Duncan Patton from Comer, Georgia, was selected as one of the top four finalists of the American Star in Placement. Patton grew up on his family’s cattle operation, where he worked his way up to managerial roles. He shares more about his work on his family’s ranch with Broadcast Desk Intern Kailey Foster.
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Robert Gray of the Western Brown FFA Chapter in Ohio started his foray into lawn care when his grandmother needed help maintaining her property. He began mowing and weed-eating her yard every other weekend. His interest in the work grew until he started working as a lawn technician for a local company. His duties include mowing, weed-eating, blowing off surfaces, trimming, edging, spraying, and performing equipment cleaning and maintenance. Gray is supported by his parents, Sabrina and Ronald, and his FFA advisor, Ryan Rosselot. John Deere and Tractor Supply Company sponsor this proficiency.
He discusses the details of his project with Broadcast Desk Intern, Lydia Johnson.
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INDIANAPOLIS (Friday, Oct. 29 2021/National FFA Organization) – Caleb Peckham was involved in agriculture as soon as he could walk.
Growing up on his parents’ dairy farm in Connecticut, Caleb helped milk cows and fed calves. When he became a high school freshman and joined the Killingly FFA Chapter, Caleb’s family farm chores turned into a paid placement SAE, and his responsibilities grew.
“My father will say that when he’s off the farm, I can basically run the farm for him and help with whatever needs doing,” Caleb said.
He had a hand in the farm’s crop production, and by his senior year, Caleb was managing the farm’s calves, feeding them, dehorning them and administering medicine when needed. He even supervises two high school students who feed the calves on the weekends.
“I’m helping them out and any questions that they have for me, I’m responsible for that,” Caleb.
Additionally, Caleb’s family runs a farm store where they sell milk. To sell that milk in local supermarkets and the farm store each day, a sample needs to be sent to a local co-op’s lab to be tested.
“I got my certification for pulling samples out of the bulk tank from the state of Connecticut,” Caleb said. “That enables us to bottle milk for the next day.”
Reflecting on his experience, Caleb says FFA helped him better understand and explain to others why he’s passionate about dairy.
“We are always striving for the highest quality milk; it’s very important to us,” Caleb said. “We’re big supporters on educating the public on what we do, and I feel like FFA has taught me how to better communicate to the public.”
Looking to the future, Caleb is in his second year of a two-year dairy production management degree program at SUNY Cobleskill in New York. He sees himself working in dairy production for a long time.
“I knew way back in middle school that I wanted to farm,” Caleb said. “I knew that it was for me, and I love working with the cows. My herd is like my world.”
He shares more with Broadcast Desk Intern Michelle Stangler.
About the American Star Awards
Each year at the National FFA Convention & Expo, four FFA members are honored with American Star Awards for outstanding accomplishments in FFA and agricultural education.
The American Star Awards, including American Star Farmer, American Star in Agribusiness, American Star in Agricultural Placement and American Star in Agriscience, are presented to FFA members who demonstrate outstanding agricultural skills and competencies through completion of an SAE. A required activity in FFA, an SAE allows students to learn by doing, by either owning or operating an agricultural business, working or serving an internship at an agriculture-based business, or conducting an agriculture-based scientific experiment and reporting results.
Other requirements to achieve the award include demonstrating top management skills; completing key agricultural education, scholastic and leadership requirements; and earning an American FFA Degree, the organization’s highest level of student accomplishment.
Sixteen American Star Award finalists from throughout the U.S. were nominated by a panel of judges who then interviewed the finalists this fall. Four were named winners during the 94th National FFA Convention & Expo this year, which was held in Indianapolis. Winners received cash awards. Case IH, Elanco Animal Health and Syngenta sponsor the awards.
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Josh Heupel from Le Grand, California was selected as one of the four American Star Farmer finalists for his work on his family farm. Weinheimer has worked on the farm his whole life and shares with Broadcast Desk Intern Kailey Foster how his Supervised Agriculture Experience has helped evolve his farm.
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INDIANAPOLIS (Friday, Oct. 29, 2021/National FFA Organization) – While raising crops and livestock has always been the core of agriculture, talented workers with a variety of skills and specialties help ensure the industry’s success.
Tyler Ertzberger, with the Franklin County FFA chapter in Georgia, has one of the most unique ag jobs of all: livestock photographer.
“It started on my parents’ farm, doing some of the marketing for their cattle,” Ertzberger said. “Which then turned into me doing some shows, which then turned into more growth.”
Ertzberger started his supervised agricultural experience (SAE) while he was in high school. Now, at 21 years old, he works full time running Square One Agri Marketing, his photography and marketing business with 18 part- or full-time employees.
Before becoming a photographer, he exhibited livestock for 13 years and won several events. He said he was inspired to pursue livestock photography because he was never satisfied with the quantity or quality of the photos taken at his shows.
“Livestock [photography] has a very specific angle and direction,” Ertzberger said. “Not everybody has the eye for that.”
As a profession, livestock photography is focused on taking pictures and videos of farm animals for marketing purposes. This is often done by visiting farmers directly, but Ertzberger is also regularly asked to cover livestock shows, auctions and state fairs.
“We’ll cover the pig, cattle, sheep, goats, and dairy cattle shows going on,” he said. “We take all the official backdrop pictures; then we take pictures of them in the ring. Then we post them on our website for sale.”
For large events, such as the Georgia National Fair, Ertzberger said his team would take as many as 50,000 photos over a two-week period. They also do video, and they’ve been livestreaming events online during the COVID-19 pandemic so elderly farmers can safely watch along.
Because of the uniqueness of his career, Ertzberger said his ag teachers have been tremendously helpful in keeping him focused on finding the right path forward.
“They’ve been my backbone,” he said. “They’ve been the ones that have pushed me and helped me get through stuff when I’ve been defeated.”
Ertzberger’s advice to FFA members looking to start their SAEs is to never take “no” for an answer.
“I can’t tell you how many people have told me that I need to go get a desk job or do a nine-to-five job to be able to make it,” he said. “If it’s your dream and you have the desire to do it, you will make it.”
Ertzberger discusses the details of his business with Broadcast Desk Intern, Lydia Johnson.
About the American Star Awards
Each year at the National FFA Convention & Expo, four FFA members are honored with American Star Awards for outstanding accomplishments in FFA and agricultural education.
The American Star Awards, including American Star Farmer, American Star in Agribusiness, American Star in Agricultural Placement and American Star in Agriscience, are presented to FFA members who demonstrate outstanding agricultural skills and competencies through completion of an SAE. A required activity in FFA, an SAE allows students to learn by doing, by either owning or operating an agricultural business, working or serving an internship at an agriculture-based business, or conducting an agriculture-based scientific experiment and reporting results.
Other requirements to achieve the award include demonstrating top management skills; completing key agricultural education, scholastic and leadership requirements; and earning an American FFA Degree, the organization’s highest level of student accomplishment.
Sixteen American Star Award finalists from throughout the U.S. were nominated by a panel of judges who then interviewed the finalists this fall. Four were named winners during the 94th National FFA Convention & Expo this year, which was held in Indianapolis. Winners received cash awards. Case IH, Elanco Animal Health and Syngenta sponsor the awards.
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Jakob Weinheimer from Groom, Texas, was selected as one of the top four finalists of the American Star in Placement for his work on his family farm. Weinheimer has worked on the farm his whole life and shares with Broadcast Desk Intern Kailey Foster how his Supervised Agriculture Experience has helped evolve their farm.
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Wyatt Harlan of the Slaton FFA Chapter in Slaton, Texas, is being recognized as one of four American Star Finalists in Agribusiness. He started the business Peacock Circle H Outfitters that raises pheasants and organizes guided hunts for clients. Wyatt discusses the details of his project with Broadcast Desk Intern, Lydia Johnson.
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INDIANAPOLIS (Friday, Oct. 29 2021/National FFA Organization) – Agriculture is an industry with many technological advancements behind the scenes, and Grady Johnson wants to use the latest and greatest tech to help his farming operation succeed.
“For me, it’s just seeing what’s next,” Grady said. “There’s been a lot of innovations in agriculture and it’s fun to be on the forefront of those and see how we can do more with less.”
Nebraska is famous for its corn, and Grady’s supervised agricultural experience (SAE) for the Holdrege FFA chapter is primarily about baling corn stalks. While he sells a lot of his bales to feed yards so Nebraska’s livestock have something to eat, Grady said the production of ethanol – a corn-based innovation in the fuel industry – is also a key part of his forward-thinking business strategy.
Corn and ethanol weren’t always what Grady was focused on, though. He got his start as an independent farmer by raising sheep.
“It started when I was between my freshman and sophomore year of high school,” Grady said. “I got into sheep production. I always worked for the family operation, but I wanted to start my own business. … And then that [sheep] went to the wayside as the years went on.”
As a business owner, Grady said some of the most valuable information he learned in his ag classes related to finances and management. The Agricultural Experience Tracker, or AET, was a particularly helpful bit of technology during his formative years.
“AET was really my first experience with some sort of financial or record-keeping system,” Grady said. “And it showed you the importance of that and it helped your operation grow.”
Grady’s best advice for FFA members who want to start their own SAE is to keep an open mind and embrace new techniques, innovations and ideas.
“I felt like FFA was the way to let you step out of the comfort zone and try something new,” Grady said. “You can make anything possible. Start early and figure out what you like.”
He shares more with Broadcast Desk Intern Michelle Stangler.
About the American Star Awards
Each year at the National FFA Convention & Expo, four FFA members are honored with American Star Awards for outstanding accomplishments in FFA and agricultural education.
The American Star Awards, including American Star Farmer, American Star in Agribusiness, American Star in Agricultural Placement and American Star in Agriscience, are presented to FFA members who demonstrate outstanding agricultural skills and competencies through completion of an SAE. A required activity in FFA, an SAE allows students to learn by doing, by either owning or operating an agricultural business, working or serving an internship at an agriculture-based business, or conducting an agriculture-based scientific experiment and reporting results.
Other requirements to achieve the award include demonstrating top management skills; completing key agricultural education, scholastic and leadership requirements; and earning an American FFA Degree, the organization’s highest level of student accomplishment.
Sixteen American Star Award finalists from throughout the U.S. were nominated by a panel of judges who then interviewed the finalists this fall. Four were named winners during the 94th National FFA Convention & Expo this year, which was held in Indianapolis. Winners received cash awards. Case IH, Elanco Animal Health and Syngenta sponsor the awards.
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Matthew Rowlette from Berea was selected as one of the top four finalists of the American Star in Agribusiness. What started as a job around his Uncle’s farm has turned into a full-time business. He shares more about his landscaping business with Broadcast Desk Intern Kailey Foster.
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Ethan Buck of the Rossville FFA Chapter in Lafayette, Indiana, is being recognized as one of four American Star Finalists in Agricultural Placement. He actively works on his family’s diversified row crop and swine production farm. Ethan dives into the details of his project with Broadcast Desk Intern, Lydia Johnson.
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