DIRECTOR’S REMARKS
Growing up, showing livestock at the Missouri State Fair was the capstone event of our summer It represented a year of careful breeding, raising, grooming, and training of the animals It also meant countless days driving to fairs and hours hanging out with peers who were like family Similarly, the Missouri State Fair is a yearly capstone event for Missouri Ag Ed As our final events for the program year are wrapping up at the fair, I’ve stepped away to write this note This seems a perfect time to share how your donations to the Missouri FFA Foundation has allowed for a spring and summer full of opportunities for learning, leading, serving, and connecting for the more than 36,000 people representing the Missouri Ag Ed family. Whether it was Area Officer Institute, Public Speaking Academy, FFA Camp, MVATA Summer Conference, State Day of Service or the Alumni & Supporters Reunion, there was something for almost everyone this summer!
SUMMER LEADERSHIP SERIES
Thissummerwasaperfecttimeformorethanathousand MissouriFFAmemberstostrengthentheirleadershipskills The FoundationthanksourindustrypartnerswhomadeFFACamp, HYMAXAcademy,HYPE,PublicSpeakingAcademyandandArea OfficerInstitutepossible!
WithweeklysessionsfromJunethroughJuly,members attendingFFACampenjoyrecreationalandeducational activitieswhilenetworkingwithothermembers andmeeting agri-industryrepresentatives
AtthebeginningofJune,morethan100membersfromacross thestatecametogetherfortheAreaOfficerInstitute,athreedaytrainingfocusedonlearningteam-buildingstrategies,time managementtechniques,andpresentationskills
AimedatequippingFFAmembersingrades9-12inbecoming strongpresenters,thethree-dayPublicSpeakingAcademy guidesparticipantsinorganizingtheirthoughts,using languageeffectively,andanalyzingaudiences.
For100FFAmemberswhoarerisingsophomores,HYMAX Academyiskeytobecomingabetteradvocateforagriculture
AtHYMAX,memberscompletehands-onchallengesdesigned toimprovetheircommunicationskillswhilediggingintothe issuesfacingagriculturetoday
ExclusivelysupportedbyMissouriCorn,HYPEcontinuesthe advocacyskillbuildingstartedinHYMAXwhileintroducing memberstokeyagricultureandpoliticalleadersinthestate. Followusonsocialmediawherestudentstoriesfromthese programsarefeaturedonWednesdays.
June
Heather Dimitt-Fletcher Missouri FFA Foundation Executive Director
MVATA TEACHER CONFERENCE
TheMissouriVocationalAgricultureTeachers’Associationheld theirannualstateconferenceattheendofJuly Duringthe conference,teachersattendworkshopstoincreasetheiragriindustryknowledgeandinstructionalstrategyrepertoire.With fundingfromtheFoundation,trainersfromtheNational AssociationofAgriculturalEducatorsalsofacilitatedintensive seminarsinagriscience,earlycareerskilldevelopment,teacher resiliency,andinstructionalmentoring.Anawardsceremony wasalsoheldtohonoroutstandingprogramsandinstructors
TheMissouriFFAFoundationappreciatesthenumerous sponsorswhomadeitpossibleformorethan450 teachersto attendthisprofessionaldevelopmentopportunityatminimal cost
HORIZON/RISING SUN GRANT
In July, the Foundation awarded almost $184,000 in Horizon & Rising Sun Grants These grants which range from $10,000-$50,000 are made possible due to generous support from the Missouri Governor’s Office and the Missouri Department of Agriculture Projects funded must help Missouri high school agriculture education programs prepare the workforce to meet the future needs of the Missouri agriculture industry The grants require buy-in from the community which ensures they are focused on meeting local workforce needs Currently, in its second year, the Horizon & Rising Sun program has resulted in over a million dollars in new facilities, equipment, tools, etc. for high school agriculture education programs since it started. Follow us on social media where stories of these and other grant projects are featured on Saturdays.
STATE OFFICE SUMMER TRAININ
OnJuly31,ourExecutiveDirectorjoinedtheMissouriFFAState Officersattheirsecondintensivetrainingweek.Shefacilitated networkingexercisestohelpthemstrengthentheirskillsin communicationandadvocacy.
TheteamalsoplannedtheannualMissouriFFASock campaign.Keepaneyeoutforthecampaignwhichlaunches inSeptemberfeaturingseveralnewoptions,including numerousstylesandinstantshippingonorders.
ALUMNI/SUPPORTERS REUNION
The annual Alumni and Supporters Reunion hosted by the Missouri FFA Foundation was a huge success! The reunion was held during the Missouri State Fair at the Taylor Woods Youth Building. More than 70 people from across the state joined together to catch up with long time friends and colleagues, share a delicious meal, and bid on interesting silent auction items. Attendees expressed enjoyment for the event and are already making plans for the 2026 reunion!
STATE FAIR DAY OF SERVICE
The Foundation is proud to support the Missouri FFA Association’s State Day of Service, a meal packing event at the Missouri State Fair It is a part of Missouri Farmers Care’s Drive to Feed Kids, an initiative aligning all of Missouri agriculture in the fight against food insecurity This year, with the help of 70 chapters, 600 FFA members, and 90+ volunteers, more than 177,000 meals were packed! Missouri FFA State Advisor, Keith Dietzschold, was named a Friend of the Fair for his work with the yearly meal packing event that has resulted in more than 1 million meals donated since its inception!
STAR PARTNERS
Contributions from donors and sponsors make it possible to hold these activities and more! We are especially grateful to our STAR Partners, who don’t fund a specific event but rather Missouri Ag Ed as a whole. Their support allows a vast array of leadership, service, and skill development activities to happen. Thank you to FCS Financial, ADM, Vital Farms, Key Apparel, Brownfield Network, and Bayer for being 2025 STAR Partners. If you would like to learn more about being a sponsor, please contact us at foundationinfo@missouri.edu.
