Mayo — Cecelia Marie Koon of Mayo has been selected as a candidate to run for 2012-13 Florida State Future Farmers of America (FFA) vice president. Her fate will be decided on June 28.

The past seven years of Koon's life, she says, have been largely devoted to serving the FFA, the agriculture industry and its people in Florida. Just a few weeks ago, she traveled to Haines City for a screening process to determine if she has what it takes to become a state FFA officer.

“I went through a huge screening process and was named as a candidate to serve Florida FFA as the area’s vice president,” said Koon.

The state officer screening process consisted of individual interviews, written exams, individual and group problem solving activities, and conversational exercises.

Koon came away from that process with the honor of being named as one of 13 finalists out of the 40 who applied from a 19-county, six FFA chapter area. That number will eventually be narrowed down to eight, who will become state FFA officers.

As a finalist, Koon will be attending the 84th Florida FFA State Convention and Leadership Conference at Caribe Royale in Orlando on June 25-29 where the new 2012-13 state officers will be announced on Thursday, June 28. The new officers will be installed the following day around lunchtime with a reception afterward at 2 p.m.

While at the convention, Koon will attend a luncheon the first day with all the other candidates and will  get her assignments for the week, which could include running backstage errands and helping out with contests. She also has to present a leadership workshop and attend district meetings throughout the week. Koon has already started a campaign to promote herself that will run through June.

Serving as an officer in the FFA is not only a great honor, but it also comes with opportunities to influence and serve other FFA members, and supporters of the organization.  

Future Farmers of America was founded in 1928 by 33 young farmers from the Midwest who had a lofty mission; preparing future generations for the challenges of feeding a growing population. Since that time, millions of agriculture students have worn the official jacket and subscribed to the FFA creed.

Today, FFA encompasses more than just simple planting and harvesting, and the organization encourages members to develop their own unique talents and explore a wide range of career opportunities. The Florida FFA Association has over 15,000 middle and high school student members with more than 300 chapters statewide.