By Shelby Shank
Field Editor

Finalists of Texas Farm Bureau’s (TFB) AgVentures Challenge: Pitch It, Market It, Sell It state contest recently traveled to Washington, D.C. to meet with elected officials on Capitol Hill and tour historical sites.

The students on the trip included Cort Nelson of Palo Pinto County, Brayden Dillingham of Karnes County, Jed Boehme of McLennan County, Evangeline Arabie of Leon County and Ava Stone of Brazoria County.

The students received the expense-paid trip as a part of the prize package for being finalists in the state contest.

“Visiting the nation’s capital gave students the opportunity to meet congressional leaders and gave them a greater understanding of constitutional government and the free enterprise system,” said Dr. Clarissa Darby, TFB Youth Outreach coordinator. “Those conversations helped reinforce the concepts they explored through the AgVentures Challenge and expanded their understanding of civic engagement.”

While in D.C., the students met with U.S. Reps. Randy Weber, Pete Sessions, Jodey Arrington and Monica De La Cruz. The students also met with U.S. Sens. Ted Cruz and John Cornyn.

For Nelson, the AgVentures Challenge winner, meeting elected officials and learning more about the legislative process was a highlight of the experience.

“It was really cool getting to shake all their hands and meet who is representing us,” Nelson said. “It also gave me an opportunity to advocate for the things I believe in while also learning how those representing Texas and our nation reflect many of those same values.”

Students enjoyed a private evening tour of the U.S. Capitol led by U.S. Rep. Nathaniel Moran.

“My favorite part of the trip was the Capitol tour where we got to go on the House floor and sit in the same chairs that our Congressmen and Congresswomen sit in to vote. That was really cool,” Nelson said.

They also visited with congressional interns from Texas A&M University and Texas Tech University.

“We were able to meet with students in the internship programs at Texas A&M and Texas Tech, and that was probably my favorite part of the trip,” Arabie said.  “It really opened my eyes to what I could be doing in the future.”

The students were reminded of the importance of sharing their stories.

“One of the biggest lessons I took away was learning how to tell your story,” Arabie said. “Maybe it’s not your whole story, but being able to capture who you are in just a few sentences is an important skill.”

In addition to their meetings on Capitol Hill, the students attended the Congressional Baseball Game for Charity at Nationals Park and toured several historic and educational sites, including Old Town Alexandria, Arlington National Cemetery, Mount Vernon, the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum, the National Museum of Natural History and the National Air and Space Museum.

Contest details
The contest was open to high school seniors who completed TFB’s Thrive experience last August.

Thrive is part of TFB’s Student Success Series, which includes programs for students in eighth through twelfth grade. The Student Success Series aims to help students develop a better understanding of advocacy, learn more about Farm Bureau and grow personal and professional skills they can use in the classroom and future careers.

Ten finalists participated in the state AgVentures Challenge where they created an agricultural product, developed a marketing pitch and presented their ideas to a panel of judges.

The state contest took place at TFB’s Conference and Training Center in Waco Jan. 23.

For more information about the Student Success Series, visit texasfarmbureau.org/student-success-series.