Southside High School FFA officers and graduating senior, Alan Patino attended the 96th Texas FFA Convention that was held during the second week of July. The Convention is a week-long event that hosts nearly 15,000 Texas FFA members and voting delegates, holds official business sessions and workshops, and recognizes award/scholarship winners among so many other things. It is one of the things FFA officers look forward to the most. Each session generally hosts about 15,000 members and guests. Alan Patino, Melany Avila, Izabella Kibiger, and Camila Ojeda were each recognized for their respective achievements.
Alan Patino, Southside High School’s most recent Valedictorian, led the Southside Nursery/Landscape CDE team to its first-ever state appearance at Sam Houston State University back in April. Alan earned the 2nd Highest Individual score in the state of Texas and was awarded a Stihl Scholarship at the 3rd General Session of the Convention. Very few individuals in Texas achieve this honor in any State CDE competition and Alan was able to do it in his first attempt.
Melany Avila, Izabella Kibiger, and Camila Ojeda were each awarded their Lonestar Degrees at the Lonestar Ceremony. The Lonestar Degree is the highest degree an FFA member can earn in the state and it requires much time, effort, and success. To earn a Lonestar Degree, a member must have maintained 3 years of consecutive membership, productively earned a minimum of $1000 (through projects/placement), served a minimum of 25 hours of community service, and served in a leadership role either in the chapter, district, or area. Melany and Izabella have not only served as chapter officers but have/are serving at the district level (O’Connor, Madison, Judson, East Central, etc.) as Alamo District officers. All of these records must be documented and thoroughly kept up-to-date in their official Recordbooks, which also requires special diligence. Three is also the highest number of Lonestar Degrees awarded to Southside members in a single year, which is an outstanding reflection on the chapter.
