For most people, remembering to feed their house pet is enough of a challenge. The notion of dedicating hundreds of hours to the maintenance and training of a farm animal seems an unfathomable feat, but this is everyday life for those in the Poway High Chapter of Future Farmers of America (FFA). Days consist of multiple trips to the club’s barn at Lake Poway, constant cleaning efforts, and agricultural education.
This week, FFA held the annual ‘FFA Week’, where club members hosted festive lunchtime events. Lunchtime games included corn hole and pie eating contests, while dress-up concepts included cowboy hats and blue and gold – the club’s signature colors.
For the week’s finale, the club is enlisting the help of critter friends to reach their fundraising goals, providing students with a chance to make their homeroom teachers kiss a piglet. The three homerooms that raised the most money condemned their teachers to that fate today.
“We are trying to let people know what the organization stands for: hands-on interaction and education surrounding agriculture. Our goal is to celebrate not only the club but the hard work and importance of the [agriculture] industry as a whole,” FFA President junior Erin Lucey said.
Members raise their animal of choice; which they train and prepare for competitions where judges look for particular builds, sizes, and styling. FFA animal breeder and Poway alumni Victoria Miller credits nutrition as a key component to get animals show
ready “through diet you can completely customize the animals composition, for any concern, there is always a swap or a supplement that can help resolve it,” Miller said.
As FFA prepares for competition season this summer, the club thanks the support of the Poway community, and hopes to expand. “The friendships I have built through showing, and with the FFA community, are what makes the club so special
to me, and I would encourage anyone with a passion for animals to consider joining,” Vice-President senior Jordan Smith said.
