FFA New Horizons

Congressman Bill Sarpalius
Twenty
years ago I was assigned to
write the story about then Texas
state president Bill SarpaHus. This
is a follow up to that story.
Today Sarpalius is a member of the
Congress of the United States serving the
13th District in the panhandle area of
Texas.
What drove him then, drives him now.
I believe it is self-determination. It is even
spelled out on a beautiful ,
framed poster
in his office in the Longworth Building in
Washington, D.C. as follows:
To achieve all that is
possible
We must attempt the
impossible.
To be as much as we
can be
We must dream of being
more.
He asserted that no niatier what the
circumstances or what a person "seems to
be." others can never know ii e : Jtermina-
tion that is inside the man ro -ucceed,
make it, get ahead.
My interview with the Cong;;i:;nian
FFA Means
Winning
U.S. Congressman
Shares First-Hand How
the Organization Can
Help You Win
By Jack Pitzer
was on the day he was heading back to
Texas for Christmas. He shared many
thoughts to pass on to up-and-coming
FFA leaders. But his major point to them
was "let FFA help you get started." Activ-
ity and involvement at the chapter level is
a well-proven way to start life.
Sarpalius' background is an unusual
one which he doesn't mind sharing. We
wrote about it in the first article in April-
May, 1 969 in an article entitled "He Sprang
Back." In summary, Sarpalius and his
two brothers were taken to Cal Farley's
Boy ' s Ranch on the day after Christmas in
I960. He was 12 and only in fifth grade
because of polio. Their broken home was
without heat and little food. The Ranch is
a working ranch where boys live in homes
with a set of house parents. In the ninth
grade Bill discovered FFA and he hasn't
stopped moving up since.
Animals attracted him to the ag department
but it was the second place ribbon in
the Texas PTA parliamentary procedure
team contest that excited him. "It was the
first time I'd won anything."
Eventually FFA friends encouraged
him to run for area president even though
he'd never been chapter president. He
won that first election; later was elected
state president. During the year as presi-
dent he traveled and visited every chapter
in Texas. As a delegate to the national
convention, he remembers making the
motion for admitting girls to FFA.
FFA elections and leadership experiences
were all a starting ground for his
political career. As before, friends sug-
gested he run for the Texas Senate. In
1980, he was elected to the State Senate
where he served eight years.
Now he is a member of the House of
Representatives and president ofthe Freshman
Class of congressmen. He is also a
member of the House Agriculture Com-
mittee.
After college, Mr. Sarpalius taught
agriculture at Boy's Ranch where he had
a chance to offer first-hand encouragement
to students.
He considers leadership training, talk-
ing on your feet, developing responsibil-
ity, learning to manage money, experi-
encing team work, learning respect, setting
goals and planning ahead as ways
FFA helps its member win in life.
During the interview the Congressman
pointed out his window toward the Capital
and shared that during George Bush's
inauguration ceremony, his thoughts wandered
and he remembered his past.
"Because you can dream you can grow .
and change and improve and succeed."
"I'd be excited as a new Greenhand in
FFA. It's different today. There are more
things to get your hands onto. More
opportunity."
"Changes in FFA and agricultural education
have opened up the future for many
members. Doors will continue to open for
students in agriculture and they need to be
ready to take advantage of the opportuni-
{Continued on Page 36)
16 FFA New Horizons