Moapa Valley FFA Chapter Hosts Annual Banquet

By IAIN MCMURRAY

The Progress

The Moapa Valley FFA Chapter held its annual banquet on Monday, May 8, installing new officers for the upcoming year and recognizing students who performed especially well in their FFA projects throughout the past school year.

The chapter gave special recognition to graduating senior officers and reviewed FFA milestones. The chapter also honored many FFA members and members of the community who made significant contributions to the chapter and supported FFA throughout the year.

After a potluck dinner for more than 150 people present, the students who were particularly successful with their Supervised Agricultural Experiences this year were presented with proficiency awards. Recipients included Allie Nelson for Beef Entrepreneurship and McKenna Melvin in Agricultural Communication. Those who completed a research project this year were also recognized in the ceremony, including Echo Marie Jake and Isaac Thompson.

The banquet featured a keynote address from former State Reporter Sonny Lopez. Lopez talked about why it is important to stay true to onesself and how to stay positive in an increasingly gloomy world.

Many members of the community who had made contributions to the chapter were thanked and given tokens of appreciation from the chapter. Honorary memberships were also awarded to a few local residents who had been supportive of FFA for several years. This honor came complete with a beautiful plaque. Honorary membership was extended to Sean and Maggie McMurray, Doug and Sarah Webber, Charlie De La Paz, Josh Melvin, Reed and Marcie Werner, Ryan and Kristen Yardley, Weston and Shelly Adams, and Rhonda Rowley.

The retiring senior officers recognized their parents as part of their retiring ceremony. In an emotional moment, each one was given the chance, in a short pre-recorded video, to thank their parents and others who had helped them through the years as they retired their FFA jackets for the last time.

The most awaited moment of the evening was the announcement of the new officers for the upcoming 2023-2024 school year. This year, the chapter installed two separate teams of officers: a senior team for older members of the chapter, and a greenhand team for newer members.

The new senior team consists of Allie Nelson, President; Lauren Williams, Vice President; Ellie Webber, Secretary; Dianne Leavitt, Treasurer; Elise Dalley, Reporter; Chey Madrigal, Sentinel; Teagen Jenson, Historian; Isaac Thompson, Parliamentarian; Hannah Fulmer, Social Media Manager; and Nadia Shakespear, Student Advisor.

The greenhand team, which is exclusively made up of those who will be sophomores next year, consists of Fallon Yardley, President; Janet Werner, Vice President; Addy Sherwood, Secretary; Joshua Linford, Treasurer; Nateya Rider, Reporter; Hannah Rowley, Sentinel; Alex Vargas, Historian; and Reaya O’Hara, Parliamentarian.

The retiring officer team was very happy with how the year went. “This year was a great success,” said Andi Webber. “I’m excited to see where the new officer teams will go!”

FFA Advisor Lacey Tom was pleased with how the event turned out. “Banquet went so well this year,” she said. “It was very well attended by supporters, family, and FFA members alike. We elected two new teams of officers and I’m excited to see these young people grow within our chapter. We’ve had a great year and I’m very excited to see where we go from here!”