Roland Peterson Science Fair

On Wednesday, Derek and I helped Jackie Koch and Dr. Roland Peterson set up rooms for the science fair. On Thursday, Caitlin and I, along with other U of M students, rejoined Doc Pete to help out with the 70 participant strong contest. It was great to see the amount of junior high representation as well as how excited the purple ribbon winners were. I never knew about this event when I was in high school but it sure is a great way to highlight agriscience!

Minnesota Turkey Growers Annual Meeting

I was in fantastic company on Wednesday for the MTGA annual meeting. It was held at the RiverCentre and I had the chance to sit next to their director and MN FFA Alumni's past president Steve Olson. The Commissioner of Agriculture and the president of the National Turkey Federation both offered greetings. It was a great way to spend time with a great industry!

Board Meeting and Proficiency Review Day

Thursday meant the spring board meeting where we covered an impressive amount of information, almost all of it having to do with convention. The night before, Derek and I thought everyone might like a treat so we made two layer cakes and decorated them ourselves.

Friday was the proficiency review day and nominating committee training. We worked on convention planning in a room between these two events. Proficiency review meant a few nervous jitters for a couple of us. The nom com training allowed us to chat with this year's nom com. They were so fired up about their very important role that I can't wait to see who they select!... well, maybe I can wait 38 days... it isn't too far away!

Morris Chapter Visit

Justin and I headed north on Monday to visit the junior high class taught be Ms. Mortenson at Morris. The whole class was incredibly willing to try anything as they made blind-folded peanut butter sandwiches, stretched to their limits, and even made some human tables. Their excitement was a great way to start off spring break.

AFSA Overnight Leadership Conference

After spending the morning at Alliance Pipeline and the afternoon working on state convention planning, Derek, Caitlin, and I headed to the Academy for Science and Agriculture in Vadnais Heights to attend their OLC Lock-in. This is a very cool idea that Ms. Pint brought all the way from her experience in Pennsylvania. The conference had a super hero theme and started out with a table decorating contest between groups. My group, the Incredible Hulks, were clearly the most creative as we had live entertainment and matching blue headbands. Then the three of us got to present a workshop that included play doh and then had a pizza supper before heading out for the night. We were sorry to miss the rest of the conference but decided to get a jump on sleep before heading into a hectic spring break.

Alliance Pipeline

On Friday, we had the chance to spend the morning with Alliance Pipeline at their North American headquarters in Eden Prairie. They are a large gas pipeline that runs from Canada to Chicago and comes within just a few miles of my house. They are also a fantastic sponsor of FFA and provide camp scholarships for many members ever year. Our meeting was incredibly interesting as they gave us a tour of their offices which includes a "war room" in case of emergency. Their community centered business approach was also very impressive. Thank you!

State Alumni Convention

Caitlin, Sydney, Justin, and I had the chance to attend the state alumni association meeting at South Central College in Mankato last weekend. The day started with a keynote by Mr. Rod Hebrink, a former FFA member and state officer from my neck of the woods in Renville. Then attendees had a choice of a few workshops, including Caitlin and mine about growing community support and member involvement. Then we moved into region groups to discuss the current issues and moved into the business meeting. The day concluded with a banquet and awards for outstanding alumni member and outstanding coach. We definitely appreciate all that the alumni do!