By Melissa Wagoner
Kili Kato remembers attending the Silverton High School FFA’s annual Food for America event when she was in elementary school. “It was my favorite part of the year because I got to see all the animals,”
she smiled.
Now in her sophomore year of high school, Kato herself is a member of the FFA as well as of the leadership class that organizes the Food for America event.
“Our whole class is the committee,” she explained. “I’ve learned that for something that seems pretty easy, there’s a lot of planning that goes into it.”
Despite the rain, this year’s Food for America took place on Oct. 5 with an estimated 400 to 600 elementary-aged students in attendance. Stations ranged from fun – a hay maze, art projects and an egg race – to the more practical – lessons in animal care, tractor safety and common agricultural materials.
“We have 14 different stations,” Scott Towery, the FFA advisor in charge of the event said. “It gives the high school kids a chance to share their knowledge.”
It was also a chance for Towery and the rest of the FFA department to cultivate interest in the FFA organization as the new school year kicks off.
“It’s kind of our high at the beginning of the year,” Towery explained. “I think it’s pretty important.”
Kato – although only in her second year as an FFA member – is glad she took the initiative to join the group.
“I like everything – the whole community service,” she professed. That we get to bring ‘Ag’ to people who may not know about it, but also the food drives and
road cleanups.”
She additionally enjoys sharing her own agricultural knowledge with younger students in the hopes of cultivating a lifelong interest in Ag.
“I love seeing the kids and seeing them learning about all the animals in agriculture,” she enthused.
