Fifteen students from Arcata FFA are going to travel to Indiana and Washington D.C. from October 31st to November 8th for the FFA National Convention.
They will be flying to Indianapolis on Halloween where the convention will be held. While there, in addition to the convention, they plan to go to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and “kiss the bricks” of the race track, attend the Cinch Rodeo (AKA the world’s toughest rodeo), watch an Indiana Pacers NBA game in a suite, and work together to escape from Escape Room U.S.A. These are just a few of the Indiana activities they have planned.
Then, on November 4th, they will hop on an airplane, repping Arcata FFA in their official dress, and fly to Washington D.C. In D.C., they get to explore the Smithsonian, check out all of the historic buildings mentioned in AHS history classes, tour the Capitol Building, and tour the White House.
It will be the first time attending a National Convention for all fifteen students going on the trip. Arcata FFA hasn’t gone to the National Convention since 2018.
“I’m excited to see what has changed at the National Convention. I’m really excited for this group of students who persevered and stayed involved in FFA to be rewarded with this opportunity,” FFA adviser Kelly Miller said.
In addition to their first time going to the National Convention, it will be everyone’s first time in D.C., other than senior Oliver Gomes.
“This summer, I went to all the Smithsonians, the capitol building, and went to the House floor,” Gomes said. “My favorite part of D.C. was definitely going on the Washington Monument. I liked being able to see the other monuments below, I thought that was really cool. I am very excited to go back. I love D.C. and I hope I get to see more.”
Miller wanted to keep the full itinerary of this trip as much of a surprise as possible. By reading this article, you will have learned just as much about this trip as the attending FFA members know.
“Traditionally, the Humboldt-Del Norte FFA section has traveled together. This year, all of the chapters are on their own. I opted to step out of the norm and plan a trip to Washington D.C. for the second half of our trip,” Miller said.
Arcata FFA members are beyond excited to be provided with this opportunity, especially ones who have never been to either place before.
“I think it will be a lot of fun going to D.C. and Indianapolis. I’m excited to meet a ton of people and explore the booths in the FFA mall and downtown Indianapolis. I’m looking forward to interacting with other chapters from other states,” junior Jace Wallace said.
Overall, the students are very excited about this opportunity and what they can bring back to the Arcata FFA chapter and Arcata High.
