greenhand fire-up in Tiffin, Iowa. This event gets young members excited for their time in FFA. Members left the event eager to explore the various opportunities in our organization.

At the end of October, Mr. Jamison headed to Indianapolis with 8 members to attend the National FFA Convention. Those members were Dalton Dodd, Grant Garman. Taylor Garman, Ava Greiner, Aiden McGuire, Hunter Sieren, Caden Sprouse, and Jax Weber. On their way there, they stopped and toured a shrimp farm in Indiana. At the convention they got to attend tours, sessions, and workshops. While in Indianapolis they also stopped and toured the NCAA Hall of Champions.

As we enter into the new year, members are working hard to prepare for Sub-District contest and National FFA Week. Mr. Jamison says he is proud of all the accomplishments the chapter had throughout 2021 and hopes to continue to build the legacy of the Keota FFA Chapter in 2022.