Building Kansas FFA’s future, one calf at a time
With trailers lining the streets outside of Heartland Regional Stockyards, a sense of excitement surrounded the inaugural special FFA sale, hosted at the selling facility in Plainville, Kansas, on Feb. 14 could be felt. When the gavel fell at the end of the day, 3,150 head sold as a part of the sale. It’s safe to say that livestock producers took advantage of the opportunity to support agriculture’s future leaders.
Lloyd Schneider, one of the principal owners of the Heartland Regional Stockyards, was the visionary behind the event and was pleased with the final result. “We are ecstatic with the number of producers that showed up to sell or buy cattle as well as those who showed up to support the event,” said Schneider. “Through this event we were able to support the work of the Kansas FFA and local FFA chapters in the area to provide the best opportunities possible for FFA members.”
Sellers and buyers could donate $1 per head at the sale to support the Kansas FFA Foundation and a local chapter of their choosing. Heartland Regional Stockyards matched 100% of all per-head donations for the sale.
Area FFA members from the Natoma, Logan, Palco, Phillipsburg, Plainville, Stockton, and Victoria chapters attended to help with the event. Members helped check in cattle, served the meal that was catered by RC Rubgrub BBQ, and enjoyed seeing the support of FFA from local livestock producers. Through the sale 13 local FFA chapters received donations to help provide experiences for students.
Phillipsburg FFA Advisor and Stockton native, Allison Dix, echoed her student’s excitement. “We greatly appreciate the support from the producers in our area,” said Dix. “It was neat to hear many of them excited to give because they remember the time they spent in FFA and the impact it had on them. This also allowed the students to interact with producers and learn how to interact with new people.”
Plans are already underway for the 2024 Special FFA Sale at Heartland Regional Stockyards with a tentative date of Feb. 13.
The Kansas FFA Foundation is grateful to the producers who showed up to support this cause. We know the future of the Kansas FFA is bright and that is due to the incredible support of Kansas FFA from agriculture producers in Northwest Kansas and across the state. This event was brought to us by a variety of sponsors who believe in the mission and vision of the Kansas FFA.
Gold sponsors for the event were 701x Livestock, Rob Paxton, Medicine Lodge; Heartland Regional Stockyards, Plainville; High Plains Farm Credit, Hays and Phillipsburg; Hubbard Feeds, Beloit; Kansasland Tire and Service, Hays; LJ Ranch LTD, Logan; Purple Wave Auction, Manhattan; TIMAC-AGRO USA, Tim Bouchey, Zurich.
Blue Sponsors of the sale were: American Family Insurance, Mary Jo Hafliger Agency, WaKeeney, and Downer Hull Agency, Plainville; Dix Angus Ranch, Cody Dix, Stockton; Goetz Trucking, Park; Kansas Land and Realty, Larry Riggs, Logan; Lazy H Ranch, Mark Rohr, Hays; Midland Marketing, Plainville; Sturgis Enterprises, Coffeyville; TWI Insurance, Cristi Werth, WaKeeney.
To learn more about the Kansas FFA Foundation, visit our website at ksffa.org/foundation/ and discover how you can support the future of agriculture.
To consign cattle at Heartland Regional Stockyards, contact their office at 785-688-4080 or Brandon Hamel at 785-434-6280.
