Strong winds and stronger leaders

Summer so far has been anything but slow. Between haying, harvest, cooler temperatures, wild weather and leadership events, there’s been no shortage of activity.

This season has been packed full with both hard work and personal growth. These past couple weeks have also been very eventful and definitely one to remember, both in the fields and beyond.

July 28 we received some unexpected weather in our area. We recorded two tornadoes. One was located north of Gregory, South Dakota, the other was located around Bonesteel, South Dakota, and both were moving southeast. With the tornado in the Bonesteel area, a house was completely destroyed, along with several cows that were left dead. As of the one that was located in Gregory, it just destroyed some trees and fences, and no one was harmed from either of them.

This weather has been a good reminder on how quickly things can change in an instant.

As An FFA member and a district officer, I’ve had the opportunity to reach out and explore more leadership opportunities that are available to members. Two weeks ago I attended the West River Leadership Retreat in Rapid City, South Dakota, along with six other members from the Gregory County FFA chapter. Over the course of this retreat, we participated in leadership workshops, team-building activities, and a service project.

The retreat is a chance for FFA members across the state to meet and connect with others while also growing as leaders and having fun along the way. I not only strengthened my skills, but I found more ways to serve my chapter and community more purposefully.

Not long after leadership retreat, I joined my fellow district officers for our district officer retreat in Mitchell, South Dakota. This was a focused time to plan new goals for the year, gain more leadership skills, and find solutions to some problems within South Dakota FFA. During these couple days, we were busy at work, while also having fun and building strong connections that will help us officers lead more effectively together on the district and state level. It’s exciting to know that the work we’re doing now will hopefully impact students throughout the upcoming school year.

On the farming side, the cooler weather lately has been a welcome surprise that makes outside work more bearable. We’ve been able to get some more hay put up. Even though we haven’t had as many bales as we have in the past, we have had a decent haying season so far.

In the past week we have also done more wheat harvesting and have received decent bushels per acre as well. The scattered rain and weather has kept us from doing anything with the beans and corn, but we hope to have the opportunity soon.

Looking ahead, I know that the rest of the summer and early fall will stay busy with more haying, fieldwork, weather, and with the new school year being just around the corner.

Whether it was gaining more leadership skills, or working in the fields, each of these experiences have helped me to learn new things everyday. I am grateful for the opportunities that I have been able to experience just over these past couple weeks, and I am very intrigued to see what this new month will bring! – Ava Kerner