Feb. 15 -- We catch up with a pair of Austin FFAers who are continuing to enjoy the benefits of what the organization has to offer
Two years ago, Austin High School students Ele Struck and Nathan Martinson were at the beginning of their FFA journey as freshman.
For Struck, who spent time with the Glenville-Emmons FFA program, it was a return to the fold. For Martinson it represented first steps into a club dedicated to enhancing agricultural education and careers.
Now they are both juniors at Austin High School and are continuing that journey with the same enthusiasm that brought them into the FFA program.
"I think it's prepared me, especially if I have to speak to customers," Martinson said, who is looking at a career in either agronomy or plant pathology. "Just that knowledge of what we with that aspect in the field."
For Struck, FFA has been a pathway into a larger world, opening doors for her to walk through that she hadn't considered before.
In essence it's opening up new pathways forward.
"I think it's helping me by getting me out doing different things that I probably wouldn't have done during my freshman year," she said. "It's giving me more opportunities to keep participating."
Nathan Martinson
While not necessarily a farm kid in the traditional sense, Martinson is nevertheless deeply ingrained in agriculture.
He's been involved and remains involved in 4-H and added FFA on top of that to further enhance his own traits. During that time he's shown cattle through his cousin's farm at both the Mower County Fair and the State Fair, but he's also involved in other areas that a farm might make use of.
These are things like welding, concrete and masonry, plumbing and more.
Part of what draws him is the competitive aspects, which may not be a lot things that people think about. While in FFA, teams of students compete in these various areas and by doing so it helps open up an understanding that, again, many may not think about.
"There's quite a bit of math with everything we do," Martinson said, referring in this case specifically to welding. "People don't think about the prep work, making sure everything is working."
And that's part of the overall appeal of FFA for Martinson and encompasses much of what's appealing about FFA.
But it's also about that large world of agriculture. Martinson is currently taking PTSO classes at Riverland with the hope that it will lead him to a career in the fields doing work with his hands.
This summer he landed an internship in crop consulting with Dan Gerlach to do just that.
"I think individually, it's just helped me get out of my comfort zone and be more involved, meeting new people and getting to know everything that FFA has to offer," Martinson said, adding it's helped others grow as well. "It's just not an ag thing. There have been a couple of members that didn't have a wink of ag experience and they've done amazing in our ag programs."
"You don't have to live on a farm," he continued. "If you want a good experience and fun activity, you will have so much fun with it.
Ele Struck
When Struck was a freshman, she had a clear vision that included a career in pediatric nursing while encompassing those benefits learned from life on a farm.
That dream hasn't changed and in large part that journey includes her time spent in FFA.
"I was wanting to make a difference and gain those leadership opportunities," she said.
That initial dream remains, with visions that the family she wants to be with on a farm take part in the same things she's doing now.
That includes eventually children that take part in both F-H and FFA like she has, because Struck knows the opportunities that kind of involvement can lead to.
And while a pediatric nursing career and a life lived on a farm might seem on opposite ends of the spectrum, Struck sees her opportunities now affording her a chance to bring those worlds together.
On her family's farm, Struck is the one that gives shots to the animals when needed, giving her an understanding of how to deliver the medications she's injecting.
It also gives her a real-life experience of communicating with veterinarians about these kinds of medications.
"It's gotten me practice," she said. "This is the needle, this is where I'm placing it."
Of course, a main part of all of this that can be of immense worth in the future is building connections and making herself a better individual.
"It's me getting out there into the world," Struck said. "It's made me more talkative. I love to talk about anything related to agriculture."
That has extended to the classroom as well, where she's been able to contribute from a different vantage point in classes like history where she can add an ag context to class discussions.
It's also given her a perspective of what's possible in FFA, something she hopes others will consider when they get the opportunity.
It's a broader world with several different avenues.
It's not just about ag," she said. "If you want go into mechanics then you're looking at mechanical things."