Fifteen candidates, most of them freshmen, received their Greenhand Degrees after completing their first-year requirements in Sweet Home’s Future Farmers of America program.
Nearly 100 people attended the program’s inaugural Community Night on March 8 at the Sweet Home High School Gym, where the degree ceremony took place.
“It was awesome,” said Scott Jacobson, who advises Sweet Home’s FFA chapter, which was founded in 2022. “It was a great turnout and I was happy with how many families came.”
The visitors got a taste of some of the order and decorum that FFA members adhere to – an introduction of the officers, who each stated their role in the organization, and a recitation of the FFA pledge.
A silent auction featuring donations from local businesses and individuals raised some $2,000 for the Sweet Home FFA chapter and a raffle added another $320, which the winner donated back to the chapter.
Funds raised go to paying expenses for attending the FFA state convention later this month, upcoming competitions and other needs, FFA leaders said.
Guests also were served a dinner catered by Wright Family Farms, with contributions from Andrea Foley’s high school catering class.
The highlight of the evening was the awarding of pins to the 15 Greenhand candidates, first-year members who have completed a supervised agricultural experience program and that have demonstrated their understanding of the history and purpose of the FFA.
“Every student who passes the FFA unit in Introduction to Agriculture is awarded the Greenhand certificate,” said Jacobson, who came to the high school in 2022 to teach agriculture. This is the third class of Greenhands.
After the state convention, the next big calendar activity will be the FFA Banquet on May 21, where students of all levels will be recognized for their accomplishments and new officers will be elected, he said.