The Luverne-Adrian FFA Chapter recently attended the 85th National FFA Convention in Louisville, Kentucky, at the Kentucky State Fair grounds. Ten chapter members and adviser Dennis Moritz attended from Wednesday, Oct. 27, to Friday, Oct. 30. Attending were Tanner Baustian, Trey Baustian, Tyler Fick, Jacob Van Santen, Payton Fick, Riley Baker, Tommy Norman, Eli Bakken, Tyler Reisdorfer and Dylan Mente.
On the way to Louisville, the group visited Fair Oaks Dairy Farm in northwest Indiana. Fair Oaks milks 36,000 cows per day using a Rotary Parlor system. The group toured the working Dairy Information Center and got to see the seventy-two-cow rotary milking platform used in milking the cows.
The group also got to tour the Swine Information Center, which has an actual working swine operation. Sow farrowing and each step of the production process for market hogs was also demonstrated by glass for biosecurity purposes. The group had lunch at Fair Oaks and continued on to Louisville.
The group arrived at the hotel in Clarksville, Indiana, just across the Ohio River from Louisville. In the evening they attended a performance by country star Jake Owen at the KFC Yum Center.
The next morning was the opening session at Freedom Hall in the Kentucky Exposition Center on the fair grounds. The National FFA officers conducted the session.
FFA members listened to motivational speaker Rick Riggs from Texas, national FFA adviser Dr. Steven Brown, and the national FFA officer team. Participants could also attend the FFA Ag Career Show in the Exposition building where over 400 businesses were present. Members also attended the FFA shopping mall and the Jim Wand hypnotist show.
On Friday the group attended the Career Show, and the morning session featured the FFA Talent Show. In the afternoon the group traveled to Churchill Downs and toured the Kentucky Derby museum and the track tour.
The Luverne group left the convention late Friday afternoon and traveled all night, arriving back in Luverne at 8:30 a.m. Saturday morning.
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