OFI 1805: The Natural Transition Into The FFA From 4H | FFA SAE Edition – Featured Freshman | Teah Vennes | Shields Valley High School FFA

Teah Vennes is an incoming sophomore at Shields Valley High School in Clyde Park, Montana and the newest of a Montana Ranching legacy that goes back to 1863!  Her ranch lies in a beautiful area to the east of the Bridger Mountains that I used to frequent when I was a student at Montana State University.  Teah is very involved in ranching, horses and cattle, but so much more.

In today's interview what really stood out is the relationship between the 4H and FFA.  They are not the same, and you don't need one to do the other.  However, the 4H certainly acts as a gateway into the FFA with similar activities such as livestock exhibitions.

With Teah being a 9th Grader at the time that I interviewed her, she is right in the midst of this transition.  She has been very active in the 4H, as well as the Girl Scouts, with some interesting projects that sparked ideas that she is carrying forward into the FFA.  One of those is raising rabbits and taking them to more municipal areas of Montana to give 4H, and now FFA, students ideas about how they can raise livestock even if they live in town.  The rabbits are also a great way to spark a conversation about agriculture, giving Teach the opportunity to dispel some myths about where our food comes from.

Teah has her eye on becoming a Montana State Officer in the future, and I think this is a great start.  But, as we learned in the episode, for right now she is concentrating on getting her driver's license as she was headed to driver's training as we finished this episode.