Proceedings, 1997

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Fifteen minutes to share with you almost 20 years of my life. Fifteen minutes to tell you what has been the biggest factor in helping me get the most out of my involvement in the FFA. It's virtually an impossible task. The irony comes in the fact that we were put in this situation once as state officers; delivering our last "FFA Words." Now we have to do it again. The last time, I tried the ultimate when 1 pulled a big disappearing trick out of my suitcase. This time I don't have any illusions, but what I do have is something that is going to take you for the ride of your life! In the words of Dr. Seuss, "Oh, the Places You'll Go!" I have definitely been a lot of places this year, and every time I planned out a trip I focused on one thing. How do I get there from here? As you know from your traveling experiences, there are thousands of ways to reach your destination; from planes, trains, to automobiles! And today we are going to find out what mode of transportation is best to get you where you want to go. H Wherever your destination might be, everyone has their very own unique way that will work best to get them there.)) "How Do I Get There From Here?" Corey Rosenbusch National FFA President Glen Rose, Texas FFA members-fasten those seat belts, hold on to that rope, strap in those feet, put on that helmet, and hold on for our trip to success. Let's get ready to have some fun!! What is my favorite way to get from point A to point B? Ok, I guess a Harley Davidson is not my style. Let me try something else. No, when I travel, I travel in style. You remember I said we all have places we want to go and there are thousands of ways to get there. Well, for me my destination was the top of the Smoky Mountains. That's right, point A was Gatlinburg, Tenn., and point B was the top of the Smoky Mountains. With the help of some state officers, we decided that the best way to reach our destination was to take mopeds to the top! One of the state officers, Kristie, and I jumped on one of the mopeds and took off first. We had eight people on four mopeds, but we lost the first two coming out of the parking lot when they hit a van in oncoming traffic. We were at the front and didn't notice, so we kept on going. Here we were heading up the mountain on our styling mopeds, and then it happened. It began to rain. At this point I was thinking what a brilliant idea this had been to take mopeds so we could get sopping wet. It only got worse because as we climbed the mountain, the tempera- ture dropped as we hit higher elevations. We were not only soaked, we were freezing as well. Actually we looked like the characters from "Dumb and Dumber". We finally reached the top, then it was time to head back. Being the *3Z gentlemen 1 am, I decided to offer Kristie the opportunity to drive, especially since she paid for half of the rental. It was only fair. I drove up, so she should get to drive down. We started down the hill. As we approached a sharp, 90-degree curve, I felt the bike start to wobble. Then I noticed we were crossing the yellow stripe. We lost control of a bike going 30 miles per hour, down a hill, on a curve with wet pavement, and I looked up to see a car coming toward us. I immediately developed that deer-m-the-headlights look. As my life flashed before my eyes—and when you're 20 it doesn't take long, it was basically one big blur of blue corduroy— I realized we were no longer traveling perpendicu- lar to the road. Instead we were traveling parallel. The bike had turned over, and Kristie and I were skidding across the pavement. We came to a stop only by slamming into a rock wall. I'll never forget my first words as I stood up from the wreck . . . "Cool." I turned to Kristie, who had served on the nominating committee which elected us the year before, and said, "I know you put me in office, but if you wanted to take me out, you didn't have to try to kill me!" In the end, other than this scar, a rather battered shirt, and a heavily damaged bike, we were both okay. I did learn one thing. Mopeds are not the best form of transportation for me to reach my destination. I decided to move onto other means of getting from one place to another. This time, the destination was the end of Lake Jackson in Georgia. Being the brave or stupid person that I am, I decided I would try this trip on skis. 1 had never skied before in my entire life, so I thought I would give it a try. Needless to say, that turned into a disastrous expenence as well. When 1 let go of the rope, it hit me on the top of my foot. My foot was so badly injured that when I got in the boat I couldn't walk. I had to be carried out of the boat to the truck, and back into my room. It wasn't until 5 a.m., after five hours in the emergency room, that I realized skiing wasn't for me. 1 did get to nde through the airport the next day in one of those wheel chairs though! I know now mopeds and water skis were not the best means to get from point A to point B. They were great for my travel companions, but what's important is what form of transportation is best for me. That's when 1 knew I must return to what I enjoy the most, which is cruising down the highway in my car. There's nothing like a road trip in a car. You have complete control over where you are going during your trip. You can stop as many times as you want, and you control the direction you want to go. Best of all, there's nothing like the thinking time you have when you drive! Maybe cars or trucks aren't your favorite way to get there from here. Maybe what best suits you is a taxi, or a Harley Davidson, or hang gliding, but wherever your destination might be, everyone has their very own unique way that will work best to get them there. And that is what I'm talking about when I refer to the struggle I had when I was writing my retiring address. 1 wanted so much to pick out the three most important things you could do as a person to help you reach your destination. That's when I realized that if I stood here and told you that you have to have a positive attitude, you have to be confident.
and you have to sacrifice, that I would be lying. Because 1 would be telling you what worked for Corey to reach his ultimate goal, not what would work for you. So often when we talk in terms of success, we say the best way to achieve this is by doing items one, two and three. Well maybe it's not the best thing for you. Maybe the best way for you to be successful is by doing three, two, one or even 12, 44 and 68. Let me give you an example. When I was young, I decided that my goal in life was to be a state FFA president. I would listen and watch everyone and try to learn what it takes to be a state officer. Then I found the god of all FFA role models. He was even one of my neighbors: Curtis Childers. He was my father's first state and national president and I knew that I had to emulate him if 1 wanted to do the same. 1 honestly believed that when I didn't win district president like him, and I didn't win the national extemporaneous speaking contest like him, and I didn't win area president like him, that it would never happen. In the end we both served as national presidents, but we took totally different directions to get here. Curtis might have taken that moped because that was what worked for him, but it wasn't what was best for 1 me For me, a bicycle might have been the preferred way of getting here. So how do we know which vehicle, if you will, that will be best suited for you? In my journey to my destination, I thought the way was to be a great public speaker, 1 thought that was the key for Corey, because that's what everyone told me I had to be good at. So from the time I was in junior high, I was working on speeches. 1 would do anything to give a speech. You're all saying, "junior 1 " high? Yes, that's how caught up I was in that preconceived notion. That was me! Me, before I grew a brain and realized that I didn't need to focus on public speaking. There was a much deeper element I needed to work on. I had to lose the flat top and grow the FFA hair. I would sit in front of the mirror for hours with several different brushes so that my hair would look just like the state and national officers' did! That was not the answer either. The answer was simple. 1 needed to stop listening to what everyone else said to do, and focus on what the real answers were for Corey. That is when I developed a list. I did a deep soul search, and rather than focusing on everyone else's ideas, I decided that I needed to work on what Corey knows he needs to work on to be a success. That's when I evaluated myself and wrote down all of my character elements that I could improve on. And it was that day, the day that I decided to get off the moped and the water skis, and get into the car, that 1 began to grow as an individual. I had to choose my own mode of transportation for getting from point A to point B. Let me warn you of the biggest problem you'll face in choosing your transportation. When you're focusing, try to meditate on things deep in your heart, not on appearances and other people. Appearances can gloss over what's really important. Your shoes must be polished, your tie has to be perfect, no lint can be on your jacket, and there can't be a wrinkle in those slacks. It wasn't until later that I figured out that this is not what's 33- most important. What matters is developing character. The day that appearance is more significant than developing strong character is the day we have lost focus. Because too often we get caught up in the look, but that means nothing if you don't have what's inside to help hold it up. Our mission is not to develop the look, our mission is to develop the person. And now is the time to develop that person. That's right, now is the time for you to choose your mode of transportation. There are two ultimate questions that all of you have to answer prior to leaving your homes. Number one: What's your destination? What is it that you have a passion for? And number two: How are you going to get there? For four years I have tried to answer that second question and tell you how to get there, and I have finally figured it out. I do not have the answer. No one has the answer, but you. My sole purpose, and the whole purpose of all of our speeches is to motivate you to find that answer. I can't do it, only you can. Here's how you can find it though. If you're flying home today, as soon as you get on that plane, I want you to reach in that pocket in front of you and pull out that motion sickness bag, or grab a napkin. If you're driving home, I want you to grab a napkin, a receipt or something to wnte on during your first stop. On that piece of paper, at the very top, I want you to write what your priorities are in your life. What is your destination? And then below, it I want you to write down all of the things that you need to do in order to accomplish that ultimate goal in your life. It will require some deep thought and evaluation of what you like and don't like about yourself. Wnte down all of the things you think you need to work on to reach that destination. At that point you will not only know where you are going, but you will also know your mode of transportation. You'll probably say, "Oh, I'll do it when I get home!" No! You must do it now, before you arrive home. You must do it while it's on your mind. Write down what you can improve on in your life. Once you're done, keep it with you. Hang it on your mirror, put it in a picture frame, throw it in your wallet. Put it somewhere so that you can see it everyday. I promise you it will help, but its not something that is going to happen overnight. I developed my list over four years, and I still keep it in my planner, and I am still working on some of them! The destination and way you are going to get there is all up to you! My brother, Tate, is a freshman this year and has some really big plans for his years to come in the FFA. As much as 1 hope that I was able to pass on some motivation to him, we must always remember that Tate is the only one who can choose where he is going and how he is going to get there. He doesn't have to do everything that his brother did, because Tate is not me. Whatever he accomplishes, I will be proud of him! So it is now Tate's turn. It is now your turn to look for how you're going to reach your destination, and I don't care what mode of transportation you use. I can't tell you the answers, but what I can tell you is that once you've chosen that vehicle you will start to build a stronger you. When you build a strong you it gives you something to hold up that FFA jacket. And that's what's going to make that FFA jacket look sharp. And that's how to get there from &here.
Page 1 and 2: The 70th National FFA Convention PR
Page 3 and 4: NATIONAL FFATalk Mall Guest Book Th
Page 5 and 6: NAT! O N A L The7f \j hh ""- KS Ky.
Page 7 and 8: NATIONAL The 70th National FFA Conv
Page 9 and 10: A scream of excitement goes out whe
Page 11 and 12: POULTRY PRODUCTION Sponsored by Cho
Page 13 and 14: Agriscience Teacher of the Year Spo
Page 15 and 16: National Extemporaneous Public Spea
Page 17 and 18: Kevin Jaquet makes an emphatic poin
Page 19 and 20: National Officer Candidates Nationa
Page 21 and 22: AMERICAN STAR FARMER FINALISTS Ryan
Page 23 and 24: Ronny Miller supports his sister Co
Page 25 and 26: Greenfield; Brandi Green, Memphis;
Page 27 and 28: Mcllvain, Lomega; Dustin McLemore,
Page 29 and 30: 100% Membership States States which
Page 31: MISSOURI: Albany; Aurora; Branson;
Page 35 and 36: chance to walk in Gina Flint's foot
Page 37 and 38: people think. The fact that I was t
Page 39 and 40: 3& Former Miss America-turned-motiv
Page 41 and 42: It has been years since my brothers
Page 43 and 44: lame someone else or something else
Page 45 and 46: we say, "I'm not good enough to dat
Page 47 and 48: National FFA Chorus Sponsored by Fo
Page 49 and 50: VIP Citation Throughout its 70-year
Page 51 and 52: PARENTS OF STARS OVER AMERICA FINAL
Page 53 and 54: John R. Hill. Vice President, Sales
Page 55 and 56: National FFA Alumni Association Tea
Page 57 and 58: Delaware State University Delaware
Page 59 and 60: Business Delegates representing the
Page 61 and 62: MISSOURI: Dan Arnsperger, Travis Be
Page 63 and 64: We recommend that the FFA: Healthy
Page 65 and 66: We recommend that the FFA: Public I
Page 67 and 68: . . Marketing and Merchandising We
Page 69 and 70: Membership Recruitment We recommend
Page 71 and 72: We recommend that the FFA: Advisor
Page 73 and 74: . . National FFA Convention We reco
Page 75 and 76: 1997-98 National FFA Officer Team H

Proceedings, 1997

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