FFA Delegates Put Living to Serve Into Action

While thousands gather in Indianapolis, Ind., for the 99th National FFA Convention & Expo, 42 FFA delegates got an early start by trading their blue jackets for work gloves at historic Maplelawn Farmstead. 

During the Delegate Day of Service, members tackled restoration projects, including clearing garden beds, sweeping barns, restoring raspberry beds and preparing the pumpkin patch for next year’s growing season.

For Maplelawn volunteer Mary Robbins-Nierste, the extra hands made a difference. 

 “It’s a lifesaver,” Robbins-Nierste says. “We wouldn’t be able to run this place [without them]. We have an aging board group.” 

The farmstead preserves Indiana’s agricultural history by connecting visitors to rural life during the 1930s Great Depression era. 

For Utah FFA delegate Ava Hartman, volunteering reflects agriculture’s foundation. 

“Service is a basis of agriculture,” Hartman says. “Agriculture is cultivating especially food for other people. It’s a service for others.” 

Beyond their work at Maplelawn, delegates also serve the National FFA Organization by participating in committees that help shape its future. 

South Carolina FFA State Vice President Cale Peachey said both responsibilities demonstrate different forms of service.

“When we’re out here serving, it sets the precedence and it sets the idea that what we’re doing is good so that the students around us want to engage in the agriculture opportunities that we’re able to lay out for them,” Peachey says.

The experience also allowed delegates from different states to build connections while making a lasting impact. 

For Maplelawn’s volunteers, the FFA members’ positive attitudes were just as meaningful as their work. 

From preserving agricultural history to shaping its future, these delegates demonstrated that living to serve extends far beyond the final line of the FFA motto.