The Indiana FFA Association named its 2024 State Star Finalists as a part of its preparation for the 95th Indiana FFA State Convention.
After submitting an application, FFA members participated in a personal interview. Finalists will now undergo a site visit to determine which members will be deemed State Stars in their respective categories.
Members determined as Star Finalists are interviewed for a chance to be named as a State Star in these four prestigious award areas: Star Farmer, Star in Agricultural Placement, Star in Agribusiness and Star in Agriscience. Those determined as State Stars in each of the categories will receive a cash award for $250.
The results will be announced on June 19, 2024 at 7 p.m. during the 95th Indiana State FFA Convention at Purdue University.
Below are the names, chapter, and SAE information of each finalist.
Finalists in Agricultural Placement
Tatym Green, Hamilton Heights FFA: Tatym works at TGTG Boer Goat Production, while also managing her own herd of 30 does and 3 bucks. Her work responsibilities include feeding, record keeping, breeding, and running social media for sales. Due to her experiences, she is now able to run operations on her own.
Camille Thopy, Southwestern (Shelby County) FFA: Camille’s SAE consists of working at Barnyard Pals Mobile Petting Zoo. She assists with taking the petting zoo to local fairs, festivals, and other events throughout the state while also ensuring safety during the events. Camille is passionate about educating others about agriculture and the various animal species that are part of the petting zoo’s operation.
Josie Kelsay, Whiteland FFA: Josie works as a Farm Tour Assistant at Kelsay Farms where she is responsible for various duties including setting up and tearing down activities for seasonal events, welcoming visitors to the farm and leading tours, driving the “Moo Choo” children’s train, preparing food in the concession stand, assisting with map development of the corn maze, organizing pumpkin sales, and overall appearance of the farm. She has developed her communication and teamwork skills through her roles on the farm.
Jackson Beier, Jasper FFA: Jackson works for the Jasper Vet Clinic, checking in patients and helping as needed. He has had the opportunity to shadow the veterinarians, assist with surgeries, vaccinations, and diagnosing sick animals. Jackson’s greatest challenge is to triage the patients and assess the urgency of the patient’s needs, including the type of treatment required.
Finalists in Agriscience
Blaine Wagner, North Decatur FFA: Blaine conducted 3 agriscience projects during his career. Two of his projects studied the effects of COVID-19 on agility dog fitness and quality of training. The third project studied how landowners can increase carbon levels in the soil as a way to increase water retention capabilities, drainage, and storage of nutrients with their potential for income in the form of carbon credits. Blaine plans to continue his agricultural research after college.
Finalists in Agribusiness
Grant Lake, Central Noble FFA: Grant is the owner-operator of Lakes Lube and Tune, a repair and maintenance business for outdoor power equipment. He has built up a customer base of 70 people while also buying, repairing, and selling used equipment for profit.
Alexa Newby, South Putnam FFA: Alexa started Alie’s Annuals in 2021 to fulfill her love for the marketing and floriculture industries. Alexa travels to an Amish farm where she purchases mums at wholesale, creates a digital flier to market her product, and then sells the mums to the local community. She has created a care sheet with instructions on how to provide care for the mums she sells, as well as keeping records of all orders and sorting the flowers into groups for buyers.
Abigaile Wolfe, Indiana Ag & Tech FFA: Abigaile is the owner-operator of The Barn Babysitter, a business offering farm care for local clients. She has built a relationship with more than 30 clients, providing care for a range of livestock and pets. Her SAE has allowed her to develop skills in public relations, communication, and critical thinking.
Finalists for Farmer
Owen Knight, North Miami FFA: Owen’s love for agriculture has centered around his passion for raising cattle. He purchases three to five day old Holstein bull calves and provides diligent care as he feeds them to 550 pounds. Owen manages all aspects of his operation to make sure the calves receive appropriate medical care before being ready for a feedlot or grass pasture before resale.
Cale Williams, Terre Haute South FFA: Cale purchased his first gilt in 2016 and has worked to ensure genetic excellence, biosecurity, and efficiency in his operation ever since. He currently owns 15 purebred sows spanning five different breeds. Cale credits the time spent learning from his family’s farm as the third generation to helping instill passion for swine production.
Isaac Pohl, Gibson Southern FFA: Isaac began his SAE in 2019 due to his love for horticulture and the joy that plants bring to the lives of others. After his cousin was diagnosed with cancer, Isaac started Pohl’s Greenhouse in his honor. He began producing and selling vegetable seedlings and flowers with his first public sale coming in 2022. Isaac has cultivated 23 different species of plant and flowers, managing every aspect of the greenhouse and it’s products.
Addie Gauck, North Decatur FFA: Addie started her SAE by joining her family’s business, Gauck Meats. After seeing the potential to grow the company’s impact, Addie started to purchase feeder pigs to raise and eventually butcher to provide fresh pork for the community. She also started raising meat chickens to process and sell. As of 2023, Addie has raised 23 pigs and 400 meat chickens, along with 100 laying hens. Her biggest challenge has been the growing pains from increasing to such a high rate of production which caused her to be creative by raising pigs at various ages so she could butcher on different dates, allowing for less freezer space.
Source: Indiana FFA Association
