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An open arms approach to membership

National FFA Officer candidate and Illinois state FFA President Sam Detweiler wasn’t your typical FFA member. In fact, Detwiler was more your typical teenage young man, hoping athletics would pay off in the long run. But, in an instant, that all changed. “In my Junior year, when I tore my ACL – that really put a halt to that plan,” he says.  “From there – it was a life changing moment for me.  I had to reevaluate my life and that’s when I found the FFA.”

He tells Brownfield he has an open arms approach to membership. “Anybody and everybody can join the FFA – as long as you have a passion for agriculture,” he says.  “Or even an interest.  You don’t necessarily have to grow up on a farm.  You can come from the suburbs of New York and still have that passion for agriculture and join the FFA.”

Detwiler made the first cut in the National FFA Officer selection process. And along with about 20 other FFA members and the rest of us – will have to wait until Saturday find out if he’s been slated as a national officer.