the feeling of walking into National Convention, a state leadership conference or a local chapter meeting wearing your very own FFA jacket and FFA tie or scarf. The FFA jacket gives members confidence, a sense of hope for their future and provides them with a physical piece of belonging to a community. Each year, thanks to donors like you, students know what it’s like to be welcomed into the FFA family. Your gift of $100 towards the Blue Jackets. Bright Futures. Campaign gives one FFA member a lifetime of Thisopportunities.schoolyear, Nebraska will have more chapters than ever before! In 2021 nearly 700 FFA members applied for a jacket through the Blue Jackets. Bright Futures. program. With the continued growth of agricultural education and FFA programs in Nebras ka combined with the increased costs to purchase an FFA jacket, we expect the need to continue to Ifgrow.you feel compelled to support this campaign and provide for our leaders of tomorrow, please fill out the enclosed envelope or go to www.neffafoundation.org to make your 2022 Blue Jackets. Bright Futures. donation by September 1. Go to neffafoundation.org/support_us, use the QR code or return the enclosed envelope with your donation by September 1.
Leadership. Tradition. True Blue. TRUE BLUE NEBRASKA NEWS
August 2022
FFA Jacket Gives Confidence to Members In Nebraska, there are over 12,000 FFA members in 209 FFA chapters. In the US, there are over 735,000 members and over 8,800 FFA chapters. FFA members across the country have different backgrounds, but two things unite them all–agriculture, and the iconic, corduroy blue and gold FFA Nothingjacket.tops
State President 2
NEBRASKA FFA PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE
My teammates and I shouldn’t be the only ones excited for this upcoming year in FFA! With an all-time high for membership with over 12,000 members and 209 chapters, it is sure to be an amazing year full of activities, competitions, and conferences. I am grateful for all of the FFA experiences I have had so far, and I look forward to making even more memories with the outstanding members, advisors, and sponsors across the state! I look forward to seeing you soon! NebraskaAlexiswishes,BodlakFFA
Agriculture is one of the most diverse industries in the world and we loved meeting with businesses and sponsors to learn more about their ties to agriculture and FFA. We split into two teams and met with 26 businesses and donors in the Lincoln and Omaha area over three days. I loved everything about the visits from the riveting conversations over lunch and dinner to touring coops and manufacturing plants!
Moments after our names were announced in Pinnacle Bank Arena, the state officer team jumped into what has been an amazing year of FFA!
Our team collaborated together for the first time at The Cornhusker Hotel in Lincoln as we worked with two amazing facilitators to identify our own and our teammates’ strengths using Clifton’s Strength Finder Test during Basecamp. This experience brought our team closer together. We have everyone’s top five strengths memorized and they are a part of many inside Afterjokes!Basecamp, we packed our bags for a month at The Leadership Center in Aurora, NE. State staff led us through State Officer Development and Facilitation Training before we dove into our first experience interacting with members-Chapter Officer Leadership Training (COLT)! FFA members and advisors from all over the state spent three or four days (depending on the session) with the state officer team learning about the roles and responsibilities of each office and how to be a positive influence.
While I have enjoyed the downtime that comes with being a high school graduate but not quite a college student, the jam-packed weeks filled with team development workshops, connecting with students, and business and industry visits have been the highlights of my summer! Time really does fly when having fun, and it is hard to believe that this summary covers three whole months!
Best
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and Natural Resources & Department of Agricultural Leadership, Education and Communication 3 2021 SAE
Wood Learns About Cattle Genetics and Feed Rations
Jacob Wood was able to expand his knowledge for his future career by receiving the Nebraska FFA Foundation Supervised Agricultural Experience (SAE) Grant in 2021. Wood applied for the grant last June hoping to receive funding to build his cattle herd from two to three cows. He was selected as a recipient and used the funding to purchase a bred cow at an auction. This was his first time to bid in a live auction. He also learned about the different cattle genetics he was looking for through their EPDs.
Nebraska FFA Foundation Premier Sponsors ($25,000 or more)
University of Nebraska-Lincoln College Agricultural Sciences GRANT RECIPIENT
Wood will be a Junior in the Palmyra FFA chapter this year. Once he graduates he plans to attend college then return back to his family farm to continue expanding his cattle herd and farm. He is currently learning about feed rations for the calves in his herd. He is planning to sell his bull calf to his family to use as a bull in their herd. Wood is very thankful to have received this grant because it helped him expand his cattle knowledge and purchase a cow with the genetics he was looking for.
Over the last couple of years, there has been an increase in students interested in welding careers, including two graduates from last year pursuing their certification. Additionally, the chapter has been doing very well in welding Career Development Events, placing second at districts and making the top third at Providingstate. students with the necessary tools to be successful is just one part of the puzzle, Schluckebier says. “You need that connection with students to point them in the right direction, and they do the rest on their own.”
The Wauneta-Palisade FFA chapter received a Nebraska FFA Foundation grant in 2018. Looking back almost four years later, it’s incredible to see how their students have been impacted. Prior to receiving the grant, a lack of tools and outdated equipment made it difficult for students to get excited about welding. With the grant, the chapter was able to purchase a new TIG welder, two MIG welders, two stick welders, a plasma cutter table, hand tools, several helmets, and update their equipment for OA welders. Updated equipment, and more of it, peaked students’ interest and motivation in the shop.
Nebraska FFA Foundation 6-Star Sponsors ($15,000 - $24,999) Marketing Credit Commodities Livestock 4 2018 AGRICULTURAL CLASSROOM GRANT RECIPIENT
Industrial arts teacher Danny Schluckebier witnesses firsthand a spark of interest in students. He said one student really enjoyed TIG welding and was very good at it. Schluckebier even joked that this student should be teaching him. He was surprised by this student’s interest and dedication when he received a phone call from him during the summer checking in on what the next year’s welding classes would entail. He regularly gets requests for more welding classes, but only has seven teaching periods in a day.
Wauneta-Palisade Reflects on Foundation Grant’s Impact SAVE THE DATE: Blue Jackets. Bright Futures. Donation Deadline | September 1 Nebraska FFA State Convention | March 29-31, 2023 | Lincoln, NE Danny IndustrialSchluckebierArtsTeacher
The Nebraska FFA Foundation has a John Deere Gator going on auction online on BigIron.com. The auction will end September 14. Details on the gator can be found online at neffafoundation.org.
Donors to the I Believe in the Future of Ag campaign choose which chapter they support. One hundred percent of each local donation will be sent back to the designated chapter at the end of the campaign and a portion of the $35,000 challenge matching pool will be distributed to participating chapters. To donate to a local FFA chapter contact your local FFA advisor or go online to neffafoundation.org. Donate to your local FFA chapter with the QR code through I Believe in the Future of Ag.
John Deere Gator Available Online for Annual Auction
Gator Sponsors: September marks the official start of the 11th annual I Believe in the Future of Ag fundraising campaign. This campaign serves as an outlet for local FFA chapters to receive donations for innovative projects in their classrooms, leadership programming, community service projects and field trips to advance agriculture education in their schools. This year, LivestockMarket.com, BigIron Auctions, Central Valley Ag, and CoBank committed $20,000 each to the campaign. Other sponsors, contributing $10,000 each, include: Aurora Cooperative, Bayer CropScience, Country Partners Cooperative, CPI, DEKALB/Asgrow, Farm Credit Services of America, Farmers Cooperative, Frontier Cooperative, Nebraska Farm Bureau Federation, Pinnacle Bank, Producers Livestock, Rembolt Ludtke and Valley Irrigation. These corporate partners provide support for an educational campaign for FFA and agricultural education in Nebraska and support fundraising efforts at the local level. “Local FFA chapters and agriculture education chapters play an integral role in growing and developing future leaders in agriculture and in our communities. I see this campaign as a very important tool to help those chapters have the resources they need to grow leaders and build communities,” says Stacey Agnew, Nebraska FFA Foundation Executive Director.
MEMBER FDIC Nebraska FFA Foundation 5-Star Sponsors ($10,000 - $14,999) 5 FVCFrenchman Valley Coop fvcoop.com Your Premier Service Provider I BELIEVE IN THE FUTURE OF AG I Believe in the Future of Ag Campaign Begins for 2022-23
• The maximum amount a donor can transfer is $100,000 per taxpayer per year.
• The gift must be outright. Gifts to donor advised funds or to life income vehicles do not qualify.
• The gift must be transferred directly from the IRA account by the IRA administrator to the Nebraska FFA Foundation.
The Nebraska FFA Foundation does not offer professional tax advice. Please consult with your tax or financial advisor for guidance regarding IRA distributions. Connect with the Nebraska FFA Foundation about your planned gift: Sarah Mullen, Development and Marketing Director, at sarah@neffafoundation.org or 402-472-5224.
Make a Gift with your IRA Looking for a way to save on your income taxes and support the Nebraska FFA Foundation at the same time by making a gift from your IRA. This is commonly called the IRA charitable rollover, but you may also see it referred to as a qualified charitable distribution, or QCD for short. To be eligible:
• The donor must be at least 70 1/2 years old at the time the distribution is made. Required Minimum Distributions (RMDs) begin at age 72.
Nebraska FFA Alumni and Supporters Council Tredz BASFAgAKRSGrahamNebraskaCentralCornTireEquipmentProcessingInc. Center for Rural Affairs Dawson Tire & Wheel U.S. DultmeierArmy ExtremeEntrepreneurshipEnglerENBRIDGESalesAgribusinessProgramAg,Inc. Farmland Foods/Smithfield Green Plains, Inc. Heartland Builders Co Helena Agri-Enterprises LLC LandTrust, Inc. Midwest OrthmanNationwidePMSManufacturing Nebraska Association of Resources SoutheastWholestoneReinkePivotPerformanceDistrictsPlusLiquidsBioFarmsCommunityCollege Nebraska FFA Foundation 4-Star Sponsors ($5,000 - $9,999) 6 WAYS TO DONATE Make a Lasting Impact on Nebraska FFA Members Now and in the Future Your gifts of cash are a very valuable and necessary way to invest in Nebraska FFA members and their advisors, but have you ever considered alternative ways to support both now and in the future. Ways to Add Nebraska FFA Foundation to Your Will: Unrestricted Gift I give to the Nebraska FFA Foundation, a non-profit 501(c)(3) corporation, located in Lincoln, Nebraska, USA, the sum of $_________ (or ______% of my estate; or the property described herein) for its general Giftpurposes.forSpecific Purpose I give to the Nebraska FFA Foundation, a non-profit 501(c)(3) corporation, locating in Lincoln, Nebraska, USA, the sum of $_____ (or _____% of my estate; or the property described herein) to be used for ______________.
WAYS TO DONATE There are more ways to support Nebraska FFA members than by getting out your checkbook. Nebraska farmers and ranchers have a unique opportunity to support through gifts of commodities such as corn or cattle instead of making a cash contribution.
• General Fund - Supports local FFA chapters, agriculture classrooms and Supervised Agricultural Experiences through the Nebraska FFA Foundation Grant Program like Jacob Wood’s SAE grant.
Lance says, “I give to the Nebraska FFA Foundation to ensure that the next generation of students studying agriculture education and participating in FFA can have opportunities like I did when I was younger to develop their leadership skills, explore careers in the agriculture industry, and help grow their local communities. Giving through grain is an easy way to give to the Nebraska FFA Foundation.”
YouConnections.canhelptheNebraska
Gifting Ag Commodities a Great Option for Donors
The Nebraska FFA Foundation encourages producers to talk to their financial advisor or tax professional to determine if this is a smart decision for them.
Krystal, Lance and Ryker DonorsAtwaterto Nebraska FFA Foundation
When you’re ready to make your gift of grain or livestock, let the Nebraska FFA Foundation and your local grain elevator or sale barn know. Once the Nebraska FFA Foundation has sold the commodity, you will receive an acknowledgement of transfer. For the producers, no taxable income is reported because the commodity is transferred to the Nebraska FFA Foundation and sold. You are still able to deduct the entire cost of production.
Growing Leaders. Building Communities. Creating Career
• Blue Jackets. Bright Futures. - Donate $100 to help Nebraska FFA members prosper by providing a jacket. 7
FFA Foundation invest in agricultural education and FFA for over 12,000 FFA members and their advisors by growing leaders, building communities and creating career connections.
Lance and Krystal Atwater live near Ayr, in south Central Nebraska. Their family farm grows corn, soybeans, NonGMO white corn, as well as popcorn.
• I Believe in the Future of Ag - Designate your support to a local FFA chapter for their own programs.
It’s easy! Go to neffafoundation.org/support_us or return the enclosed envelope with your gift to donate today.
I Believe in the Future of Ag Campaign for 2022-23 Gifting Ag Commodities a Great Option for Donors WHAT YOU’LL FIND INSIDE 3-4 5 7 Nebraska RecipientsFoundationFFAGrant PO Box 94942 Lincoln, NEWebsite:68509-4942neffafoundation.org | Phone Number: 402-472-5224 | Address: PO Box 94942 Lincoln, NE 68509
