Bradshaw Christian FFA: A Young Chapter Rooted in Faith, Leadership, and Hands-On Agriculture

By Kimberly Dorman, BCHS Chapter Advisor

What began as one student’s dream in 2019 has quickly become a promising FFA chapter. Bradshaw Christian FFA received its official National FFA Charter in 2021, joining a 97-year-old organization founded as the Future Farmers of America on November 20, 1928, in Kansas City, Missouri.

The journey started with former student Alexis DeMarco, who first envisioned an FFA program on campus. That vision was brought to life under the leadership of the chapter’s founding advisor, Kenzie Bastian, with invaluable support from board members Jared Newman and Butch Hage, as well as Principal Melissa Bowers. The charter members and inaugural officer team who helped launch the chapter were Cadence DeMarco, Hadley Wilder, Madison Masters, Michael Fowler, Austin Thomas, Jocelyn Davis, and Sophia Spadaro.

Since then, the program has been guided by advisor Andrea Sawyer and is currently led by Kimberly Dorman, who is working tirelessly to provide stability and long-term growth while keeping leadership and faith at the center of everything the chapter does.

Every student enrolled in an agriculture class at Bradshaw Christian is automatically an FFA member and must complete a Supervised Agricultural Experience (SAE). Most SAE projects are completed on the campus farm, where members raise market animals, such as lambs, hogs, rabbits, broilers (chickens), and turkeys. The students then market to buyers (businesses or private buyers), exhibit and sell them at the Sacramento County Fair each Memorial Day week in May.

This year’s officer team of eight continues to carry the torch: Leia Cabacungan – President, Grant Hardesty – Vice President, Ezra Patterson – Secretary, Isabel Grimes – Treasurer, Claire Drake – Reporter, Franklin van Loben Sels – Sentinel, Wyatt Dingman – Historian, and Alina McGuirk – Chaplain.

Members live out the FFA motto every day in the classroom and outside of school: Learning to Do, Doing to Learn, Earning to Live, Living to Serve.

Leadership opportunities abound through Leadership Development Events (LDEs) such as the Greenhand Leadership Conference (GLC), Made for Excellence (MFE), Advanced Leadership Academy (ALA), Opening and Closing Ceremonies (how meetings are opened and closed), and the California FFA State Leadership Conference. In Career Development Events (CDEs), students compete in Creed Speaking, Best Informed Greenhand (BIG), Forestry Challenges, livestock judging, Parliamentary Procedure, and a full slate of public speaking contests—including prepared, extemporaneous, and impromptu speaking.

There are many opportunities to get involved with Bradshaw Christian FFA. Each month the officer team hosts a social in the MPR or at the school farm. Students are encouraged to join in on the activities each month, as they earn activity points towards their classroom grade. We have a very active Pride Ag Booster club that helps provide financial support to both FFA and 4H.

The future is expanding along with the farm. Thanks to a generous grant from AgWest Farm Credit, planning and permitting have begun on a new goat and sheep barn and a poultry coop that will house broiler chickens and turkeys, giving even more students the chance to raise top-quality market projects.

From the seven charter members in 2021 to a thriving program today, Bradshaw Christian FFA is proof that when faith, hard work, and a shared vision come together, great things grow—one animal, one contest, and one leader at a time.