What is your current role with PDA?
I am the Director of the
Bureau of Market Development, a position I have held since September 2016. My
team is responsible for commodity marketing, including the PA Preferred™
program, economic development and international trade – programs that support
and promote Pennsylvania farmers and agribusinesses.
What was your favorite part of FFA?
I enjoyed participating in
leadership activities, particularly serving as an officer and learning about
parliamentary procedures. I also had the opportunity to play in the state FFA
band (alto saxophone) at the Pennsylvania Farm Show.
How did FFA prepare you for the job you do today?
I was always proud of the
fact that I was a farm girl, and FFA provided an avenue for personal growth and
further education about agriculture. Here we were a group of high school
students who shared a similar passion. There was no doubt for many of us that
our future careers would be in agriculture, whether running our own farms or
working in the industry as I have done for all of my career.
What is the most important thing you learned from
your time in FFA?
The FFA motto really
resonated with me and pretty much sums up how I have approached life: “Learning
to Do, Doing to Learn, Earning to Live, Living to Serve.”