A happy gram to the FFA
It’s mid-February, which means it’s time for Valentine’s Day and National FFA Week. When I sat down to write this editorial, I thought of these two celebrations and the first thing that came to my mind was a “happy gram.” If you were a member of Oklahoma FFA and attended Oklahoma FFA Alumni Leadership Camp, you know exactly what I’m talking about.
For anyone else, happy grams are written on yellow notepads that are given out at alumni camps and used to write personal notes to others at the end of each session. Every attendee is given his or her bag of happy grams as he or she leaves the camp grounds.
I can still remember that feeling of driving out of the gate, just itching to read what my fellow campers and counselors wrote to me. After high school graduation, I became small group leader, but it was just as exciting to receive happy grams from the campers in my group.
Sometimes they are surface level, like, “It was great to meet you this week. Let’s stay in touch.” However, other happy grams are deep, moving and emotional, like, “You are my role model, and I aspire to be like you.” They are a way to tell others what they mean to you, express gratitude, the value of friendship and encourage one another. Happy grams are basically the FFA’s version of a valentine.
For the purposes of writing the piece, I asked my mother to dig up my old happy grams that have been stored at my childhood home for 10-plus years. I read through dozens of these notes that were written over eight summers of camp sessions.
I remembered most of the authors, and seeing those notes from friends I met through that camp reminded me of how many friends I gained through FFA and alumni camp in particular. It expanded my horizons to meet new people I would never have encountered without FFA contests, events and alumni camp.
I still had some blank happy grams notepads in my office from the last time I attended the camp, and I decided National FFA Week would be the perfect time to write a happy gram once again, only this time it would be from me to the FFA.
Dear FFA,
It’s been a long time since I zipped up my corduroy jacket, but I still think of it often with a smile. The friends I met, the accomplishments I made and lessons learned—even during the tough times—just keep giving as I get older. The time I spent in my FFA jacket is still among some of the most formative years of my life, and it shaped the person, employee and agricultural advocate I am today. Thank you for an FFA experience I will cherish forever with fondness, pride and nostalgia. I look forward to the day my children are old enough to wear the blue and gold, and I can watch their success and personal growth through the eyes of a proud alumna. Thank you, FFA.
National FFA Week is Feb. 15 to 22. To learn more about FFA, visit www.ffa.org.
Lacey Vilhauer can be reached at 620-227-1871 or [email protected].
