SCFFA Public Relations

State FFA Officers seated (left to right) Allison Waggoner, Pendleton, SC, Secretary; Lauren Holden, Starr, SC, Vice President; and Rachel McLeod, Vice President. McBee, SC. Standing (left to right) Alex D. Gleason, Calhoun Falls, SC, Vice President; John A. Lesaine, Jr., President, Manning, SC; and Bryan W. Lowman, Aiken, SC, Vice President.

CLEMSON, SC….The annual convention of the South Carolina FFA Association will be held at Clemson University, June 9-11, 2004, according to John W. Parris, State Director of Public Affairs with the Association. “A record breaking attendance is expected from high schools throughout the state”, he said.

The convention opens with the SC Young Farmer-Agribusiness and FFA Association Golf Tournament at the Walker Course on the Clemson campus, Wednesday afternoon, June 9^th. The tournament is held to raise funds for the SC FFA Scholarship Program.

Dr. Louis B. Lynn of Columbia, SC, President of ENVIRO AGSCIENCE, INC., and a trustee of Clemson University, will welcome the students to the campus. State Representative Marty W. Coates of Florence, SC, a nationally recognized motivational speaker and former National FFA Officer, will keynote the Wednesday evening session at the Brooks Center for the Performing Arts.

Outstanding FFA Chapters will be recognized by the USDA Farm Service Agency and the SC Rural Rehabilitation Corporation. The three top chapters will be awarded the Governor’s Citation for Exemplary Achievement in Student Development, Chapter Development or Community Development and a check for $1000.

Recipients of the Hilton V. Rogers Agricultural Scholarship sponsored by the SC Fertilizer and AgriChemicals Association, the SC Young Farmer and Agribusiness Association Scholarships and the National FFA Scholarships, will be recognized at the Wednesday evening session.

State Finals in Agricultural Issues, Agricultural Mechanics, Public Speaking, Extemporaneous Speaking, FFA Creed Speaking, Farm Business Management, Parliamentary Procedure, and the Greenhand Knowledge Bowl will be held Thursday morning.

State FFA Degrees will be awarded to advanced agricultural education students who have excelled in “hands-on” Supervised Agricultural Training and State winning teams ranging from Agronomy to Wildlife will be recognized at the Thursday afternoon session.

An Awards and Recognition Banquet at the Anderson County Convention Center Thursday evening will feature the presentation of Honorary State FFA Degrees to a number of distinguished adult supporters, an address by the National FFA Vice President and announcing the State Star in Agribusiness and the State Star Farmer following an impressive “FFA Stars Over South Carolina” Ceremony.

The Friday morning session will include the recognition of State Agri-Science Fair winners, Agricultural Proficiency Award winners and the election of a new State Officer Team for 2004-05.

John A. Lesaine, President of the State FFA Association from Manning, SC, State Secretary Allison Waggoner from Pendleton, SC, and Vice Presidents Alex D. Gleason of Calhoun Falls; Lauren Holden of Starr; Bryan Lowman of Aiken; and Rachel McLeod of McBee, will lead the three day convention.

The mission of the FFA is to make a positive difference in the lives of students by developing their potential for premier leadership, personal growth and career success through agricultural education.

This page was designed by Bob Spalding.
Questions or comments should be sent to John Parris (scffa@bellsouth.net)