Waukon FFA celebrates generous donation along with National FFA Week

A John Deere 3300 two-row combine, originally a trade-in model from Bodensteiner Implement of Elkader, now belongs to the Waukon FFA Chapter after Waukon Implement general manager Tom Kuennen worked out a deal with Elkader dealer Bob Bodensteiner to bring the donation to reality.

“What an incredible gesture,” said Waukon agriculture instructor and FFA advisor Nate Gebel of the machinery donation. “This will not only help eliminate a lot of extra work of organizing the harvest of our test plot every year, but will also further our hands-on approach to teaching agriculture here. It’s perfect for what we want to do, what a great teaching tool.”

Obviously, the greatest benefit of the donated machine is the use of it by the local FFA Chapter during harvest season. The Waukon program operates a small test plot at the intersection of Highways 76 and 9 just south of Waukon. “Normally, we’ve had to rely on the generosity of area farmers or implement dealers to do the work for us, or lend us a machine to do the work, so we had to work around schedules and try and coordinate a number of different things,” Gebel said. “Don’t get me wrong, we very much appreciate what those farmers and dealers have done for us. It will just be very nice to have our very own machine to get the work done.”

In addition to that convenience, Gebel is also very excited to have a machine like this donated piece for his students to be able to learn from, both in the field and in the classroom. “What a great benefit for our students to have their own machine to learn from,” he said. “Not only are we learning while we’re harvesting, but we’ll also be able to be more hands-on with maintenance, repair and management of equipment. That adds so much to our program.”

Gebel said the experience will better complete the planting and harvest cycle for his students, as the Waukon FFA Chapter had also purchased its own planter some time ago. “It was great to be able to work out a deal with Waukon Implement on that also,” the instructor said. “We had Randy Loeb from Waukon Implement come in and teach us about its operation and maintenance.”

Kuennen, himself a former FFA student, says he is happy that Waukon Implement and Bodensteiner Implement could help Waukon FFA out in a more beneficial way. “We’ve given them machines to use before in their harvesting, so it was nice to be able to set them up with something they can not only use, but learn from all year long,” he said. “Besides using it for the harvest, the kids can work on it and learn about it more than just using it once a year.”

Waukon FFA Chapter Vice President Melissa Ehrhardt says the impact of the donation goes far beyond just learning. “By Waukon Implement donating this combine to our chapter, it proves that our community believes in our organization,” she said. Chapter Sentinel Devin Donahue added, “It’s going to help us learn a lot more about the maintenance and owning of a combine, which will be a better learning experience.”

Gebel echoed those same sentiments, stating, “This is just one example of how supportive this community is of our program, we get great community support from a number of different areas. It also allows us to take the nuts and bolts of something that we learn in the classroom and apply it to the real world. Believe it or not, our FFA members aren’t all farm kids that get to experience life on the farm day in and day out. So, application like this is an outstanding way to help all our students better understand what we’re teaching them. It’s all very much appreciated.”

This donation is being acknowledged by the local chapter during National FFA Week (see Pages 8 and 9 inside for more Waukon FFA Chapter details), which is a celebration of what FFA does for students and the future of farming. “The future of farming depends on a diverse, educated workforce, and that’s what we try and accomplish in our FFA and agricultural instruction,” Gebel said. “We’re trying to make people realize that FFA isn’t all just cows, plows and sows. There’s much more to it.”