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Happy 80th Birthday, FFA Jacket!
Twas the night before Christmas (National FFA Convention), when all through the house (hotel), not a creature was stirring…… (wait…no. that doesn’t work either… who am I kidding, the kids are too excited to sleep!)
Come daylight, (probably as you’re reading this,) more than 50,000 FFA students from across America will be flocking to the Convention Center in Louisville, KY for the 86th National FFA Convention & Expo! All wearing the exact. same. thing. You know…those blue jackets!
If you aren’t familiar with the story behind these jackets, there’s a lot more to them than just corduroy and gold thread!
According to the National FFA Timeline and other sources, the jackets were originally created to be worn by the Fredericktown Band of the Fredericktown FFA Chapter, and soon the jackets caught on with other chapters. The Official FFA Jacket was adopted in 1933 as the Organization’s Official Dress and now serves as a symbol of professionalism and pride. For more on the history of the FFA Jacket, check out “Breaking Out The Blue Jackets”.
As a former FFA member, I know how proud these students are to represent their states and chapters by wearing this jacket. It shows their community involvement, leadership, and most importantly, their passion for agriculture.
And as I noticed while reading the Convention program booklet, this year the National FFA Organization is celebrating 80 years of the FFA jacket!
Wow! That is 80 years worth of students becoming great leaders through FFA, and based on the sheer number of students attending Convention this year, there are no signs of slowing down!
So Happy 80th Birthday, FFA Jacket! You sure do look good for your age! 🙂
Graphic by BoilermakerAg.com – please give proper photo credits if shared and do not crop out logo. Thank you – share away!
See you at Convention!
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Break out the Blue Jackets-It’s National FFA Week!
(Originally published on February 23, 2011, links updated Feb 23, 2015.)
It’s a big week in the Ag world! This week we are celebrating National FFA Week.
Each year, FFA chapters around the country celebrate National FFA Week. The week-long tradition began in 1947 when the National FFA Board of Directors designated the week of George Washington’s birthday as National FFA Week in recognition of his legacy as an agriculturist and farmer. The first National FFA Week was held in 1948. Today, FFA Week always runs Saturday to Saturday and encompasses Feb. 22, Washington’s birthday.*
A majority of people have heard about the FFA organization, but most people assume that it’s just about kids who grew up on a farm and are only concerned with beef cows, big tractors and blue jackets. But this is definitely not the case!
FFA, which used to stand for (Future Farmers of America), has come a long way over the years. The main purpose of FFA is to make a positive difference in the lives of students by developing their:
- Potential for premier leadership
- Personal growth
- Career success through agricultural education
By this point, you might be asking yourself, what IS the deal with those blue jackets they wear?
According to the National FFA Timeline and other sources, the jackets were originally created to be worn by the Fredericktown Band of the Fredericktown FFA Chapter, and soon the jackets caught on with other chapters. The Official FFA Jacket was adopted in 1933 as the Organization’s “Official Dress” and now serves as a symbol of professionalism and pride. If you want to read more about the jacket’s history, you can get it straight from the company who makes them- Universal Lettering Company.
To more about the history of FFA, check out their website: https://www.ffa.org/about/what-is-ffa/ffa-history
And in true FFA fashion, always remember to “Lead out Loud” this week with your “Blue Jackets, Gold Standards”—HAPPY FFA WEEK EVERYONE!
*Excerpt from http://www.ffa.org.
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