Past Officers

Andrew Moore – VP

The day after the Area III LDE contest I was visiting with a school counselor when she asked, “How did your contest go?” I responded by telling her how well it went, that I had performed my best and that overall the contest was a success. Still, I knew she wanted me to spill the beans about how I placed.

After a bit of small talk, she finally asked, “So how did you place?” I reluctantly answered, “Well, I did pretty good. I got first place.” She of course was cheerful, but questioned why I hadn’t told her that in the beginning. I didn’t want to sound like I was bragging.  As simple as it might be, she then asked me a question I will never forget: “Andrew, if you don’t toot your own horn, who will?”

I recognize the importance of humility, but this got me thinking. If we don’t tell the story of our life, either no one will, or someone will tell it the wrong way. Furthermore, the same could be said about our agricultural story. Our farm story, is just that, ourstory! We have to be the ones telling it.

As FFA members, we must choose to tell the story of agriculture. Whether it be posting a selfie with our livestock, teaching someone how to plant a garden, or teaching third graders how their food is produced, tell your story! Tell agriculture’s story. If you don’t toot your own horn about your passion for this way of life, who will?

Brenden Kleiboeker – President

“It’s a beautiful day in the Ozarks.”
“We’re just making memories.”

Two quotes from my agriculture advisor, that I did not understand until recently. Yesterday was National Teach Ag day, and I learned so much from my agriculture teacher that I would like to share. My agriculture teacher is Mr. Duane Kaiser, and to fully understand these quotes, you must first understand his life. Mr. Kaiser grew up with a single mom in the 1960’s, and it was tough to make ends meet. Though his mom did not go to high school, she earned enough that her son was able to obtain an associate’s, bachelors, and master’s degrees in agriculture education. Mr. Kaiser built a dairy farm from scratch in the 1980s battling 19 and 20 percent interest, still he persevered. Just recently, when he started to think that the dairy market was getting good, here we are. 2019. The dairy market has slipped, and with every load of milk, Mr. Kaiser also sends his hard-earned cash to town, never to return. Still, he perseveres.

It is obvious that Mr. Kaiser has never had much in the way of material things, however he finds happiness without them. The beauty of a cool crisp morning, with the bobwhite singing on Stones Prairie brings joy to his heart. Funny experiences with students, and watching these students grow are memories that he stores in his heart forever. These things bring joy to Mr. Kaiser. Too often, we all get caught up in life. Who has the coolest truck, newest shoes, or the highest grades. However, someday, these things too shall pass. Years from now, all we will have is the beauty of the earth, and the memories we made. Learn from Mr. Kaiser and be content in the simple things. Missouri FFA, find the beauty in life.