Parkway FFA Boosters Holding Strawberry Fundraiser

 The Parkway FFA Boosters has decided to have a strawberry fundraiser. This is the first year the Parkway FFA Boosters have tried this, and would like the community to be involved to make this a successful fundraiser. The money earned from this fundraiser will be going to the expenses of building a new food stand at the Mercer County Fairgrounds. Any Parkway FFA member is selling the strawberries thru next Monday, March 8^th. To place an order you can contact an FFA member, e-mail the Parkway FFA at FFA@parkwayschools.org, or call the school, 419-363-3045 ext. 636.

The strawberries are being sold by the flat or half-flat. A flat consists of 8 quart containers filled with strawberries. A flat cost is $24.00 and a half-flat is $13.00.

The strawberries will be delivered sometime around March 15^th. Thank you for supporting the Parkway FFA Boosters and its many activities.

Parkway FFA Participates in Evaluations
by Danielle Matthews

The Parkway FFA sent a large number of State and American Degrees along with Officer Books and Proficiencies to District Evaluations on February 20^th. To obtain a State, American, or Proficiency Degree, the students must put many hours into completing books on the SAE’s that they have participated in. The officers spent long hours also working on their books for judging.  

The students that applied to receive their State Degrees were Olivia Houts, Abby Evans, Zach Searight, and Garth Louth. All of them made it through districts and the books are now evaluated at the State level.

Dee Dee Knapke was the lone Parkway FFA member who applied for her American Degree. Her book passed at district level, and is now being re-judged at the state level.

The Parkway FFA Chapter also had two members apply for Proficiency Awards. Dee Dee Knapke and Samantha Beerbower both received a gold rating and have moved on to the state level. Dee Dee Knapke applied with Sheep Production and Sam Beerbower applied with her mums under Floriculture.

The three officers, treasurer, secretary, and reporter, each submitted a completed book to be judged. Abby Evans, treasurer, received a gold rating with her book. Destinee Guggenbiller, secretary, received a gold rating as well with her book. Danielle Matthews, reporter, received a gold rating and a 2^nd place finish with her scrapbook. Each officer will receive a gold pin on stage at the State Convention in May.

The Parkway FFA would like to congratulate these students for their hard work and wish them the best of luck at the state level.

Parkway FFA Parliamentary Procedure Team Competes at State
by Danielle Matthews

The Parkway FFA on Saturday December 19^th, 2009 sent a Varsity Parliamentary Procedure team to compete at State finals in Columbus. Within the month, the Parliamentary team had won sub-districts and placed 2^nd at districts to earn their bid to state.

The team had practiced very hard in the mornings before school to prepare for this event. The team also went up on Friday night and stayed at a nearby hotel in order to practice and get more sleep for the event. The team bonded over supper at Mongolian Grill and practiced more meetings and questions in the hotel’s suite.

The team consisted of Claire Burtch, Seth Houts, Stephany Hesse, Corbin Hellwarth- President, Zach Searight- Vice President, Abby Evans- Treasurer, Olivia Houts- Student Advisor, Caden Hellwarth- Sentinel, Destinee Guggenbiller- Secretary, and Danielle Matthews- Reporter.

The team placed 4^th in their room with a score of 1048.25. This placed them at 18^th overall.

Congratulations to the team making it to State!

Picture first row: Abby Evans, Stephany Hesse, Claire Burtch, Destinee Guggenbiller, Olivia Houts, and Seth Houts.

Second row: Danielle Matthews, Caden Hellwarth, Corbin Hellwarth, and Zach Searight.

Parkway FFA Annual Fruit Sale a Success
by Danielle Matthews

The Parkway FFA members throughout the month of November were selling fruit to the public. The sale consisted of apples, navels, tangelos, grapefruit, BBQ Sauce, peanuts, and many other things that appealed to many people. The fruit was received in the middle of December and was packaged in the next two days. It was then delivered to the customers within the week, or even the day. The members are still taking in their money if you have not paid for your fruit.

 

 

As the Parkway FFA Chapter, there were 753.50 boxes sold. This amounts to approximately 19,800 dollars brought in through this fundraiser. This sale is up 64 boxes from last year, but still not the top selling year yet!

The Parkway FFA Chapter uses these funds to pay for many activities and events that the students experience throughout the year. Some of these events are State and National Convention, CDE events, Officer Retreat, furnishing the fair food stand, and many other opportunities that teach students lessons and give them memories. The Parkway FFA Chapter would like to thank the communities for buying fruit and supporting your Parkway FFA Chapter!

On December 3^rd, the Parkway FFA sent a Parliamentary Procedure team to Delphos Jefferson to compete in the CDE. A CDE is a Career Development Event that helps students obtain knowledge and become better at skills such as team work, test taking, leadership, and public speaking. December 3^rd was the Sub-districts that Parkway FFA competed in.

The team consists of members: Claire Burtch, Seth Houts, and Stephany Hesse. The team also has the officers of: President- Corbin Hellwarth, Vice President: Zach Searight, Student Advisor: Olivia Houts, Sentinel: Caden Hellwarth, Secretary: Destinee Guggenbiller, Treasurer: Abby Evans, and Reporter: Danielle Matthews.

The team placed first in their sub-district which qualified them for districts which was held at Delphos Jefferson High School on December 8^th.

The team then attended the district competition and received a second place behind Delphos. The second place finish still places the team at State competition on Saturday December 19^th in Columbus at the Ag Administration building on The Ohio State University campus.

The students continue to work very hard and hopefully this will pay off at State competition.

The chapter would like to thank the students for their hard work and wish them the best of luck at State competition!

Picture: members in first row: Destinee Guggenbiller, Claire Burtch, Olivia Houts, Danielle Matthews, and Caden Hellwarth

Second row: Zach Searight, Stephany Hesse, Abby Evans, Corbin Hellwarth, and Seth Houts

Students from the Parkway FFA during the week of October 19^th through October 24^th attended FFA National Convention held in Indianapolis, Indiana. There were 17 of students that attended and were able to experience many different tours as well as enjoy convention. These students were Tyler Matthews, Garth Louth, Abby Evans, Corbin Hellwarth, Caden Hellwarth, Devin Adams, Destinee Guggenbiller, Lindsey Walls, Kayla Temple, Seth Houts, Olivia Houts, Rachel Hesse, Kylie Snyder, Josh Heppeard, Tommy McDonough, Jackie King, and Zach Searight.           

The students as well as Mr. Post loaded the bus Monday night and started on their trip to St. Louis, Missouri, for many tours. Tuesday morning began with a tour of Anheuser Busch. The students were able to see the company’s brewery. The packaging line, gift shop, and the Clydesdale horses were many of the things the students could visit. Garth Louth, a junior who attended the past three years said, “Anheuser Busch showed us the process it takes to box their products. It was crazy how fast they could package.”

The next tour was of Purina Feeds. The students were able to see the Purina livestock, feed testing sites, and had a representative present a power point. Purina Feeds provided the students with lunch as well. Seth Houts said, “We were able to see the beef barn at Purina Feeds, which was my favorite because I have animals at home.”  

The students finished out the day by going up to the top of the St. Louis Arch. The students were able to see the Mississippi River, Bush Stadium, and many other attractions in St. Louis from atop the arch at 630 feet. Olivia Houts shared her experience with us in the arch stating, “I was nervous as we were going up into the arch, but once we reached the top, the view we saw was awesome.”

Wednesday morning started out mid-morning with a tour of Monsanto. Monsanto displayed their research and development plant, headquarters, and genetics plant for the students to tour and get a better knowledge of how the company works. Devin Adams, a sophomore, said, “Monsanto was my favorite tour because I found the information he gave us interesting.”

Finally in the afternoon, the bus entered Indianapolis. After reaching the area of National Convention, the group attended the Opening Session of the 82^nd FFA National Convention. The keynote speaker of the session was Mike Rowe, the Discovery Channel’s Dirty Jobs host. He also is the narrator of Deadliest Catch. His speech was about being proud of who you are and to be involved with daily agricultural life. Lindsey Walls felt that his speech was “very good and funny.”

Students awoke on Thursday morning and went to a tour at Agrigold in Lebanon. They listened to speakers giving power points about what their job is and how it affects the company. Then the group was able to tour the lab where they make new genetic hybrids of seeds. Abby Evans said, “Agrigold was very educational but sometimes hard to understand. We learned the process of creating new hybrids.”

The Parkway FFA students attended leadership sessions and were able to walk around the career show. The career show included different colleges, businesses, and companies trying to advertise. Tyler Matthews stated that the career show was interesting and his favorite display was of John Deere. The Parkway FFA students ate as a group at the Spaghetti Factory and then walked to the 3^rd Convention Session. The keynote speaker was Hugh Grant.

Thursday night consisted of the students putting on their Buckeye attire and attending the Buckeye Bash. All the FFA members from Ohio attended and were able to make new friends, have a good time, and dance. Kylie Snyder, a freshman, said, “It was fun dancing with friends or people you didn’t even know!”

Friday morning students attended the 4^th Convention Session. The keynote speaker was Harvey Alston. His speech was about being happy, with each letter of the word meaning something. “H” meant Heart, “A” meant attitude, “P” meant Pride, “P” meant people, and “Y” meant you. He said that in order to be happy, you must have each of these letters and their meaning. Zach Searight, a senior who has attended all four years said, “He had a great speech about happiness and being happy.”

The students then toured the career show again. Following, the students toured the Buck Creek Winery. Here, the students showed the fermenting process of wine and they were able to view the vine orchard.

The group ate at Abuelos, a Mexican restaurant. Following this meal, the group attended the 7^th Convention session. The keynote speaker was Josh Sundquist. He spoke about his life experiences with having only one leg. He used his life experiences to show students that you can’t let things get in your way of achieving your goals. Tommy McDonough felt that Josh was “a really good speaker.”

The students and Mr. Post then traveled back to their hotel and spent their last night swimming, playing cards, watching videos, or just hanging out with friends.

Saturday morning consisted of the Parkway FFA Chapter watching five alumni FFA members receive their American Degrees at the Ceremony in the Lucas Oil Stadium. The five members were Sara King, Travis Guggenbiller, Michelle Thomas, Ethan Hayes, and Danny Knapke. After the ceremony, the students boarded the bus and started on their way home.

Overall, the convention and trip was a huge success. The trip was a lot of fun, yet it was very educational for all students that attended.   

On October 3rd, the Parkway FFA sent 6 students to the Versailles Greenhand Conference. Greenhand members are known as the first year members of the FFA program during high school. Generally, this consists of freshman. This year the members that attended were Tia Caffee, Lexie Ford, Seth Houts, Kylie Snyder, Harley Noll, and Kati Schumm.

When the Greenhands first arrived they split each member into different groups with other FFA members across the state. The state officer team talked communication, teamwork, and leadership skills as well as displayed the many opportunities available through the FFA. Many activities were played to incorporate how to work as a team and to build leadership skills.

Kylie Snyder attended the conference said, “I was able to meet a lot of new people.”

“It was a really fun experience and it developed my leadership skills at the same time,” Harley Noll.

“I learned about a lot of opportunities that are available through the FFA and hopefully I will be able to take part in some,” Kati Schumm, freshman, stated about her time there.

Tia Caffee said, “I was able to learn a lot of new activities that involved leadership and teamwork.”

The Greenhand members would like to thank Versailles for holding this conference again this year. 

Parkway FFA Holding Annual Fund-Raiser Fruit Sale

 by Danielle Matthews

The Parkway FFA is holding its fruit and nut sale, with an addition of a BBQ Sauce. The Parkway FFA holds this fruit and nut sale every year with a great variety of fresh fruit. The fruit sale orders are being taken until the end of November. If you would like to place an order, you may do so by contacting any Parkway FFA member, emailing FFA@parkwayschools.org, or calling 419-363-3045 ext. 636.

 

Fruit            Full Case             Half Case            1/4 Case

Navels                 25.00                       13.00                         8.00

Tangelos           25.00                        13.00                         8.00

Grapefruit          25.00                        13.00                         8.00

Red Del. Apples                                 15.00                         9.00

Gold Del. Apples                                15.00                         9.00

Fuji Apples                                         15.00                         9.00

Mix Box              28.00                       15.00

        *Mix Box has Navels, Tangelos, Grapefruit, and Apples

Gift Fruit Basket                                                                           22.00

        *Fruit Basket has Navels, Tangelos, Grapefruit, Apples, Candy, and Peanuts

 

Peanuts

Honey Krunch        9.00

Brittle Bites             9.00

Whole Cashews     9.00

Chocolate Almonds/ Cashews 12.00

Trio Pack                                  12.00

 *Trio consists of Brittle Bites, Southern Fried, and Honey Krunch

 

D.B. Yummers BBQ Sauce

Sweet and Smokey BBQ (Two Bottles)      9.00

Mildly Spicy BBQ (Two Bottles)                  9.00

 

Parkway FFA Sends Two Teams to State Soil Judging

The Parkway FFA Chapter sent eight individual, two teams, to State Soil Judging in Wilmington, Ohio, on October 10^th. Soil Judging is an FFA Career Development Event that is classified in two categories. The two categories are rural soil judging and urban soil judging. The students are placed in teams of four, with the team score coming from each individual’s score and their averages. The individual score is based off of a written test and four pits at State level.

Parkway sent a rural team consisting of Karrah Hughes, Josh Ford, Clayton Thomas, and Josh Heppeard. The team placed 38^th out of 57 teams. Josh Ford placed 94^th out of 190 individuals. Clayton Thomas placed 114^th, Karrah Hughes placed 146^th, and Josh Heppeard placed 178^th.

The Parkway FFA team also sent four individuals making up the urban team. The members of this team were Corbin Hellwarth, Olivia Houts, Seth Houts, and Claire Burtch. The team placed 13^th out of 54 teams. Seth Houts placed 8^th out of 194 individuals. Corbin Hellwarth placed 68^th, Olivia Houts placed 93^rd, and Claire Burtch placed 104^th.

These students did a terrific job despite the rain and soggy conditions. The Parkway FFA would like to thank these students for their hard work and congratulate them on a great job.

 

Urban Soils Team- Seth Houts, Corbin Hellwarth, Claire Burtch, and Olivia Houts

 

The Parkway FFA attended the County-wide soil judging contest held on September 18^th. It was located outside of St. Henry. The students chose what type of judging they would like to do. The two options are rural soil judging and urban soil judging. The student’s scores were based off of their performance in three pits and a written test.

The Parkway Chapter sent 23 rural soil judgers who did very well. Clayton Thomas placed 5^th out of 110 students. Karrah Hughes placed 6^th, Josh Ford placed 17^th, Dylan Long placed 20^th, and Josh Heppeard placed 23^rd.

Parkway sent 9 students to judge urban soils and they did extremely well. Corbin Hellwarth placed 1^st out of 55 students. Seth Houts placed 4^th, Jackie King placed 5^th, Abby Evans placed 7^th, and Claire Burtch placed 8^th.

Corbin Hellwarth for placing 1^st in urban soil judging will receive a plaque at the Soil Water Conservation District meeting on November 17^th.

The Parkway FFA will be sending the same students to the Hardin-Northern Invitational on September 24^th. From the two invitational results, four students from each type of judging will be sent to districts held on October 1^st. 

Congratulations to the students for doing a good job at County soil judging!
 

The Parkway FFA had thirteen students attend the week long FFA Camp Muskingum that went from July 6^th to July 10^th. The camp is located in Eastern Ohio around Leesville Lake. Students that attended were Zach Searight, Corbin Hellwarth, Tommy McDonough, Dillon Long, Josh Heppeard, Karrah Hughes, Joe Steiner, Vickie Teboe, Caden Hellwarth, Olivia Houts, Seth Houts, Gage Regadanz, and Abby Evans.

There were many different types of workshops there, with the students being split into different groups with other FFA members. The students learned about leadership, communication, global awareness, and teamwork. Sports competitions between the different groups also went on through the week. The members who attended were also able to do many different activities such as canoeing, archery, paint balling, fishing, water fights, and camp fires. Throughout these events, campers met many new friends throughout the state.

Zach Searight, a senior at Parkway said of the experience, “I met a lot of new people from around the state and I was able to participate in many outdoor activities that taught me new things.”

Tommy McDonough, a first year camper said, “My favorite part of FFA Camp was meeting new people and working on my team building activities.”

Parkway FFA would like to thank Camp Muskingum for giving the students a fantastic learning experience.

Members in picture: Front row left to right: Vickie Teboe, Karrah Hughes, Tommy McDonough, Caden Hellwarth, and Joe Steiner

Back row left to right: Abby Evans, Corbin Hellwarth, Seth Houts, Zach Searight, Olivia Houts, and Dillon Long. Members not present for picture: Gage Regadanz, and Josh Heppeard

Picture at left: Corbin Hellwarth

 

 

 

Picture at left: Olivia Houts
 

 

Students of the Parkway FFA Chapter helped make the week of Mercer County Fair an outstanding one by working a food stand, showing animals, and bringing in projects to put on display.

There were 83 students that brought in non-livestock projects. Overall, there were 425 non-livestock projects brought in by the Parkway FFA members. Out of these projects, 92 of them were outstanding. Mark Sheets won the best small welding project and Corbin Hellwarth won the best medium mechanic project.

Many Parkway FFA students showed animals throughout the week. Pigs were shown by Devin Adams. Stephany Hesse, Landon Brehm, and Hank Bevington showed turkeys. Chickens were shown by Landon Brehm, Dylan Hartman, Justin Berry, Trevor Eishen, Caden Hellwarth, Corbin Hellwarth, Michelle Thomas, and Jenifer Thomas. Jamie Dicke, Dan Shellabarger, Seth Houts, and Olivia Houts entered steers into the Mercer County Fair. Shellabarger, Caden Hellwarth, and Corbin Hellwarth all showed dairy cows. Dee Dee Knapke showed sheep throughout the week. Tommy McDonough, Rachel Hesse, and Landon Brehm showed rabbits. Horses were shown by Lindsey Walls and Kayla Temple.

Throughout the week of the fair, the Parkway FFA partnered with the Fort Recovery FFA to have the FFA Food Stand once again. The stand was successful again this year selling many items such as deep fried pickles, cheese sticks, and fries with cheese. The members of each FFA program had students working each shift as well as some students brought their parents to help out.

The students worked very hard during the week of fair. The students worked hard over summer as well to prepare for this week.

The Parkway FFA Chapter would like to thank the Coldwater Young Farmers for matching the premiums for outstanding projects.

On April 25^th, The Parkway FFA held their annual Daddy-Daughter Dance in the Commons at Parkway Schools. Girls who attend Parkway ranging in grades from kindergarten to sixth grade could attend this dance. One hundred and eight girls came with their fathers to have a good time.

The chapter provided refreshments for everyone and door prizes for the little girls who attended. The fathers and daughters also had their pictures taken that night which were distributed to the girls in their classes at school.

The Parkway FFA Chapter would like to thank everyone that attended the dance for making it a fun night and Chad Ransbottom for being the DJ. It was a lot of fun and we hope to see the girls and fathers back next year!

“As American agriculturists, we can and should play our role and help fix this broken economy. By creating jobs, producing in an efficient manner and working with its government, American agriculture can and will pull through for its nation.”   Corbin Hellwarth, Parkway FFA member, wrote this sentence concerning how American agriculture can or should play a role in the nation’s current economic crisis.

“Throughout the years people have relied on agriculture as a source of food, clothing, and jobs. As we look into the future this reliance will not change, but our approach to providing for it must be altered in these trying times. We must stimulate the economy by creating jobs, streamlining our production process, and allowing change in trade agreements and our government.” Corbin feels that America with the help of agriculture can pull through, with some necessary adjustments from the agriculture field.

He wrote this essay to submit to the Ohio FFA Organization. His essay was judged at districts and then state level. It was chosen to be in the top three essays of the state of Ohio, meaning he would be recognized at the 81st Ohio FFA Convention.

At the first session of the convention on May 1st, Corbin’s essay was named top essay in the state of Ohio. For Corbin’s first place, he received a plaque and sixty dollars.  

The chapter would like to congratulate Corbin on a great essay!

The members of Parkway’s Ag Engineering team had been studying for months on multiple areas pertaining to Engineering.

The questions range from Environment to Natural Resources and from Equipment to Markets. The hard work of the members Brandon Riley, Michael Ford, Mark Sheets, and Devin Adams finally paid off. The boys received 4^th out of 64 teams in the preliminaries. This sent the team into the finals where they did hands on applying their knowledge of engineering.

The team placed fifth overall after the finals. Brandon Riley placed 5th, Michael Ford placed 21^st, Devin Adams placed 24^th, and Mark Sheets placed 35^th. For their accomplishments they received a banner.

Congratulations to the boys on a job well done!

Pictured above: Members of the Engineering team left to right: Michael Ford, Brandon Riley, and Mark Sheets. Member not present: Devin Adams

The Parkway FFA would like to congratulate four members: Michael Ford, Aaron Bollenbacher, Corbin Hellwarth, and Danielle Matthews for receiving their State Degrees.

To receive your State Degree you must complete the following requirements: earned the Chapter Degree, have completed one year in an agricultural education course, have an approved SAE, be a junior, senior, or high school graduate, assisted in the development of our FFA Chapter’s Program of Activities, grossed earning exceeding $3,000, worked more than 1,000 hours, have a GPA of 2.0, and a 93% or better school attendance record.

Michael Ford is the son of Mr. and Mrs. Matt Ford. Michael worked at Bollenbacher Hog Farms. The farm breeds and farrows sows as well as raises the pigs till they are around fifty pounds.

Aaron Bollenbacher worked at Vantilburg Farms doing many jobs to earn his State Degree.  He is the son of Mr. and Mrs. Ted Bollenbacher.

Corbin Hellwarth is the son of Mr. and Mrs. Garrett Hellwarth. Corbin did numerous jobs at Hellwarth Farms Inc.

Danielle Matthews is the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Todd Matthews. She earned her State Degree by taking hogs and dairy feeders to the fair as well as working on her family farm near Ohio City.

All of these students also completed numerous home improvement projects. They put an enormous amount of effort into earning their degrees. They all received their State Degrees on May 2^nd at the 81^st Ohio FFA Convention. Congratulations!
 

ROCKFORD, Ohio- Deanna Lee Knapke of Parkway was recently presented the school’s highest agricultural honor, the DEKALB Agricultural Accomplishment Award, sponsored by Monsanto Company.

Knapke, the daughter of Steve and Deb Knapke, received the award for excellence in academics, leadership, and agricultural work experience. Knapke’s significant experiences and accomplishments have included State FFA Degree, District Sheep Proficiency award winner, Academic Achiever, and Ohio Junior Suffolk Sheep Herdsman Award. Mr. Alan Post is Knapke’s agricultural education instructor at Parkway High School.

This year the DEKALB Agricultural Accomplishment Award celebrates its 62^nd anniversary. Over these 62 years more than 162,000 high school seniors from across the country have received the Award, which has become a symbol for excellence and the school’s highest agricultural honor. In 2008, over 2,050 students from high schools in 48 of the 50 states were recognized with the Award.

As the winner of the 2009 Award, Deanna Knapke’s name will be recorded on a permanent plaque displayed at Parkway High School.

Monsanto, a long-time supporter of agricultural education, FFA, 4-H, and other farm youth organizations and initiatives, has sponsored the DEKALB Agricultural Accomplishment Award, named for its brand of seed, since 1998. Monsanto is a leading global provider of technology-based solutions and agricultural products that improve farm productivity and food quality.

The Parkway FFA attended the 81^st Ohio FFA State Convention located in Columbus, Ohio from May 1^st and 2^nd. The Chapter participated in many activities and received many awards.

Thursday afternoon Olivia Houts and Abby Evans represented the chapter by taking an Agri-science fair project. Olivia’s project was about seed treatment and she received a silver rating. Abby’s Agri-science project consisted of fertilization of soybeans. She received silver rating as well.

The chapter attended all four sessions held on Friday and Saturday at the convention center. A few of the keynote speakers were Ed Gerety, Michael Peterson, and Hannah Crossen.

Friday morning the members each took a Career Development Event test pertaining to their knowledge in Ag Engineering, Ag Cooperative Learning, Farm Business Management, Grain Merchandising, or the Greenhand Quiz with questions about the FFA. The students studied very hard and it shown through in the results as the Ag Engineering team placed fifth and the Grain Merchandising team placed eleventh.

The students then watched as four members of the Parkway Chapter received their State FFA Degree.

The students were very busy during this week and worked hard to earn recognition at the state level.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Parkway FFA held the annual tractor drive-in day. Usually, this day coordinates with FFA week, but this year it was postponed until warmer weather. Finally the FFA Chapter held the day on April 29^th, 2009.

The Chapter had 15 tractors brought into the school. They were parked in front of the school through the day so the elementary classes could look at them. Awards were also given in many different categories. The Awards were:

Oldest: Mark Sheets

Newest: Devin Adams

Cleanest: Brandon Dellinger

Dirtiest: Nick Poling

Smallest: Holden Cheek

Biggest: Danielle Matthews

The Parkway FFA Chapter would like to thank all students for driving in their tractors.

Brandon Riley represented the Parkway FFA at State competition in Outdoor Power and Equipment on Friday, April 24^that Ohio State University ATI in Wooster, Ohio.

Brandon completed nine different stations to help him place 10^th in the state of Ohio. The nine stations included measuring, part identification, tool and fastener identification, starter assembly, plastigage, assembly of different engine parts, trouble shooting station where Brandon had to find the problems, a written test, and he had to look  up part numbers for the parts.

Brandon received a plaque for placing tenth. The Parkway FFA Chapter would like to congratulate Brandon on a job well done!

On April 21^st, 2009 District Four Officer Training was held at Parkway High School. Nine schools came for the training as well as the Parkway FFA Chapter with Danielle Matthews, Zach Searight, Corbin Hellwarth, and Mark Sheets in attendance. Members of The Ohio State University Agricultural Education planned the event. The training was themed,” Road Trip: Chapter Success Straight Ahead.” Break out sessions were held to train the President, Vice President, Secretary, Treasurer, Reporter, and Sentinel. After the sessions, the members from each school came together and plotted out a road map for the next school year. Pizza and pop was then served to the students.

The officers in attendance will use their training in the following year to serve on their chapter’s officer team. The Parkway FFA would like to thank the OSU Agricultural Education students for putting on this training.   

Officers how attended: Left to right Mark Sheets, Zach Searight, Corbin Hellwarth, and Danielle Matthews

Recently the Parkway FFA Chapter sent a team to Columbus for the State Wildlife competition. The team consisted of Paul Brown, Josh Ford, Dustin Merry, Brandon Riley, Nick Strader, Aaron Bollenbacher, and Holden Cheek.  

The team had to identify 75 specimens by skins, skulls, tracks, or actual mounts. The specimen includes Mammals, Game Birds, Fish, Food and Cover Plants, and Equipment. The team also has to take a written test consisting of 50 questions about general knowledge of things from different parts of a bird’s wing to recommended placement for a gray squirrel next box.

The team placed 19^th overall out of 72 teams. Nick Strader placed 50^th out of 289 individuals. Aaron Bollenbacher placed 88^th, Paul Brown placed 96^th, Dustin Merry placed 116^th, Josh Ford was 125^th, Brandon Riley was 150^th, and Holden Cheek was 217^th.

The team also attended multiple invitationals prior to the State Wildlife in preparation for this competition. The team and individuals placed very well at these functions too.

The Parkway FFA Chapter would like to congratulate the team for their hard work and on placing well at state.  

Standing left to right are: Nick Strader, Josh Ford, Brandon Riley, Dustin Merry, and Holden Cheek

Laying left to right: Aaron Bollenbacher and Paul Brown

Parkway FFA Awards Burtch Seed as Honorary Member

ROCKFORD, Ohio- The Parkway FFA Chapter recently awarded Burtch Seed as their honorary member at the annual banquet held on April 15^th. The honorary membership is chosen by the efforts that the person/persons give in order to benefit the Parkway FFA Chapter and local community. Burtch Seed was chosen for their many contributions to the Parkway FFA Chapter. They have made donations for many different activities the Parkway FFA is involved in throughout the year. Burtch Seed and Parkway FFA also partner for Burtch Seed’s Customer Appreciation Day which helps to promote the chapter and the Parkway Local Schools. Burtch Seed also assists students that are involved in the botany division for agriscience fair projects.

Burtch Seed received a plaque from the Parkway FFA to show their appreciation for their efforts.
Above: Burtch Seed representative Ed Burtch with 2008-2009 Officer Team

 Below: Ed Burtch with Chapter Student Advisor Jenifer Thomas.