hese FFA members, officers, and students helped to pack the Holiday Boxes for the Trinity Backpack Program for families in need at Mark Thomas Company. It is a joyful experience to do something for others! A total of 11 students along with advisors, Mrs. Hoffmann, Mrs. Wagelie, and Ms. Emmett, helped with the packing. Pictured l to r – Alex Joramo, Jacob Mellen, Maddi Helget, Carmen Lendt, Kamille Capacia, Leisha Martinez, Morgan Hoffmann, Daniel Armstrong, Adam Johnson, and Jose Castorena.
Katelyn Capacia, Chapter Historian, helped with the packing of the Birthday Boxes along with several other FFA Officers.
By: Leisha Martinez, Chapter Reporter
Some know this line – Living to Serve – as the last in the FFA Motto. For Sleepy Eye FFA members, service may be one of the first words they think of when they think of what FFA is all about.
This summer, the Sleepy Eye FFA chapter applied for a National FFA year-long living grant for $3000 in order to help with the holiday boxes which include food bags each week and Holiday Gift Boxes. With the generosity of Trinity, Central Region Cooperative, Land O Lakes, Tractor Supply Company, Cargill, CoBank, Dominos, and Elanco, the grant became a reality for the Sleepy Eye FFA Chapter
The Backpack program is where students at risk for hunger receive bags of food for the weekend with a family meal – main dishes, fruit, vegetables, and a snack. The FFA grant money is being used to help with several extensions of the Backpack Food Program including: Birthday Boxes for each elementary participant, Fruit and Snacks in each Food Bag, Personal Care Item Pantry for Grades 5-8, Personal Care Items for the Holiday Boxes, and Food Pantry for Grades 7-8.
The Holiday Boxes for the families include: 8 meals and some extra snacks and goodies for the long holiday break as well as a gift certificate for meat and produce at the local grocery store, ornaments, family game/puzzle, personal care items (shampoo, body wash, deodorant, lotion, toothpaste, toothbrush).
20 of our members have been helping with this project in many ways. Whether it is packing the meals at Mark Thomas, making the Birthday Boxes, or shopping for the items, our members are excited to help out. Advisor, Mrs. Hoffmann, and Morgan Hoffmann, the Chapter President, along with members Alexis Garza and Jorden Niebuhr, shopped for the personal care items that went into the holiday boxes for the families. New this year was a special family gift of a game/puzzle and an ornament.
The FFA is thrilled to be a part of this amazing project that the Trinity church conducts, along with numerous community partners, providing food to students all school year long.
Happy Holiday cards have been made by the members and will be given to all residents at the local nursing homes and Countryside along with ornaments the FFA chapter purchased. Members also wrote a special note to Veterans and sent cards to the VA Hospital in Minneapolis as another way to serve this year.
Receiving the Living to Serve grant and helping with these projects were a great way for our members to contribute to the community and build relationships while doing so! One of the FFA members favorite things to do is participate in service projects. We are always trying to find ways to help out in the community and spread a little holiday cheer!