"I eat meat, but I won't kill it."

"I WILL BUY MY MEAT AND EAT IT, BUT I WON'T KILL (AN ANIMAL) FOR IT"

These are the exact words that heard over the new year. It was late at night and I was playing cards with some friends in a hotel. Some random guy, about my age, took a seat by us and joined. We got to talking and somehow we landed on the topic of agriculture. That is when I heard him say:

"I will buy meat from the store and eat it, but I won't kill an animal for it. That is just wrong."

This simply blew my mind; I was slightly appalled. We talked about it for a while and discussed how he could possibly say such a thing. He said that he had seen the movie "Food Inc." and believed that all animals being raised for consumption were being mistreated. At this time, I could probably be seen picking my jaw up off the floor.

Where do people get their information about where their food comes from? How come people are willing to buy there food from the grocery store, completely disconnected from its origins, but be appalled by what farmers do; or even dislike the simple notion that you must actually kill an animal before it can be consumed?

Talking with this individual for a while, I discovered that he could not be to blame for these misconceptions. He had searched several sources about the issues "Food Inc." addressed. It was at that moment I realized that with the internet, people will find what they want to find, regardless of its truth or accuracy.

This poses a huge issue, that I believe WE can solve. As agriculturalists, how do we get the basic information about where our food comes from to the consumer? What are YOU doing to break through this barrier?

Long Time, No Post

Wow, it has been a LONG TIME since I last posted. A lot of things have happened since that post just after National FFA Convention.

I must apologize. Sometimes life gets going and we let life get in the way of the little things. Whether that be from making a phone call to a long-lost friend, to sitting down with a big bowl of popcorn and watch a funny movie by yourself or picking up that ball and glove to writing a blog post. Sometimes life gets in the way of those little moments that we cherish. I urge you to not let those small moments in your life pass you by. Grab onto them and live life to its fullest.

Here is a timeline of a few memorable moments, in my life, from the past severals months.

October:

National FFA Convention- Indianapolis, Indiana- (Very EXCITING! See previous blog post http://goo.gl/cQaoe)

November:

Greenhand Fire-Up Conferences- There were six of these held around the state for first year FFA members. It was exciting to so many young people with great, exciting potential!

Iowa FFA Enrichment Center "Mystery Tour"- I was asked to give a presentation about the Iowa FFA Association this group of people. I wasn't told much, but once I arrived and finished up, I found out that I was presenting to a group of people who all jumped on a bus and were told that where they were going is a surprise. I was impressed with all of the questions about agriculture and the FFA that were posed by these individuals, yearning for information.

212/360 Degree Conferences- It was AMAZING to see members gather from around the state to learn and grow as individuals! It was also fun to work with National FFA's presenters Levy and Jimmy!

Iowa Corn Partnership Visit- This was our first partnership visit as a team, set up by the Iowa FFA Foundation. We simply went to the Iowa Corn Headquarters, met with their people, learned about what Iowa Corn is and what they do. We discussed what they can do for the future of agriculture and how we can be a part of it. It was a great networking experience and I look forward to growing many more of these in the future.

Chapter Events- Sibley-Ocheyedan hosted their annual State Officer Weekend. This was full of leadership activities, trap shooting, bowling, Perkins, building friendships and provoking thought!

Chapter Visits- A chapter visit is an opportunity for several state and district officers to come to your school and host an interactive workshop for each of the agricultural education classes. If possible, the officers also would love to visit with your chapter officer team to evaluate how the year is going and do some goal setting. Also, we would enjoy talking with your administration about the importance of agricultural education! If you are interested in having an out-of-this-world AWESOME day, contact me today! :)

December:

Chapter Visits- Once again, they are a BLAST for YOU and ME! :)

State Leadership Conference Planning- Oh the many exciting things we have planned for the 84th Iowa FFA Leadership Conference (a.k.a. State Convention). If you have ANY ideas, let me know!

January:

Winter State Officer Retreat- This was an AMAZING three days to take a step back, dive into personal growth and discover where our hearts really do rest. We grew together as a team, worked on SLC planning and prepared for the 212 conference encore.

212 Conference Encore- So many members wanted to go to the 212 conference in November that we had to hold ANOTHER 212 conference for freshman and sophomore members! This was a great time to see all the members develop forever-lasting friendships and grow as individuals throughout the day!

Chapter Visits- This year, the Northwest District has had approximately two chapter visits every week at several different schools! I think it is AMAZING that advisors and students are willing to open up and invite some fun 'strangers' into their classrooms. Thank you for making this opportunity happen!

State Leadership Conference Planning/Practice- We are relying on Randy Dreher, Dan Venteicher and Dan Hansen to whip the nine of us into shape for this year's State Leadership Conference (sidenote: the *OFFICIAL* Twitter hashtag for state convention is #iaffa12). Today we started working on our special retiring program speeches and we have things ready to go to elect new leadership for the following year in the districts!

From here on out, you will see a complete change in my blog posting 'habits' and methods. There will be more posts, more inspiration and more 'call to action' initiatives. Thank you to everyone who keeps me going, my mentor Silas Pippitt, all those who care about the Iowa FFA Officers (sidenote: @iowaffa on Twitter), all the Agricultural Education instructors and FFA advisors throughout this great state of Iowa; but most of all, thank you to all of the MEMBERS throughout the state for whom we do all this for. I look forward to seeing many of you throughout the rest of my days as Northwest State Vice President and for many years to come after that. Thank you for all that you do! Keep on believing! I BELIEVE!