Sonora La Habra FFA Chapter
A New Chapter Begins
Alumni Advice
Within my 3 years in the agriculture program, with 2 at Fullerton High School and 1 year at Sonora High School, I was able to serve and promote the program by being a chapter president, chapter historian, sectional reporter, and a sectional secretary through the years. While I was in the AG program I showed hogs for both production and entrepreneurship as well as two feeder steers. The AG program taught me so many life skills such as being a team player, learning to be responsible and most importantly perspective- this is definitely useful nowadays. The most important lesson the FFA has taught me is to NEVER compare yourself to others-use the people you look up too as a mentor, a goal for your future self, but never a comparison. They were in your shoes before and they put in the work to be where they are at that moment. I have so many great memories in the FFA. One is being able to dejacket a state officer at state convention and we talked and are still friends to this day. And my other favorite memory was winning grand champion pig at the OC fair in 2018. The best piece of advice I can give to the younger generation of members is to persevere and never let anyone put you down for the most important job in the world. ESpecially is Southern California where FFA , let alone agriculture is not talked about. People will give you weird looks and question why you do what you do. Keep that passion for agriculture burning in your soul and never let it go. You are the future of this organization and the world. Be the member that the younger members look up to. Be the spark for people even outside of the organization to find the need and love for agriculture.
Aly Emch, Class of 2018
I was a part of Sonora’s agricultural program for 4 years. I remember being really hesitant about going to events because I didn’t know many people there and I thought it would be weird for me to go alone. That fear eventually disappeared after experiencing different events and having fun. Going into high school I had no clue what I wanted to be when I grew up. I was planning on just joining the military after high school because I didn’t have any goals. I then found my passion for teaching through FFA and now I am in college study to be an AG teacher. My advice to the members of FFA is to put yourself out there. After I started being more of an active member, I made a lot of really good friends. Also go to events! Not just chapter events but also section, region and state events; they are super fun and you meet a lot of cool people and future friends.
Candice Ivy, Class of 2019
I was a part of the Ag program for 3 years at Sonora and I admire what the program was able to teach me; skills that I utilize as an adult and homeowner now. Ag helped me find an interest in home gardening. Something that I was fearful when I first entered the Ag program was that I wouldn't make friends or I would be horrible at Ag which wasn't the case at all. Some advice I have for ag members is to always remember no matter how nervous or scared you are there is at least six people who feel the same and six people who are there to excited you came and to welcome you, your officers.
Diana Cardenas, Class of 2000
I have been involved in the agriculture industry for the past 8 years. My experience has varied from being a part of 4H as the club president and secretary for several years and Sonora’s chapter serving as 2017-2018 Secretary, 2018-2019 Vice President, 2019-2020 President and also I served as the 2019-2020 Orange Section Treasurer. Since I had previously been a part of the agriculture program before coming to Sonora and had an older brother who was also a part of the Ag program, my main question was if there was a limit to how many projects I could have. During my time at Sonora and in agriculture, I had the privilege of raising and showing dairy cattle, and I was also a member of the floral, cake decorating, and photography projects as my SAE projects. I had an immense amount of love being a part of as many SAE projects as I could and I recommend just trying out the project to see what you find your passion in. I would highly suggest starting off with 1 or 2 projects before you dive head first into having a ton of projects. The Ag program is something extremely special to me since it has taught me so many things and furthered my passion for wanting to work with animals. I gained a lot of hands on animal experience that I would not have gotten if I was not in the Ag program. Although my passion is really for marine animals, at the end of the day any animal experience is great. Another amazing impact that the FFA has had on me is my leadership skills. Being involved on the officer team for 3 years has given me so many special opportunities. I have strengthened my public speaking skills and I am willing to talk in front of large crowds, and lead workshops for others. I have already put my skills to work by speaking at the American Camp Association National Conference in front of hundreds of people. If it was not for the FFA speaking contests and my role on the officer team, I do not think I would have gone up there and spoke about my experiences. All in all, I do not think I would be where I am today without the help of this amazing Ag program. The one piece of advice I would give to new members is GET INVOLVED as much as you can. Go to as many events as you can, run for officer positions, and try new things. You only have 4 years of high school and you want to make it count. Being so involved in Ag made my high school years go by and has given me so many great memories from spending time having shows to just hanging out at meetings.
Alyssa Zolman, class of 2020