Alexus Galassi-Duncan, Brooke Aguirre and Candace Stines at the National FFA Convention.

Infinite Potential. This was the theme for the 2010 National FFA Convention held in Indianapolis, Indiana. Alexus Galassi-Duncan, Candace Stines and myself, along with parents Kathleen Aguirre, Alishia Duncan and Advisor Mr. Joe Ricards set off early Wednesday morning to Indiana.

The National FFA Convention is held each year in October. While at the convention, FFA members from across the country participate in competitive events, educational tours, a career show, leadership workshops and listen to motivational speakers.

The opening session at the convention started with the National FFA President Levy Randolph challenging us to strive to reach our Infinite Potential.

He talked about how we have the choice to develop our potential or not. And that he hoped that by the time we left the convention we had learned new ways to do just that. Next, Dr. Case, the National FFA Advisor, encouraged us to "do what you love and love what you do." Dr. Case will be retiring this January after 26 years of service to the National FFA. We were then entertained by the talented FFA Band and Choir.

The keynote speaker for the opening session was Josh Shipp. Although his comic personality had us laughing at times, he touched on topics like facing diversity and seeing problems as opportunities. He asked us not to "be average" and pointed out to us that "you don't have to be perfect to make a difference, just willing to make a difference." We left the session energized and excited about the rest of the convention.

Next on our list was the Career Show with more than 1300 booths representing colleges, agriculture related companies and career opportunities. The Career Show took several hours to walk through, although we could have easily spent all day there we had a workshop to attend that afternoon. The workshop was entitled "Leaping Into the Driver's Seat of Your Life".

We learned the three "C's" to success, Commitment, Communication, and Collaboration. Later that evening we attended the Three Hills Outlaw Rodeo at the Indiana State Fairgrounds.

We were entertained by bull riders and clowns as they showed off their talents. Our day was not yet done until we attended the Hypnotist show of Dr. Jim Wand. Everyone enjoyed watching the volunteer advisors being hypnotized. Friday was our educational tour day. With map quest directions in hand, we started off in search of Hunter's Honey Farm. It didn't take long to get out of the city and be surrounded by corn fields.

Hunter's Honey Farm is a family owned business which was started in 1910, they have anywhere from 500 to 800 bee hives at a time. The tour showed us everything from the bees to harvesting the honey. We even got to bottle some honey to take home. After the honey farm, we headed towards Keeton's Elk Farm. As we drove past barns, corn fields and cows we came across Fillmore, Indiana. Our elation quickly turned to disgust as we discovered that Fillmore, Indiana's mascot was the cardinal and they proudly display it on their water tower! When we arrived at Keeton's Elk Farm we started the tour by tasting elk meat, which we all enjoyed. The farm has about 200 elk which included Cracker Jack who is famous for shedding some of the largest antlers in the world. We learned a lot about elk and the elk industry. As we drove back to Indianapolis, we drove through a red covered bridge and stopped on the side of the road to watch corn being harvested. Saturday we attend a workshop sponsored by Purdue University and lead by Nessie Early, a past California State Officer and past National Officer. The workshop was called "Walk the Talk." She talked about what values are and where an individual's values come from. We learned how our personal values determine our actions and decisions. With workshops finished, it was off to the National FFA Center. We were able to view FFA memorabilia, the past National FFA Officer Gallery and the Hall of Achievements. As we walked outside in the garden, we looked at the brick with the names of chapters from around the country.

Candace, Alexus and I hope to be able to have a brick placed at the Center to represent Fillmore FFA. As we headed for the airport, I thought about all we had learned and experienced while at the Convention. I hope next year Fillmore FFA can return with more students, but in the meantime, I'm on my way to reaching my Infinite Potential.