This week is FFA Week in Boyle County
Published 8:22 am Thursday, February 23, 2017
- Ben Kleppinger/ben.kleppinger@amnews.com Boyle County Judge-Executive Harold McKinney, far right, and Boyle County Clerk Trille Bottom, far left, pose for a photo with members of Boyle County FFA from left, Tristan Harp, Blake Carpenter, Michaela Carpenter, Reporter Cheyanne Maupin, Treasurer Karli Graves and President Cori Quesenberry.
By BEN KLEPPINGER
ben.kleppinger@amnews.com
Members of Boyle County FFA visited the county courthouse Tuesday, as Judge-Executive Harold McKinney declared Feb. 18-25 to be “FFA Week.”
The proclamation signed by McKinney commends FFA for helping “provide a strong foundation for the youth of America and the future of food,” for promoting “premier leadership, personal growth and career success among its members,” and for helping to “ensure a steady supply of young professional(s) to meet the growing needs in the science, business and technology of agriculture,” among other reasons.
Ben Kleppinger/ben.kleppinger@amnews.com
Boyle County Judge-Executive Harold McKinney, far right, and Boyle County Clerk Trille Bottom, far left, pose for a photo with members of Boyle County FFA from left, Tristan Harp, Blake Carpenter, Michaela Carpenter, Reporter Cheyanne Maupin, Treasurer Karli Graves and President Cori Quesenberry.
The students and FFA leaders took the opportunity to promote Kentucky’s farm tag program that raises funds for FFA, 4-H and the Kentucky Proud agricultural program.
During the month of March, when farm tags are due to be renewed, an optional $10 is added to each renewal in the Boyle County Clerk’s office, Clerk Trille Bottom explained.
The money collected from those $10 donations is split between local FFA, 4-H and Kentucky Proud organizations.
“If they don’t want to pay it, then they would have to opt out,” Bottom said, noting that the donations are very popular in Boyle County. “Our county is such an agricultural-base county that people realize the need to go ahead and give that extra $10 because it goes back to these young people right here and that’s a very important thing.”
Boyle County FFA Advisor Toni Myers said the money paid in Boyle County comes back to the Boyle and Kentucky School for the Deaf FFA chapters, as well as Boyle County 4-H.
“It’s a sizable amount,” she said of the money FFA gets each year. “We’re going to put it toward a leadership conference we’re going to next summer.”
Bottom said she’s been running the donation program in Boyle for around eight years and it’s really starting to take off statewide.
“(Agriculture) Commissioner (Ryan) Quarles came to our county clerk meeting last week and he said that the overall donations have increased dramatically from the year before,” Bottom said. “So I think all the county clerks are finally getting on board.”
