(DAYTONA BEACH, Fla.) – Shawn Crocker and Melissa Hinton, both of Hillsborough County, won the Young Farmer and Rancher Discussion Meet and Youth Speech Contest, respectively, during the Florida Farm Bureau Federation’s 62nd Annual Meeting in Daytona Beach Oct. 22-24.
“These two contests are very competitive with many well-qualified candidates,” said Carl Loop Jr. “I am very encouraged by their insight of agriculture and its complexities.”
The discussion meet is a forum that allows young farmers and ranchers to demonstrate their ability to express ideas and opinions on major agricultural issues. Crocker received a $500 cash award, a Honda ATV four-wheeler and an expense-paid trip to Honolulu to compete in the American Farm Bureau Young Farmers and Ranchers Discussion Meet at the national convention in January 2004.
Melissa Hinton is a member of Durant High School FFA. The youth speech contest topic was, “What is the Future of Agriculture for Young People?” Hinton received a $500 award and Justin Johnson of Suwannee County received a $250 award as first runner-up.
The Florida Farm Bureau Federation is the state's largest general-interest agricultural association with more than 151,000 member-families statewide. Headquartered in Gainesville, the Federation is an independent, non-profit agricultural organization and is not associated with any arm of the government. More information about the convention and Florida Farm Bureau is available on the organization’s website, http://FloridaFarmBureau.org.
Florida Farm Bureau Federation