During the busy holiday season – between making sugar cookies and decorating the tree – dedicate time to continue Living to Serve in your communities. Read on for service project ideas from fellow members across the country.
Arizona
Casa Grande FFA knows service! Each year, members pack more than 25 Thanksgiving Day meals, including chapter-raised birds, to donate to families.
Arkansas
For the winter holidays, FFA chapters in the state host food packaging work- shops to provide meals to families in need through- out their communities.
Connecticut
Northwestern FFA donated poinsettias to a local nursing home and produce to a local soup kitchen during the holiday season.
Delaware
During National FFA Week, Delaware FFA organized a statewide clothing drive for Code Purple shelters. The state association donated more than 4,000 items.
Florida
The Orange County FFA Federation created a virtual AgScape Room, an escape room-style experience through which students were educated about the agricultural industries across central Florida.
Hawaii
Waipahu FFA is helping Mālama Pu’uloa, a community stewardship organization, plant pili grass and clear invasive plants from Pearl Harbor.
Idaho
Each year, members of Deary FFA write letters to terminally ill children in hospitals to add cheer to their days.
Illinois
Byron FFA started a Christmas tree recycling program and collected nearly 100 trees from its community last year. The trees were made into mulch to be used in Byron city parks.
Indiana
Thanks to a generous partnership with Ceres Solutions, Indiana FFA members gathered during a statewide conference in 2020 to pack 100 Thanksgiving meals for families in need.
Kansas
Ellsworth FFA partnered with Wilson Lake Fisheries and the Hays Bass Anglers Association last December to collect Christmas trees and use them for fish habitat conservation.
Kentucky
Madisonville North Hopkins FFA made wooden toys on a computer numerical control (CNC) machine to donate as Christmas gifts for the Salvation Army’s Toys for Tots drive.
Louisiana
Crowley FFA has some paw-some members! In November, members washed dogs and raised donations for its local animal shelter. This was made possible by the generosity of Tractor Supply Company.
Maryland
The Boonsboro Middle School FFA Chapter’s talented members used their Living to Serve Grant to help build the Mark A. Smith Memorial Park in Sharpsburg, Md.
Michigan
The 2020-21 Michigan FFA theme was Seek to Serve, and the state officers lived out this theme by giving back to more than 8,600 members. This past winter, the officers wrote handwritten letters to members, created a Christmas podcast and published a “12 Days of Christmas” vlog so members could get to know them.
Minnesota
Randolph FFA participates in a community-wide service project called Adopt a Family, through which members purchase Christmas gifts for a family.
Missouri
Salisbury FFA “Beefed Up Christmas.” Chapter members used a grant to purchase beef promotion gift cards for their community food bank and made beef-theme holiday cards to go with the gift cards.
Montana
To give busy parents a break while kids are out of school during the holidays, Big Timber FFA members host a day care to entertain kids while engaging them in agriculture.
Nebraska
Gothenburg FFA members hosted a Thanksgiving coin drive for their local food pantry. The school system nearly doubled its goal of $1,600, raising more than $3,000.
Nevada
Smoky Valley FFA decorates boxes and fills them with snacks and cards to send to troops overseas.
New Hampshire
Each December, one of the state’s 12 chapters hosts a statewide holiday party. Attendees also engage in a service project, such as a pet food drive.
New Jersey
Cape May Tech FFA members organized a cleanup project for the marsh be- hind their school. Members removed trash from the marsh to help maintain a healthy environment.
North Carolina
Over the holiday season, West Rowan FFA helped feed 16 families through a Vegetable in a Box take- home book bag program.
Ohio
Felicity Franklin FFA hosts a donation drive for winter clothing. Members create a confidential store where students can “shop” for much-needed items.
Oklahoma
For the past seven years, the Oklahoma FFA Hunger Challenge has continued to grow. In 2021, 177 chapters helped those with food insecurities.
Oregon
To spread holiday cheer, the state officer team makes blankets and care baskets for families.
Pennsylvania
Garden Spot FFA hosted a blood drive and takeout lasagna meal fundraiser in memory of Tobias Leaman, an FFA alumnus who died of cancer. Proceeds were donated to the Ronald McDonald House Charities.
Puerto Rico
FFA members participated in a special event, Among FFA, where they played the online game Among Us and met other FFA members from across the island.
South Dakota
Montrose FFA gives back to the community through its Feed a Farmer event every harvest season. Members provide grab-and-go hamburgers, chips and desserts to farmers at a local Central Farmers Cooperative.
Tennessee
Tennessee FFA hosted a statewide service project called the Blessing Bag Program to gift supplies to people in need. FFA members collected items to fill 904 bags. Macon County FFA donated its bags to Macon Community Hospital staff members during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Texas
Texas FFA partnered with Blue Jeans Go Green to give old denim a new purpose. Members recycled thousands of blue jeans to turn into new and useful items, like UltraTouch Denim Insulation.
Utah
Farmers Feeding Utah is an organization that connects farmers and FFA chapters with those in need. Formed by the Utah Farm Bureau, the organization helped feed struggling families during the pandemic.
Virginia
During the holidays, Virginia FFA hosted a statewide meal packing event. State officers delivered meal kit supplies to chapters, and chapter members assembled the meal kits to distribute in their local communities.
Wisconsin
It was a Culver’s Christmas for Cuba City FFA. The chapter purchased $500 in Culver’s gift cards and gave them to sixth through 12th graders, asking them to pay it forward.
Wyoming
Buffalo FFA got into the holiday spirit with its Christmas Kid Shoppe. Community members donated items, and members hosted a shop for local children to pick up gifts for family or friends.
