News from North Buncombe's FFA chapter

On Oct. 6-8, the North Buncombe Future Farmers of America chapter participated in the Madison County Fair. Members capitalized on an opportunity to show market lambs, dairy goats and beef heifers competitively.

Josie Johnson showed her Alpine Dairy Goat and finished second in her class. Natalie Ball, Caleb Gillespie, and Cole Gillespie participated in the beef heifer show will Ball winning her class. High school FFA members who showed market lambs included Taylor Bishop, Bailey Strub, Jennifer Lopresti, Jonathan Ball, Shane Sluder, Matthew Young, Justin Crain, Emily Sprinkle and Brynn Shaver. Middle school members were Jacob Burleson, Dylan Kiser, Brook Wheeler and Jarrett Meyers. Elementary school students Charlie Burleson, Caleb Gillespie and Cole Gillespie also participated. In Class 2, Strub placed first, Lopresti placed second and Crain placed third. In Class 3, Sprinkle placed first, Shaver placed second and Sluder placed fourth. In Class 4, Kiser placed first, and Meyers placed second. In Class 5, Charlie Burleson placed first, Bishop placed second and Young placed fourth. In Class 6, Jacob Burleson placed first. Jacob Burleson’s lamb was named Grand Champion Market Lamb and Wheeler was named Reserve Champion.

On Oct. 4, the North Buncombe High FFA Forestry Team went to Dupont Forest to compete in the 2011 Regional Forestry Career Development Event. The competition was segmented into four different parts, including tree identification, measuring for pulpwood cutting, measuring for saw log production and identification of tools used in the forestry industry. Students had to be able to identify 40 different species of trees, use a Biltmore stick for proper saw timber and pulp wood estimation and identify 40 different tools used in the forestry and natural resource industry.  The team placed 11^th out of 17 teams in the Western Region. Senior team members were Sluder, Bishop, Bill Barrett and Becca Pope. Julie Maxwell and Gaige Cassada participated as junior individuals. High scoring member of the senior team was Barrett, placing 11^th out of the entire region.