BISMARCK — What color do you bleed? Where does your passion lay in organizations you are involved in, or have been involved in, in your life? The national FFA is celebrating National FFA Week, the biggest youth student organization in the United States.
It’s that FFA background that has helped me develop the skills and the drive to be able to be where I’m at today, and help lead an organization as great as NDFB.
I have people ask me, what is my motivation to wanting to put in that time, the extra required skills that you need to learn to be a spokesman, to be out front, to be attending meetings, to help direct the vision of an organization such as NDFB. And I go back to the motto of the FFA: “Learning to do. Doing to learn. Earning to live. Living to serve.” With the last part being the part that comes through in people that take the opportunity in their adult lives to give back to an industry, an organization, a community, their state, their nation, to make things better.
The other question I get asked is, “What does your family think about this? You’re gone all the time.” Well, I’m pretty fortunate in my family. I was chapter president. My wife was chapter president. And my daughter was chapter president. And let’s not leave out my youngest daughter who is now an active FFA member in the local Garrison chapter. To say we bleed blue and gold is an understatement. To say that we understand that living to serve is not an understatement.
That development that happened through an organization such as the FFA helped guide our family in our endeavors for our community, our state and our nation. And I’m proud to be president of NDFB because of the skills I learned in the FFA.
Congratulations North Dakota FFA and enjoy national FFA Week
For questions or comments, please contact Dawn Smith-Pfeifer.
— Daryl Lies, North Dakota Farm Bureau President
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