INDIANAPOLIS – Luke Jennings, a former member of the Felicity-Franklin FFA chapter in Ohio, was elected national secretary during the final session of the 97th National FFA Convention & Expo in Indianapolis.

“My goal is to be present and give 110 percent of myself in everything that I do,” Jennings said. “We need to be aware of all those around us. I want to be of service to others and hear their stories. We all have a story to tell.”

Jennings, too, had a story to tell, one that he kept to himself until just recently. He shared his story withothers during his retiring address as the Ohio FFA president earlier this year. He told his audience that he was diagnosed with brain cancer when he was a senior in high school, having to undergo a stressful few months of appointments and surgery.

While faced with this uncertain future, Jennings remained positive and sought out new leadership roles in the Ohio FFA, eventually serving as the state vice president and president after receiving his high school diploma. Jennings said he lives by a quote his mother often says: ‘Life is 10 percent what happens to you and 90 percent of how you react to it.’

Jennings’ journey began with the Felicity-Franklin FFA chapter in the fall of 2017, at the start of his 8th-grade year.

“It was natural for me to join FFA as I come from a long line of FFA members in my family,” he said. Jennings grew up on a small livestock farm of beef cattle and swine.

“My mother was an ag educator and FFA adviser, so I’ve seen so many individuals’ lives changed by the blue jacket. It wasn’t about if I was going to join FFA, it was more so counting down the years ’til I could get a blue jacket of my own.”

His first few years of FFA were like most other kids. They focused on personal development such as honing leadership abilities by serving as a chapter officer, competing in contests and growing agricultural knowledge through coursework and hands-on experiences.

Not until the end of high school did Jennings feel a desire to run for state office. After graduating high school in 2022, he was chosen to serve as the state vice president at large. A year later, Jennings continued his leadership journey when he was appointed as Ohio’s FFA state president for 2023-24.

“Luke is one of those individuals who is a born leader,” said Katy Endsley, program manager for Ohio FFA. “He has such determination and perseverance.”

In his first year as a state officer, Endsley saw Jennings connect with numerous FFA members.

“When he was appointed president, he was able to take that leadership to the next level, and not only connect with members across the state but also lead a team of individuals,” Endsley said.

Throughout his time in high school and FFA, Jennings underwent a stressful medical journey, one that would not define his life, but rather, teach him how to live.

It all began one in the fall of his senior year when Jennings and his sister took a trip to Louisville, Ky., for the North American International Livestock Exposition show. They were traveling from Ohio to Kentucky in a camper to show heifers at the annual event when the trip took a turn for the worse.

Before 2021, Jennings had never had any major health issues. But when his sister found him seizing in his sleep, she quickly called an ambulance.

Hospital blood tests showed that his blood sugar had crashed, which caused a short seizure. Jennings opted to have an MRI done to check the condition of his brain. In December 2021, he learned he had a small benign brain tumor nestled in the right frontal lobe of his brain.

“At some point over Christmas break, I remember letting go of that fear and realizing that I could either let the fear control me or I could realize that there’s nothing I can do about it right now in this moment today, but whatever is next, we’ll handle that one step at a time,” Jennings said.

Jennings had the tumor successfully removed in January 2022 at the Arthur G. James Cancer Hospital in Columbus, Ohio.

Today, Jennings still has a small, grade-one benign brain tumor that is unlikely to spread to other parts of the brain. Medical professionals do not expect the tumor to come back.

Endsley knew about Jennings’ diagnosis before he became a state officer, because of her connections to his family. But most people who worked with Jennings were not aware of his medical journey. Jennings didn’t want to alarm those around him.

“The interesting thing about Luke is he never really talked about it. It’s not something he dwelled upon,” Endsley said.

To this day he will answer questions about his brush with cancer, but he said he prefers to focus on others around him.

“I need to connect with other people,” Jennings said. “To me it’s about growth, about finding individuals who will provide me with skills and resources. I need to have a toolbox full of opportunities that I can go through.”

As Endsley said, “Luke puts others first.”

Jennings said, “I’m excited to meet students and meet teachers and be boots on the ground for our organization. What matters the most to me is the emblem and the rows of blue corduroy that unite us, that no matter what the individual words on our jackets say, we can be one.”