It’s the season of giving, and FFA chapters across the country stepped up to serve their schools and communities, embodying the FFA motto of “living to serve.”
AGDAILY spoke with several folks at FFA chapters around the country to see what projects they’re working on to better their communities:
Islands FFA’s Thanksgiving Donation Drive in Savannah, Georgia
The Islands FFA chapter organized a schoolwide donation drive to collect hygiene products, nonperishable food items and clothing for Old Savannah City Mission, a local homeless shelter.
While the chapter typically organizes an annual food drive, students noticed the prevalence of homelessness in the area near their school and decided to shift their service project to directly support the homeless community.
“The students decided this year, rather than just doing a traditional canned food drive, for our November service project they wanted to reach more people and have a greater impact,” said Elizabeth Miegel, an Islands FFA advisor.
To encourage participation, the chapter offered leadership points and friendly competition to see which classes and teachers could collect the most items. The effort quickly expanded beyond the school, as some parents even set up donation stations at their workplaces.
“Having them compete with each other and having the classes compete against each other really helped,” Miegel said. “We really got a lot of family members and community members involved, so it was a project that involved more than just the kids.”
Although the original goal was to collect around 500 pounds of donations, the chapter far exceeded expectations by gathering more than 4,500 items, totaling nearly 1,000 pounds of food alone. Looking ahead, the chapter hopes to partner with other county programs and FFA chapters to make an even greater impact.
“In everything we do, I feel like our students are always thinking about how to give back,” Miegel said. “I hope they learn the joy of giving back to the community and improving the area they live in.”
Malad FFA’s Giving Tree in Malad City, Idaho
Malad FFA members set up a Giving Tree in their agriculture classroom, decorating it with ornaments representing Christmas gifts for students in need. Once all items were donated, members wrapped the gifts during their annual Christmas party, collecting and wrapping more than 100 gifts for students in their community.
Riverside FFA’s Blanket Making Event in Oakland, Iowa
Members of Riverside FFA participated in a Share My Smile Blanket Making Event, creating and donating blankets to local adoptive and foster families. The chapter also organized an annual highway cleanup for students to collect trash along local roadways.
“These kids sure know how to give back to our community in different ways & we are thankful for all of them,” the chapter wrote on Facebook.
Paris FFA’s Community Christmas Baskets in Paris, Illinois
The Paris FFA chapter is collecting nonperishable food items and monetary donations to assemble Christmas baskets for over 80 local families. After the final donations are gathered and additional items are purchased, officers will hand-deliver the baskets to families to help spread holiday cheer.
Grace Davis FFA’s Annual Sock Drive in Modesto, California
Members of Grace Davis FFA are holding their annual sock drive throughout the month of December, collecting socks of all sizes. To encourage donations, students earn FFA points and raffle entries for participating. Once all the socks are collected, they will be donated to a local church.
Bourbon County FFA’s Christmas Angels in Paris, Kentucky
Bourbon County FFA participated in a local Christmas Angel program, raising money and shopping for Christmas gifts to support five students in need.
“The citizenship committee of the Bourbon County FFA always seeks to help the school’s Family Resource and Youth Services Centers,” said Tara Poe, Bourbon County FFA advisor. “The center runs a Circle of Love program, which is the school district’s Christmas Angel program.”
The committee is tasked with creating a fundraising campaign, and this year members organized a grade-level competition. A donation tracker was updated daily to encourage participation, with the incentive of Crumbl cookies at the December meeting for the grade that raised the most money. According to Poe, it didn’t take long for members to raise more than $900.
“The committee was able to raise enough money in just two weeks. At the end of the four weeks, the students raised $185 for each angel,” Poe said. “Members got together and went shopping for these items and turned them into the resource center so they could be given to the corresponding families.”
Paulding FFA’s Bake Sale for Adopt-a-Family in Paulding, Ohio
The Paulding FFA chapter took part in their county’s Adopt-a-Family program by holding a bake sale during a basketball game. The chapter then used the proceeds to purchase Christmas gifts for a local family, and members shopped for and wrapped the items to make the holidays a little brighter for those in need.
Illini West FFA’s Service Projects in Carthage, Illinois
Members of Illini West FFA participated in several service and charity projects throughout the holiday season. They created and donated more than 40 handmade tie blankets to a local hospital, contributed to a local Toys for Tots fundraiser and organized a can drive, collecting over 150 items for a local food pantry.
Kate Walker is a student at Georgia College and State University. Originally from Watkinsville, Georgia, she has a passion for writing and all things agriculture.
