The Exeter-Milligan/Friend FFA held a pep rally Wednesday morning in the Exeter gym. Since it was held in the Exeter gym this year all of the Exeter-Milligan sixth through twelfth graders were able to attend and get a glimpse of the FFA program.
It was FFA week February 20-24 and according to EMF FFA President Shelby Lawver it is one of the highlights of the year, “Our FFA members work hard year-round competing in all different types of competitions. FFA week is a week where we plan fun activities and dress-up days for the members to enjoy. From our past experiences as FFA members and elementary students, it really isn't FFA week without a pep rally.”
The pep rally opened with a welcome from Lawver who announced the first competition, a pie eating contest. Officers had pulled names out of the hat for each one of the competitions.
After donning plastic bags the contestants had to eat through a whipped cream pie and find six gummy fish. In the junior high division Avery Tuttle skunked her competitors while Jayden Capek was the high school winner.
In between games, gift card drawings were held and the winners received $10 gift cards to local businesses.
The next competition was a traditional bob for apples contest. Four students attempted to find four apples in their buckets. After testing different methods, Mikey Bartu won the contest with his head dunking approach.
Trying to stay clean for a while, the next game involved holding two water jugs straight out. Marcus Krupicka won the high school division and Jaxson Brandt won the junior high division.
Carter Milton was given the task of helping Bob Milton get his FFA dress outfit on while blindfolded while racing against the team of Abbi Milton and Gracie Vynhalek. Carter and Gracie were allowed to give verbal instructions but couldn’t physically help them put the clothing items that were spread across the gym on their bodies. It was a close race but Bob and Carter were declared the winners.
Lots of participants were tagged for the game of musical chairs. This game is always a crowd favorite, but some of the boys treated the game more like capture the chair and both participants got the boot. Malorie Lawver was the winner
Four teams of students, which included two junior high and two high school teams, faced the challenge of getting a frozen FFA t-shirt open enough for one of the teammates to put it on. The students tried throwing them on the floor, pulling them apart, throwing them against the wall, dunking them in buckets of water and blowing on them. Finally the junior high team of Alexis Paulsen, Ty Svehla and Sydney Engert quietly and patiently worked on their shirt and Alexis was able to don the shirt.
The grand finale of the event was watching the chosen teacher/administrator kiss an adorable baby goat brought in by Jordon Lawver. Laura Kroll, Exeter-Milligan Principal, Exeter-Milligan history teacher Jordan Marr, Exeter-Milligan Ag and welding teacher Miranda Hornung were the three nominees to kiss the goat. The audience choice was Marr with an overwhelming majority (which did not disappoint Kroll or Hornung).
Marr took a few moments to get to know the goat before planting a kiss on her (actually twice, to make sure the photo was just right).
The event truly reflected the purpose which, according to Lawver, “is to take time during FFA week to do fun activities with our members that are related to FFA in some way. It's something everyone looks forward to during FFA week!”
The EMF FFA members will travel to Utica next Tuesday to compete in their Career and Leadership Events (CDE). Here they will compete as a team in a variety of ag related activities like agriculture sales, floriculture, public speaking and mechanical and technical skills. The focus, according to Lawver, is teamwork, “Our biggest challenge in CDEs is getting everyone on the same page. Since CDEs are a team activity, you have to qualify for state as a team. The hardest part can be getting all four of the team members to study and do their job. If you have one person slacking, it brings the entire team down.”
Teams that qualify will have the opportunity to travel to Lincoln for the state competition at the end of March. The seniors who have earned their state degrees will receive them in a ceremony at Pinnacle Bank Arena during the convention. They will wrap up the year with the FFA Banquet in April. “I personally enjoy banquet because it's a time for us officers to recognize members for all their hard work throughout the year,” explained Lawver.
