11 teens in blue jackets in front of warehouse
East Knox FFA members at the National FFA Convention outside of Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis. (L to R) Braxton Lahmon, Will Stokes, Aiden Kapper, Hunter Schrienk, Peyton Harris, Dylan Springer, Mackenzie Wilson, Hayden Baker, Kylie Griffith, and Braylon Evans. Credit: East Knox FFA

HOWARD — Eleven members of the East Knox FFA recently attended the 97th annual National FFA Convention held Oct. 23 to 26 at Lucas Oil Stadium, Indianapolis Convention Center, and Gainbridge Fieldhouse in downtown Indianapolis.

The youngsters attended sessions, received awards, listened to motivational speakers, attended workshops, and took tours.  

The opening session was highlighted by the National FFA Officers Grant Norfleet, Carter Howell, and Kanyon Huntington, who chaired the session.

The keynote speaker was Kevin Wanzer who has spoken in front of well over 3,000 audiences all over the world including all 50 states in the U.S., plus Canada, China, Europe and Singapore.

He has been noted nationally as one of the most effective and entertaining speakers for corporations, organizations, schools, colleges and to audiences of adults who work with and empower the lives of youth.

His programs encourage audiences to discover their hidden passions, embrace diversity and celebrate the laughter in us all. 

The National FFA Officers each gave their retiring addresses at various sessions. The six new 2024-2025 National Officers were announced at the final session on Oct. 26 with Thaddeus Bergschneider from Illinois elected as National President and Luke Jennings from Felicity Franklin FFA in Ohio elected as the National Secretary.

In addition to attending convention sessions and the trade show, the members attended the Megan Moroney concert at the Gainbridge Fieldhouse in downtown Indianapolis.

The East Knox FFA state winning Milk Quality & Products team competed Thursday at the Indiana State Fairgrounds and attended their awards ceremony on Friday at the Indiana Convention Center where they learned that they placed 15th in the nation. 

The National FFA Convention had over 69,000 FFA members, parents, and guests in attendance marking the eleventh time of breaking the 60,000 attendance mark.

The National FFA Convention provides FFA members the opportunity to reach the goals of the National FFA Mission Statement which is to provide premier leadership, personal growth, and career success through agricultural education.