TRAFALGAR, Ind. – Only about 1 percent of the nation’s population is actively enlisted to serve in one of the country’s Armed Forces at any given time. Interestingly, only about 1 percent of the nation’s population is actively engaged as a farmer, producing the food required by our country and the rest of the world. Those two roles of service and sacrifice collided this month when more than 200 local FFA chapter members gathered for the annual FFA Foundations In Reaching Excellence (FIRE) Conference.

The FIRE Conference takes place over two weekends in November each year, and focuses on leadership development workshops and activities. The conference also places high value on a coordinated service project. The theme for 2022 was Top Gun, and students from all over Indiana gathered in Trafalgar at the state camp. This year, the project was to pack snacks and other convenience items into dozens of care packages bound for our country’s active duty military personnel stationed around the world.

“This event is always a highlight among our annual sponsorships at Ceres,” said Laurel Mann, of Ceres Solutions, as she addressed the students before the service activity began. “Like you, our company believes in giving back, and we’re pleased to partner with FFA students as they show appreciation for the members of our Armed Forces with this project.”

As one of the state’s largest farmer-owned cooperatives, Ceres Solutions partners financially and donates volunteer hours within FFA at the state level and local chapter level. Ceres is an enthusiastic supporter of FFA’s mission to help Indiana students grow premiere leadership skills and build potential for future career success.

The FIRE Conference is open to any Indiana high school junior and senior FFA member. Participation helps older FFA members learn to take their leadership abilities to the next level for their local chapters, become mentors for younger members, and create a vision for themselves after their high school career is finished. The Indiana FFA is the largest career and technical student organization in Indiana with more than 12,000 members as part of 209 local FFA chapters across the state.