1 00:00:02,826 --> 00:00:04,932 Speaker 1: Welcome to the Growing Our Future podcast. 2 00:00:04,932 --> 00:00:08,871 In this show, the Texas FFA Foundation will take on a 3 00:00:08,951 --> 00:00:12,723 journey of exploration into agricultural science, education, 4 00:00:12,723 --> 00:00:16,050 leadership development and insights from subject matter 5 00:00:16,111 --> 00:00:19,728 experts and sponsors who provide the fuel to make dreams come 6 00:00:19,769 --> 00:00:20,030 true. 7 00:00:20,030 --> 00:00:22,481 Here's your host, Aaron Alejandro. 8 00:00:30,246 --> 00:00:33,149 Speaker 2: Well, good morning, good afternoon, good evening, or 9 00:00:33,149 --> 00:00:36,612 whenever you may be tuning in to the Growing Our Future 10 00:00:36,652 --> 00:00:40,195 podcast, hey, we always like to say thank you. 11 00:00:40,195 --> 00:00:43,237 Thank you because you know time's the only thing you can 12 00:00:43,296 --> 00:00:43,697 spend. 13 00:00:43,697 --> 00:00:47,363 You can't save it, you can't put it in the bank for later, 14 00:00:47,384 --> 00:00:48,426 you can only spend it. 15 00:00:48,426 --> 00:00:50,942 So the fact that you're willing to spend a little of your time 16 00:00:50,981 --> 00:00:52,826 with us, I just want you to know . 17 00:00:52,826 --> 00:00:55,030 We appreciate it, you know. 18 00:00:55,030 --> 00:00:57,505 The other thing I like to tell people is, if agriculture has 19 00:00:57,545 --> 00:00:59,270 taught me anything, it's taught me. 20 00:00:59,270 --> 00:01:01,662 If you want to know what the future is, grow it. 21 00:01:01,662 --> 00:01:05,751 So the Growing Our Future podcast is just about that 22 00:01:06,191 --> 00:01:10,587 bringing on guests that can pour into us, that can share their 23 00:01:10,847 --> 00:01:15,043 ideas, their experiences, their insights, so that we may find 24 00:01:15,123 --> 00:01:18,912 some seeds that we can plant in our lives that will grow an even 25 00:01:18,912 --> 00:01:22,305 better tomorrow, and today is no different. 26 00:01:22,325 --> 00:01:23,608 Wait till y'all meet this lady. 27 00:01:23,608 --> 00:01:25,272 I'm excited to have her. 28 00:01:25,272 --> 00:01:29,611 She's the first ever teacher of the year that I've ever had on 29 00:01:29,631 --> 00:01:33,060 the podcast, and we'll talk about that just in a second here 30 00:01:33,060 --> 00:01:35,388 , but she did receive that honor in 2016. 31 00:01:35,388 --> 00:01:37,908 But we have Catherine Villareal . 32 00:01:37,908 --> 00:01:39,686 Cat, let me make sure I make it right. 33 00:01:39,686 --> 00:01:41,766 Do you want me to call you Cat or Catherine. 34 00:01:42,668 --> 00:01:43,191 Speaker 3: Cat's fine. 35 00:01:43,191 --> 00:01:46,884 Cat's my childhood nickname, so Catherine to my mother, but Kat 36 00:01:46,884 --> 00:01:47,685 to you, that's fine. 37 00:01:47,706 --> 00:01:48,266 Speaker 2: Very good. 38 00:01:48,266 --> 00:01:50,688 Well, ladies and gentlemen, this is Kat For real. 39 00:01:51,590 --> 00:01:52,632 Speaker 3: Thank you for joining us. 40 00:01:52,632 --> 00:01:54,754 Thank you for having me. 41 00:01:54,754 --> 00:01:55,515 I appreciate it. 42 00:01:56,799 --> 00:01:58,804 Speaker 2: Okay, Kat, Every person that's on this podcast. 43 00:01:58,804 --> 00:02:03,132 We can start every podcast with the same question Ready. 44 00:02:03,953 --> 00:02:04,134 Speaker 3: Yes. 45 00:02:05,421 --> 00:02:07,308 Speaker 2: What are you grateful for today? 46 00:02:10,021 --> 00:02:13,414 Speaker 3: I am grateful for and I always say grateful and 47 00:02:13,435 --> 00:02:15,668 blessed for where I am in my life. 48 00:02:15,668 --> 00:02:19,972 One of the things that I really sit back and look at now that 49 00:02:20,013 --> 00:02:26,063 I'm older is I always kind of it sounds cliche, but was praying 50 00:02:26,104 --> 00:02:26,906 to be where I am. 51 00:02:26,906 --> 00:02:30,786 And when we get into talking through some of the stuff I'll 52 00:02:30,925 --> 00:02:35,039 cover it is I like to remind people I'm not the typical 53 00:02:35,340 --> 00:02:37,204 agricultural person. 54 00:02:37,204 --> 00:02:41,031 I didn't grow up on a farm, I didn't have ranch experience. 55 00:02:41,031 --> 00:02:45,807 I started in high school and I just fell in love with it and 56 00:02:45,948 --> 00:02:49,525 that has opened so many doors for me to get to the life that I 57 00:02:49,525 --> 00:02:49,865 had. 58 00:02:49,865 --> 00:02:54,103 I remember dreaming and scheming and thinking of one day 59 00:02:54,103 --> 00:02:58,597 being an ag teacher, one day having what I have now with my 60 00:02:58,657 --> 00:03:02,844 husband, with our cattle operation and I know 10 year old 61 00:03:02,844 --> 00:03:07,671 me that was a ballerina and in cheer and never really thought 62 00:03:07,711 --> 00:03:10,501 about it would be like, wow, we got to do that, like that's our 63 00:03:10,561 --> 00:03:11,062 life now. 64 00:03:11,062 --> 00:03:14,908 So I'm very grateful and blessed for what I've been able 65 00:03:15,008 --> 00:03:17,955 to earn and become through agriculture. 66 00:03:19,139 --> 00:03:21,681 Speaker 2: Wow, OK, we can stop right there. 67 00:03:21,681 --> 00:03:22,323 That was good. 68 00:03:22,323 --> 00:03:26,004 No, that was really good, though. 69 00:03:26,004 --> 00:03:27,926 Seriously, think about that. 70 00:03:27,926 --> 00:03:31,088 I agree with everything you just said too. 71 00:03:31,088 --> 00:03:31,569 By the way. 72 00:03:31,569 --> 00:03:34,931 One of the things I like to tell people when you're on the 73 00:03:34,972 --> 00:03:37,454 podcast or when they're listening to the podcast, is 74 00:03:37,533 --> 00:03:39,195 practice R2A2. 75 00:03:39,195 --> 00:03:41,396 You might share this with your kids R2A2. 76 00:03:47,240 --> 00:03:47,961 share this with your kids R2A2. 77 00:03:47,961 --> 00:03:48,962 Recognize, relate, assimilate and apply. 78 00:03:48,962 --> 00:03:50,425 Recognize what somebody says, try to relate to it, take it in 79 00:03:51,046 --> 00:03:51,867 and then apply it. 80 00:03:51,867 --> 00:03:56,622 And already, just in your gratefulness, you shared 81 00:03:57,362 --> 00:04:01,012 aspirations as a young person, the fact that you've worked hard 82 00:04:01,012 --> 00:04:04,383 for something, the fact that you appreciate that you're 83 00:04:04,403 --> 00:04:06,046 getting to live the dream that you had. 84 00:04:06,046 --> 00:04:09,151 All of that already is a great start. 85 00:04:09,151 --> 00:04:11,294 So thank you so much for sharing. 86 00:04:13,200 --> 00:04:14,967 Speaker 3: Thank you, I appreciate it. 87 00:04:15,420 --> 00:04:17,786 Speaker 2: I know that before we got started, you and I were 88 00:04:17,826 --> 00:04:21,661 talking a little bit about what you do, and so why don't we 89 00:04:21,740 --> 00:04:26,464 start there and why don't you take us kind of on a journey of 90 00:04:26,524 --> 00:04:30,990 kind of where you started, which led you into the role that you 91 00:04:31,029 --> 00:04:31,370 have now? 92 00:04:31,370 --> 00:04:33,732 Because something tells me you did not just fall into that 93 00:04:33,752 --> 00:04:34,112 chair. 94 00:04:34,112 --> 00:04:35,613 Something tells me. 95 00:04:36,535 --> 00:04:39,516 Speaker 3: There was a journey that took place. 96 00:04:39,579 --> 00:04:41,345 Speaker 2: So walk us through that. 97 00:04:41,345 --> 00:04:43,350 Tell us how you got to where you're at today. 98 00:04:45,810 --> 00:04:47,177 Speaker 3: Walk us through that, tell us how you got to where 99 00:04:47,237 --> 00:04:47,839 you're at today. 100 00:04:47,839 --> 00:04:52,564 So, like I said before, I was not a typical agricultural 101 00:04:52,584 --> 00:04:54,970 person I don't know what the right term would be but I had 102 00:04:54,990 --> 00:04:56,473 the here and there experiences. 103 00:04:56,473 --> 00:05:00,041 I learned and it's so crazy because my mom always brings it 104 00:05:00,182 --> 00:05:05,509 up like she never really realized what an impact this was 105 00:05:05,509 --> 00:05:06,891 going to be in my life. 106 00:05:06,891 --> 00:05:09,579 I started in high school. 107 00:05:09,579 --> 00:05:11,904 Like I said, my all my parents are both my parents are 108 00:05:11,944 --> 00:05:12,425 educators. 109 00:05:12,425 --> 00:05:18,464 So at the time that was when dual enrollment became a thing 110 00:05:18,887 --> 00:05:21,091 and there was a lot of campuses down here in the valley that 111 00:05:21,139 --> 00:05:25,250 were starting their programs, one of them being Progresso High 112 00:05:25,250 --> 00:05:27,305 School, which is where my mom worked for 32 years. 113 00:05:27,305 --> 00:05:32,581 So my eighth grade summer that program took off and she kind of 114 00:05:32,581 --> 00:05:33,846 made the executive decision. 115 00:05:33,846 --> 00:05:34,668 She said you know what? 116 00:05:34,668 --> 00:05:36,783 You're not going to go to West Laco High with all your friends, 117 00:05:36,783 --> 00:05:40,492 you're going to move to Progresso with me and those that 118 00:05:40,492 --> 00:05:41,483 are familiar with Progresso. 119 00:05:41,483 --> 00:05:44,519 There is a very big difference between West Laco and Progresso 120 00:05:44,540 --> 00:05:46,670 and those that are familiar with Progreso. 121 00:05:46,670 --> 00:05:48,839 There is a very big difference between West Laco and Progreso 122 00:05:52,699 --> 00:05:53,281 and it was a culture shock. 123 00:05:53,281 --> 00:05:54,944 I had always been around the town because my mom had worked 124 00:05:54,963 --> 00:05:55,985 there forever, like long, long time. 125 00:05:55,985 --> 00:05:57,709 She retired 33 years later. 126 00:05:57,709 --> 00:06:00,694 But I was like, ok, after I had my moment I said you know what? 127 00:06:00,694 --> 00:06:01,536 I'm going to go to school there . 128 00:06:01,536 --> 00:06:04,425 The dual enrollment program you say is going to be good for me. 129 00:06:04,425 --> 00:06:05,086 I'll try it out. 130 00:06:05,086 --> 00:06:08,713 So we went through the dual enrollment program. 131 00:06:08,713 --> 00:06:13,108 I started going with them to South Texas College and it was 132 00:06:13,168 --> 00:06:15,293 really unique because we were like guinea pigs. 133 00:06:15,293 --> 00:06:19,701 We were the first 25 students to go through the program so we 134 00:06:19,742 --> 00:06:23,732 would attend like actual college classes on campus. 135 00:06:23,732 --> 00:06:28,682 They bus us to and from and we went fall, spring and summer one 136 00:06:28,682 --> 00:06:28,682 . 137 00:06:28,682 --> 00:06:31,932 So I started taking college classes my eighth grade summer 138 00:06:33,060 --> 00:06:38,252 and at the time it was it was a lot but I pushed through and it 139 00:06:38,291 --> 00:06:40,583 was really hard on me because I also did cheer. 140 00:06:40,583 --> 00:06:45,081 I did a lot of extracurricular activities and one of the things 141 00:06:45,081 --> 00:06:47,723 that I got interested in through my high school best 142 00:06:47,783 --> 00:06:52,502 friend was she's like hey, you have the morning block open, why 143 00:06:52,502 --> 00:06:53,805 don't you take an ad class? 144 00:06:53,805 --> 00:06:55,089 And I was like what is an ad class? 145 00:06:55,089 --> 00:06:57,725 I don't know what that is and she's like it's about 146 00:06:57,786 --> 00:06:59,932 agriculture, but you'll be fine because we can take it together 147 00:07:00,279 --> 00:07:03,365 and high school girl mentality was like okay, bestie, time will 148 00:07:03,365 --> 00:07:04,146 be, will be great. 149 00:07:04,146 --> 00:07:07,793 And so I enrolled in that ag class and I met my ag teacher, 150 00:07:07,853 --> 00:07:12,348 mr Gary Dominguez, and it kind of was just like a light 151 00:07:12,389 --> 00:07:12,870 switched on. 152 00:07:13,480 --> 00:07:17,007 I've always been very vocal, very I had the leadership skills 153 00:07:17,007 --> 00:07:21,728 , I think, for like cheer and dance, and I was in GT, so I had 154 00:07:21,728 --> 00:07:22,358 like the brains. 155 00:07:22,358 --> 00:07:25,228 I just didn't put it to any other potential other than 156 00:07:25,348 --> 00:07:28,845 school and I started to get involved. 157 00:07:28,845 --> 00:07:33,653 I always say bless his dear heart, because he had a chapter 158 00:07:33,694 --> 00:07:37,629 full of girls, high school girls , that he had to wrangle and we 159 00:07:37,668 --> 00:07:43,730 weren't crazy, but we were a lot and he, he would take us 160 00:07:43,831 --> 00:07:44,613 anywhere and everywhere. 161 00:07:44,613 --> 00:07:46,882 He became like a second father figure to me. 162 00:07:46,882 --> 00:07:51,411 Um, my parents now they always talk about how grateful they are 163 00:07:51,411 --> 00:07:51,793 for him. 164 00:07:51,793 --> 00:07:53,343 He's a great family friend of ours now. 165 00:07:54,165 --> 00:07:59,021 Um, and it was something that I just started to do and I've I'm 166 00:07:59,141 --> 00:08:01,867 the my mom says I have the oldest daughter syndrome. 167 00:08:01,867 --> 00:08:04,423 Like I just kind of have a little, a little bit of 168 00:08:04,766 --> 00:08:07,920 extraness to me when it comes to leadership stuff and I never 169 00:08:07,961 --> 00:08:10,350 really asked her to do stuff, I just said I'm going to. 170 00:08:10,350 --> 00:08:13,108 So he gave me the opportunity to show rabbits. 171 00:08:13,108 --> 00:08:16,500 I had no idea what you do when you show rabbits, but he walked 172 00:08:16,540 --> 00:08:20,867 us through it and I made sale at our County show and I was 173 00:08:20,887 --> 00:08:21,127 hooked. 174 00:08:21,127 --> 00:08:25,254 I was like, okay, this is cool, like I'm good at this too, and 175 00:08:25,355 --> 00:08:27,024 so I started running for office. 176 00:08:27,024 --> 00:08:31,158 I started doing contests, um, and I just became super 177 00:08:31,197 --> 00:08:36,970 saturated in everything it is and I became very, very close 178 00:08:36,990 --> 00:08:39,900 with him like a right hand, learned a lot of his tips and 179 00:08:39,941 --> 00:08:40,363 trades. 180 00:08:40,363 --> 00:08:42,448 And then he told me about where he went to school. 181 00:08:42,448 --> 00:08:44,322 He's like I went to the university of Kingsville. 182 00:08:44,743 --> 00:08:47,369 They have an ag ed program and I said okay. 183 00:08:47,369 --> 00:08:48,652 I said that sounds great. 184 00:08:48,652 --> 00:08:53,109 I said I want to do that, so went as far as to like plan out 185 00:08:53,149 --> 00:08:53,809 my schedule. 186 00:08:53,809 --> 00:08:55,374 We looked at things online. 187 00:08:55,374 --> 00:09:00,571 Now my mom is going to correct me when she hears this, but this 188 00:09:00,571 --> 00:09:01,293 is honest truth. 189 00:09:01,293 --> 00:09:08,764 She was not ready to let go. 190 00:09:08,764 --> 00:09:10,071 Her plan for me knew I wanted to be a teacher, I just didn't 191 00:09:10,091 --> 00:09:10,373 know what type. 192 00:09:10,373 --> 00:09:10,916 And then I just it clicked. 193 00:09:10,916 --> 00:09:11,720 I said I want to be an ag teacher. 194 00:09:12,542 --> 00:09:16,028 And she's like but you can stay here and go to UTRGV and be 195 00:09:16,068 --> 00:09:19,602 close to home and all of this and she's like and you still 196 00:09:19,663 --> 00:09:23,092 have to finish like your bachelor's, you're not done with 197 00:09:23,092 --> 00:09:23,956 your associates. 198 00:09:23,956 --> 00:09:26,061 Because I was also working towards that still. 199 00:09:26,061 --> 00:09:30,610 And so she ended up saying like no, like you're gonna wait, I'm 200 00:09:30,610 --> 00:09:31,030 not sure. 201 00:09:31,030 --> 00:09:33,923 And it crushed me because I had this all planned out in my head 202 00:09:33,923 --> 00:09:35,206 like it was, I was ready to go. 203 00:09:35,206 --> 00:09:40,163 And so she's like let's finish at UTRGV and then I'll see how 204 00:09:40,182 --> 00:09:41,826 you I feel about you going into the spring. 205 00:09:41,826 --> 00:09:48,100 So I started that plan and they realized you're already have 206 00:09:48,121 --> 00:09:50,006 your associates, there's nothing else you can do here. 207 00:09:50,006 --> 00:09:52,380 I said, well, great, that's, that's awesome. 208 00:09:52,380 --> 00:09:57,331 So I took like a mini summer off, I guess, or fall off, and I 209 00:09:57,331 --> 00:09:58,580 continue to work towards that. 210 00:09:58,580 --> 00:10:00,341 I say, you know, mom, this is what I really want to do. 211 00:10:00,341 --> 00:10:03,923 She said, okay, if you want to do that, I'm going to relinquish 212 00:10:03,923 --> 00:10:04,083 you. 213 00:10:04,083 --> 00:10:07,405 So we got all my stuff transferred to King'sville. 214 00:10:08,246 --> 00:10:14,130 I ended up going in like as a sophomore junior and she, I kind 215 00:10:14,130 --> 00:10:19,134 of just got dumped headfirst into everything and I took it 216 00:10:19,195 --> 00:10:19,495 all in. 217 00:10:19,495 --> 00:10:23,417 I took my animal science classes, I got all of that stuff 218 00:10:23,417 --> 00:10:28,865 done and I just became really, really excited about agriculture 219 00:10:28,865 --> 00:10:32,599 and I was so excited to share a lot of it with my ag teacher. 220 00:10:32,599 --> 00:10:38,029 He guided me through everything and it was just something that 221 00:10:38,070 --> 00:10:40,520 really opened my eyes because I knew what agriculture was from 222 00:10:40,581 --> 00:10:41,381 our small chapter. 223 00:10:41,381 --> 00:10:44,365 But seeing that it was people's jobs like this is what they do, 224 00:10:44,365 --> 00:10:45,988 it amazed me. 225 00:10:45,988 --> 00:10:48,410 And I was able. 226 00:10:48,410 --> 00:10:52,416 I was one of the youngest in our group and I was able to go 227 00:10:52,635 --> 00:10:54,905 get mentored at a lot of the big schools at the time, like 228 00:10:55,005 --> 00:10:55,567 Orange Grove. 229 00:10:55,567 --> 00:10:57,020 I did observation at Orange Grove. 230 00:10:57,020 --> 00:11:00,509 They were a machine like they still are a machine, but got to 231 00:11:00,548 --> 00:11:02,402 see them train teams and run a program. 232 00:11:02,501 --> 00:11:07,947 And then I worked under Frances Nelson at Cal Allen and she I 233 00:11:07,986 --> 00:11:10,606 tell everyone she was the one that taught me that ladies can 234 00:11:10,647 --> 00:11:11,089 be a boss. 235 00:11:11,089 --> 00:11:17,145 I went in when she was having her last daughter and she the 236 00:11:17,206 --> 00:11:21,890 first day cause I started in January, mid Nueces County heat. 237 00:11:21,890 --> 00:11:25,205 She was very heavily pregnant, like she was getting ready to go 238 00:11:25,205 --> 00:11:27,445 maternity leave, and there she is pushing steers through the 239 00:11:27,465 --> 00:11:29,299 chute and I was like you know what I can do that Like, if 240 00:11:29,360 --> 00:11:33,350 she's pregnant and doing all this stuff, I'm okay, cause I 241 00:11:33,389 --> 00:11:35,961 was still kind of nervous, cause I you get to meet all those 242 00:11:35,981 --> 00:11:36,523 people in college. 243 00:11:36,523 --> 00:11:39,327 You're like my grandpa's had a ranch for 50 years and I'm like 244 00:11:39,447 --> 00:11:43,634 I live in a neighborhood and I have three dogs like that was. 245 00:11:43,634 --> 00:11:45,378 That was my closest tie. 246 00:11:45,378 --> 00:11:49,528 All my experience was through my little county and stuff like 247 00:11:49,568 --> 00:11:53,580 that, and so I learned a lot with Francis and through that 248 00:11:53,620 --> 00:11:58,072 program and I really, really that that got me ready to go. 249 00:11:58,072 --> 00:12:00,539 So I graduated when I was 20. 250 00:12:00,539 --> 00:12:05,210 I never I tell my my kids now is like I I love dual enrollment 251 00:12:05,210 --> 00:12:08,364 , but I didn't live the college you see in on TV. 252 00:12:08,364 --> 00:12:11,731 I was so and I think it made me the teacher I am today. 253 00:12:11,731 --> 00:12:14,528 Because I was so hyper focused, because I was ready to go. 254 00:12:14,528 --> 00:12:18,500 I only had so many hours I could do and so I graduated at 255 00:12:18,561 --> 00:12:19,000 20. 256 00:12:19,682 --> 00:12:23,006 And I started looking for a job which I wanted to move back home 257 00:12:23,006 --> 00:12:23,006 . 258 00:12:23,006 --> 00:12:27,894 I knew I wanted to be close to home and I always tell everyone 259 00:12:27,933 --> 00:12:32,080 I had to GPS my way to my first job because I never heard of the 260 00:12:32,080 --> 00:12:32,662 town before. 261 00:12:32,662 --> 00:12:35,094 Um, I think you're familiar with it because I feel like I've 262 00:12:35,094 --> 00:12:36,659 seen you post from Port Mansfield before. 263 00:12:36,659 --> 00:12:42,047 But my first job was in San Francisco, texas, population 501 264 00:12:42,047 --> 00:12:47,674 , like very, very small, and my ag teacher had heard about the 265 00:12:47,695 --> 00:12:49,402 position and he's like I think you should apply. 266 00:12:49,402 --> 00:12:51,288 And I said it's a single teacher department. 267 00:12:51,288 --> 00:12:52,070 What do you want me to do? 268 00:12:52,070 --> 00:12:55,326 Like I had just mentored under one of the biggest programs with 269 00:12:55,326 --> 00:12:56,549 four other teachers. 270 00:12:56,549 --> 00:12:58,321 He's like no, you'll be fine, apply. 271 00:12:58,321 --> 00:13:01,246 So I GPS my way, go to the interview. 272 00:13:01,246 --> 00:13:04,613 And I just remember pulling up and I was like, wow, this, 273 00:13:04,712 --> 00:13:06,522 there's literally one light in this town. 274 00:13:06,522 --> 00:13:09,849 There's no Starbucks, there's no gas stations, there's no 275 00:13:09,970 --> 00:13:10,471 McDonald's. 276 00:13:10,471 --> 00:13:13,426 Like it's 20 minutes from anything and if you're going to 277 00:13:13,446 --> 00:13:14,448 Port Mansfield you'll miss it. 278 00:13:14,448 --> 00:13:14,710 People. 279 00:13:14,710 --> 00:13:16,888 I always tell people you know the blinking light where you can 280 00:13:16,888 --> 00:13:17,370 turn left. 281 00:13:17,370 --> 00:13:18,134 That's where we were. 282 00:13:19,038 --> 00:13:22,825 I interviewed, I got the position and I'm probably the I 283 00:13:22,845 --> 00:13:25,008 think I'm the first female ag teacher they had and they're 284 00:13:25,028 --> 00:13:29,413 probably the youngest and I I kind of went to work and I 285 00:13:29,573 --> 00:13:33,126 always tell teachers that are starting out you have to start 286 00:13:33,187 --> 00:13:35,052 somewhere and you've got to learn somewhere. 287 00:13:35,052 --> 00:13:38,303 And so I learned a lot with my kids. 288 00:13:38,303 --> 00:13:39,187 I got hired. 289 00:13:39,187 --> 00:13:42,278 One week later I was taking these kids to say convention had 290 00:13:42,278 --> 00:13:43,201 never met them before. 291 00:13:43,201 --> 00:13:44,927 We loaded them in a van. 292 00:13:44,927 --> 00:13:46,653 I'm only a few years older than a lot of these kids to say 293 00:13:46,674 --> 00:13:48,259 convention had never met them before we loaded them in a van. 294 00:13:48,259 --> 00:13:53,102 I'm only a few years older than a lot of these kids, so we grew 295 00:13:53,102 --> 00:13:54,365 together and my San Prelita chapter is one of my favorite 296 00:13:54,405 --> 00:13:57,232 chapters that I have in my life because it was eight years of me 297 00:13:57,232 --> 00:14:02,631 growing myself in a program and so it's a really small county, 298 00:14:02,672 --> 00:14:03,413 willisee County. 299 00:14:03,413 --> 00:14:05,785 We got in there and I had a lot of. 300 00:14:05,785 --> 00:14:09,847 I followed a very tenured teacher so it was scary because 301 00:14:09,888 --> 00:14:14,721 that guy had been there forever and I started to get to work. 302 00:14:14,721 --> 00:14:16,765 We did a lot of the leadership stuff. 303 00:14:16,765 --> 00:14:19,351 We opened those doors to kids to do contests. 304 00:14:20,302 --> 00:14:23,688 Um, it was a big show community so I learned a lot about other 305 00:14:23,749 --> 00:14:24,470 show species. 306 00:14:24,470 --> 00:14:28,650 Um, I showed pigs through high school but I learned about, I 307 00:14:28,691 --> 00:14:31,341 learned to do different things with the different animals, like 308 00:14:31,341 --> 00:14:32,104 the goats, the lambs. 309 00:14:32,104 --> 00:14:32,544 I had to. 310 00:14:32,544 --> 00:14:33,267 I was the only teacher. 311 00:14:33,267 --> 00:14:36,063 So it was a lot of trial and error and that's something I 312 00:14:36,124 --> 00:14:38,068 always tell people don't be scared to try. 313 00:14:38,068 --> 00:14:40,804 You mess up one time, you can figure it out, you learn from it 314 00:14:40,804 --> 00:14:40,804 . 315 00:14:40,804 --> 00:14:45,837 And it was a really good experience for me because I got 316 00:14:45,857 --> 00:14:46,600 to do everything. 317 00:14:46,600 --> 00:14:50,307 I taught shop, I did horticulture, I did that, 318 00:14:50,346 --> 00:14:51,288 lifestyle classes. 319 00:14:51,288 --> 00:14:55,063 I did all of the, the SAE projects with the animals and, 320 00:14:55,946 --> 00:14:58,171 um, even doing like the leadership. 321 00:14:58,191 --> 00:15:02,385 That was something that I feel like I left my mark there with 322 00:15:02,466 --> 00:15:04,570 that, because those kids only knew show. 323 00:15:04,570 --> 00:15:07,434 They didn't know what else FFA has to offer. 324 00:15:07,434 --> 00:15:09,509 And I feel like that's where some chapters are at a 325 00:15:09,548 --> 00:15:12,982 disadvantage, because it's not just about livestock, it's about 326 00:15:12,982 --> 00:15:15,691 the leadership that you get from being an FFA member. 327 00:15:15,691 --> 00:15:20,085 You got to take advantage of everything and so we ended up 328 00:15:20,245 --> 00:15:21,951 having I really really loved it there. 329 00:15:21,951 --> 00:15:25,951 It was my favorite, like I I said my favorite chapter in my 330 00:15:26,059 --> 00:15:30,611 history and we had kids that I took my first team to state 331 00:15:30,652 --> 00:15:30,873 there. 332 00:15:30,873 --> 00:15:34,321 Um, my livestock judging team placed fourth at area. 333 00:15:34,360 --> 00:15:35,322 Who made it to state. 334 00:15:35,322 --> 00:15:37,607 That was like one of my top tier. 335 00:15:37,607 --> 00:15:40,903 You made it moments, um, and my eye teacher was even like damn, 336 00:15:40,903 --> 00:15:42,628 like you haven't even been teaching that long. 337 00:15:42,628 --> 00:15:43,311 That's not fair. 338 00:15:43,311 --> 00:15:45,346 And I was like, well, I was a nerd. 339 00:15:45,346 --> 00:15:47,113 We put the work in, we got it done. 340 00:15:47,113 --> 00:15:49,221 We had a lot of mentorship that helped get there. 341 00:15:49,221 --> 00:15:51,974 I got to experience a lot of firsts with them, all my firsts. 342 00:15:51,974 --> 00:15:54,822 But I went to national convention with one of my girls 343 00:15:54,842 --> 00:15:59,072 I don't know if you remember way back when um god, I don't know 344 00:15:59,331 --> 00:16:02,846 what year it was she was the talent contestant at state 345 00:16:02,865 --> 00:16:03,346 convention. 346 00:16:03,346 --> 00:16:06,214 That's staying, selena Carson. 347 00:16:06,320 --> 00:16:06,922 Speaker 1: That was my kid. 348 00:16:07,302 --> 00:16:12,847 Speaker 3: Yes, she, she was one of mine and she, she won state 349 00:16:13,269 --> 00:16:14,491 and we went to national convention. 350 00:16:14,491 --> 00:16:15,864 She competed at national. 351 00:16:15,864 --> 00:16:19,566 So she gave me that opportunity and it was a really good 352 00:16:19,605 --> 00:16:20,528 experience with that. 353 00:16:20,528 --> 00:16:25,049 And so it started to grow into a monster, I say because our 354 00:16:25,070 --> 00:16:26,760 program got so popular. 355 00:16:26,760 --> 00:16:31,070 There was only so much to do there, but it became a very big 356 00:16:31,269 --> 00:16:31,831 project. 357 00:16:32,692 --> 00:16:37,392 And I got the opportunity from one of the teachers that moved 358 00:16:37,432 --> 00:16:38,053 to IDEA. 359 00:16:38,053 --> 00:16:40,301 She said look, this is what we're trying to do. 360 00:16:40,301 --> 00:16:43,609 It's at a public, it's at a charter school, but I think 361 00:16:43,649 --> 00:16:45,232 you'd be a good fit for the program. 362 00:16:45,232 --> 00:16:51,590 So she invited me in, I interviewed, I got a position 363 00:16:52,371 --> 00:16:55,326 and we started working together to build this program. 364 00:16:55,326 --> 00:16:58,457 She moved on to another school because she got an opening at 365 00:16:58,518 --> 00:17:01,447 our hometown chapter and I said understood, I got, that's an 366 00:17:01,567 --> 00:17:03,412 opportunity of a lifetime to teach where you grow. 367 00:17:03,412 --> 00:17:04,642 Understood, that's an opportunity of a lifetime to 368 00:17:04,662 --> 00:17:05,221 teach where you grow. 369 00:17:05,221 --> 00:17:08,326 And so it kind of left me in a space where I was very nervous 370 00:17:08,346 --> 00:17:12,451 because Idea did not know what they were doing. 371 00:17:12,451 --> 00:17:15,316 They were relying on us to kind of build this program. 372 00:17:15,316 --> 00:17:19,844 They knew what they wanted, but the work had to be put in, yes. 373 00:17:19,864 --> 00:17:24,538 So I started putting my head down and getting to work with a 374 00:17:24,578 --> 00:17:28,332 group of eighth grade kids that knew nothing about agriculture, 375 00:17:28,372 --> 00:17:32,340 but what I've ever told them, and I told myself you need to 376 00:17:32,362 --> 00:17:37,297 make them fall in love with it, like Mr D made you fall in love 377 00:17:37,336 --> 00:17:37,637 with it. 378 00:17:37,637 --> 00:17:41,565 And so we talked about it in class. 379 00:17:41,565 --> 00:17:42,792 We started. 380 00:17:42,792 --> 00:17:43,173 I told him. 381 00:17:43,173 --> 00:17:44,397 I said this is a two-year commitment. 382 00:17:44,397 --> 00:17:46,651 If we're going to charter, I need you guys on board. 383 00:17:46,651 --> 00:17:48,814 And so they said okay, we're ready. 384 00:17:48,814 --> 00:17:52,637 So it was five girls, five eighth grade girls, and we went 385 00:17:52,738 --> 00:17:55,961 through the process of chartering and it's 15 steps. 386 00:17:55,961 --> 00:17:57,403 You got to meet all your deadlines. 387 00:17:57,403 --> 00:18:03,570 I was dealing with Gwen, who was a godsend, and then it came 388 00:18:03,590 --> 00:18:04,032 time to the site visit. 389 00:18:04,053 --> 00:18:06,219 And they said, okay, they're going to send the big wigs from 390 00:18:06,358 --> 00:18:07,711 FFA to see if you guys got it. 391 00:18:07,711 --> 00:18:09,236 And I said, okay, how do we prepare? 392 00:18:09,236 --> 00:18:11,571 And they're like, we'll just touch these touch points, which 393 00:18:11,632 --> 00:18:13,758 I feel is like a test to you to see what you can do. 394 00:18:13,758 --> 00:18:18,013 And so I said, okay, we got to hit XYZ girls and she's like, 395 00:18:18,074 --> 00:18:20,678 but you can't help them, they have to know the knowledge they 396 00:18:20,698 --> 00:18:22,300 have to put together the presentation. 397 00:18:22,300 --> 00:18:23,201 I was like, okay, great. 398 00:18:23,201 --> 00:18:27,789 So we we grinded those five girls really worked at it, we 399 00:18:27,829 --> 00:18:31,402 learned everything, we competed in everything and we kind of 400 00:18:31,462 --> 00:18:35,192 shook it up because we were the first idea to get that program 401 00:18:35,232 --> 00:18:35,513 going. 402 00:18:35,513 --> 00:18:40,522 And in our, in our inaugural year, we had a really good run. 403 00:18:40,522 --> 00:18:44,742 We had one of our eighth graders end up being a top five 404 00:18:44,782 --> 00:18:47,251 in the state and finalists for Spanish Crete as an eighth 405 00:18:47,271 --> 00:18:47,531 grader. 406 00:18:47,752 --> 00:18:47,972 Speaker 2: Wow. 407 00:18:48,494 --> 00:18:50,219 Speaker 3: That that was wild. 408 00:18:50,219 --> 00:18:52,210 She was officially the youngest contestant that year and 409 00:18:52,250 --> 00:18:53,094 everyone's like are you lost? 410 00:18:53,094 --> 00:18:55,565 They said no, she's going into semi-finals heat. 411 00:18:55,565 --> 00:19:00,800 But she ended up top five and then we also were top four in 412 00:19:00,820 --> 00:19:03,007 the area for horse judging and went to state that year. 413 00:19:03,007 --> 00:19:05,661 So we hit state two years in our first year it was. 414 00:19:05,661 --> 00:19:10,013 It was a very powerful moment but it was also scary because I 415 00:19:10,034 --> 00:19:11,037 was like, oh no, what are we doing? 416 00:19:11,037 --> 00:19:16,317 But we chartered and it's just been hitting the ground running 417 00:19:16,337 --> 00:19:16,679 from there. 418 00:19:16,679 --> 00:19:17,080 We've. 419 00:19:17,080 --> 00:19:22,394 We've grown to be from one eye teacher to we're at four now 420 00:19:22,515 --> 00:19:28,682 with about a little under 350 members, and we've just been 421 00:19:29,063 --> 00:19:32,934 moving and grooving since so it's called idea yes, it's 422 00:19:32,974 --> 00:19:35,660 through the idea public school system and it's a charter school 423 00:19:36,281 --> 00:19:40,316 Speaker 2: yes, sir and you started with one now you're four 424 00:19:40,316 --> 00:19:43,923 , yes, and you started with eight kids. 425 00:19:43,923 --> 00:19:44,703 Is that what you said? 426 00:19:45,291 --> 00:19:45,755 Speaker 3: so we had. 427 00:19:45,755 --> 00:19:48,872 We had eighth graders, so they were in eighth grade. 428 00:19:48,872 --> 00:19:50,718 Okay, we had, and it's so. 429 00:19:50,718 --> 00:19:55,269 I've been having a moment all all week because we started back 430 00:19:55,269 --> 00:19:55,530 to school. 431 00:19:55,530 --> 00:19:57,938 They're juniors now, but they were my founding. 432 00:19:57,938 --> 00:20:00,231 We're the aggies also, that's our, our school mascot. 433 00:20:00,231 --> 00:20:03,626 So they're my founding aggies and my principal's like okay, 434 00:20:03,727 --> 00:20:05,531 here's your principles about class go. 435 00:20:05,531 --> 00:20:10,161 And so I taught the basic principles of ag class to eighth 436 00:20:10,161 --> 00:20:12,223 graders who had never been in ag. 437 00:20:13,090 --> 00:20:16,835 It's a very urban place where I'm at, we're kind of between 438 00:20:16,875 --> 00:20:22,057 Mission and Palmview, but I had to fuel those kids to understand 439 00:20:22,057 --> 00:20:25,672 what FFA was and what all they have to do, and it's a very 440 00:20:25,751 --> 00:20:27,356 heavily Hispanic area. 441 00:20:27,356 --> 00:20:32,657 So when we first started out, I got the typical like we don't 442 00:20:32,678 --> 00:20:35,002 look like them, this isn't, this isn't us. 443 00:20:35,002 --> 00:20:39,077 And I always tell them, I joke with them, because my mom's 444 00:20:39,097 --> 00:20:40,141 Hispanic, my dad's white. 445 00:20:40,141 --> 00:20:42,452 I'm like I'm half offended but I feel you. 446 00:20:42,452 --> 00:20:47,202 So I understand and so I said if we're going to join them, 447 00:20:47,222 --> 00:20:47,804 we're going to beat them. 448 00:20:47,804 --> 00:20:53,164 And so we got it, we got into it and we we've been very 449 00:20:53,365 --> 00:20:54,328 competitive ever since. 450 00:20:54,328 --> 00:20:56,358 I've raised little monsters because now they feel like 451 00:20:56,378 --> 00:20:57,384 they're the best at everything. 452 00:20:57,384 --> 00:21:01,457 But I'd rather them be confident and wanting to try 453 00:21:01,537 --> 00:21:04,570 because there's I've learned also to never turn them away 454 00:21:04,611 --> 00:21:05,353 from a contest. 455 00:21:05,353 --> 00:21:07,319 We're going to try everything and figure it out. 456 00:21:07,710 --> 00:21:09,155 Speaker 2: Well, I mean, that's life right. 457 00:21:09,155 --> 00:21:13,942 You're helping them understand that it's a big world out there 458 00:21:14,810 --> 00:21:16,336 and you don't need to be afraid of it. 459 00:21:16,336 --> 00:21:19,500 And the other thing that I like is Dr Gordon Davis. 460 00:21:19,500 --> 00:21:22,737 He's the gentleman that made the big contribution to Texas 461 00:21:22,778 --> 00:21:23,619 Tech ICEV. 462 00:21:23,619 --> 00:21:27,598 They named you know it's the Davis College of Agriculture now 463 00:21:27,598 --> 00:21:27,598 . 464 00:21:27,598 --> 00:21:30,313 But I love what Dr Davis says. 465 00:21:30,313 --> 00:21:33,219 He tells everybody it's okay to win. 466 00:21:33,219 --> 00:21:38,035 It's okay to win, and I think it's great that you're willing 467 00:21:38,055 --> 00:21:39,961 to tell your kids it's okay to win. 468 00:21:39,961 --> 00:21:43,315 Nobody's handed it to you, nobody's given it to you. 469 00:21:43,315 --> 00:21:44,758 You're going to earn it. 470 00:21:44,758 --> 00:21:46,019 But guess what? 471 00:21:46,019 --> 00:21:47,963 If you earn it, it's okay to win. 472 00:21:50,730 --> 00:21:51,073 Speaker 3: And they've. 473 00:21:51,073 --> 00:21:52,196 They've really enjoyed it. 474 00:21:52,196 --> 00:21:53,834 They've become super competitive. 475 00:21:53,834 --> 00:21:59,173 And it made me happy because when we first started a lot of 476 00:21:59,193 --> 00:22:00,679 them were like, well, I'm not, so, not. 477 00:22:00,679 --> 00:22:02,634 So they ran show, which is what they would say, like I'm not 478 00:22:02,653 --> 00:22:12,711 from the farm, not from a ranch, and I said neither am I I. 479 00:22:12,711 --> 00:22:13,736 I said I lived in a neighborhood, I I had to buy my 480 00:22:13,756 --> 00:22:15,079 first show shirt in high school to show my pig, because I had 481 00:22:15,099 --> 00:22:15,962 never, I'd never, done a livestock show. 482 00:22:15,962 --> 00:22:16,765 And so I said I'm the same as you. 483 00:22:16,765 --> 00:22:20,034 I'm not, I'm not come from any kind of big corporation of 484 00:22:20,114 --> 00:22:21,395 agriculture history. 485 00:22:21,395 --> 00:22:22,258 I wish I did. 486 00:22:23,259 --> 00:22:25,463 And so it kind of relaxes and eases them in. 487 00:22:25,463 --> 00:22:29,432 Because that was my first thought when I first moved there 488 00:22:29,432 --> 00:22:29,432 . 489 00:22:29,432 --> 00:22:31,979 I said we're at a disadvantage because it's not a school set up 490 00:22:31,979 --> 00:22:32,821 for an act program. 491 00:22:32,821 --> 00:22:33,913 We didn't have a facility. 492 00:22:33,913 --> 00:22:36,642 Um, it was just a typical school. 493 00:22:36,642 --> 00:22:38,188 We're in an urban area. 494 00:22:38,188 --> 00:22:40,875 There's not a lot of farmland or anything around there for us 495 00:22:40,914 --> 00:22:41,676 to go off of. 496 00:22:41,676 --> 00:22:45,153 I'm gonna have to teach these kids what agriculture is and 497 00:22:45,193 --> 00:22:45,935 teach them to love it. 498 00:22:45,935 --> 00:22:52,176 And they truly have fallen in love with agriculture and it's 499 00:22:52,196 --> 00:22:55,183 just so crazy to see those eighth graders now as juniors, 500 00:22:56,271 --> 00:22:58,476 where they're at and what they're capable of. 501 00:22:58,476 --> 00:23:02,029 Two of those girls that started with me in eighth grade have 502 00:23:02,050 --> 00:23:03,531 become district officers. 503 00:23:03,531 --> 00:23:05,295 They both wanted to go on track to be area officers. 504 00:23:05,295 --> 00:23:06,296 Become district officers. 505 00:23:06,296 --> 00:23:07,477 They both wanted to go on track to be area officers. 506 00:23:07,477 --> 00:23:10,280 It's just, there's been a lot of growth and I'm starting to 507 00:23:10,361 --> 00:23:19,173 see the hard works of what we did so for the people that are 508 00:23:19,192 --> 00:23:19,393 listening. 509 00:23:19,432 --> 00:23:20,978 Speaker 2: You're hearing this incredible conversation and 510 00:23:20,998 --> 00:23:22,122 you're hearing about South Texas . 511 00:23:22,122 --> 00:23:24,829 I want to kind of put that in context for people that are not 512 00:23:24,891 --> 00:23:26,173 familiar with South Texas. 513 00:23:26,173 --> 00:23:31,403 Yes, a lot of times people say I say, have you ever been to 514 00:23:31,442 --> 00:23:31,943 South Texas? 515 00:23:31,943 --> 00:23:34,018 They said yes, I've been to San Antonio. 516 00:23:34,018 --> 00:23:36,017 And I said now, wait a second. 517 00:23:36,017 --> 00:23:40,037 I said let me help you understand that from San Antonio 518 00:23:40,037 --> 00:23:45,532 to Progreso, which is where Kat's at right, from San Antonio 519 00:23:45,532 --> 00:23:51,173 down, that far is right at four hours, it's right at 260 miles. 520 00:23:51,173 --> 00:23:56,281 Now to put this in even more context from where I live in 521 00:23:56,342 --> 00:24:03,277 North Texas to Progreso is nine hours, it's over 600 miles. 522 00:24:03,978 --> 00:24:09,163 And so when we talk about South Texas, the Rio Grande Valley, 523 00:24:09,223 --> 00:24:13,095 the Grandísimo Valle, you're talking about a stretch of land 524 00:24:13,115 --> 00:24:17,282 that goes right along the Texas-Mexico border and it's 525 00:24:17,343 --> 00:24:21,959 just lined with all of these great cities McAllen, west, laco 526 00:24:21,959 --> 00:24:24,604 , mercedes, donna all the way down. 527 00:24:24,604 --> 00:24:33,630 It just goes all the way down to the Gulf of Mexico and it's 528 00:24:33,650 --> 00:24:34,332 just an incredible part of Texas . 529 00:24:34,332 --> 00:24:35,575 If you've never experienced it, I highly recommend it. 530 00:24:35,575 --> 00:24:37,858 It's just a special place and I love talking about the Valley 531 00:24:38,119 --> 00:24:41,373 because I've enjoyed so much getting to know the people, the 532 00:24:41,433 --> 00:24:45,722 culture, the food, the la familia, the family connection, 533 00:24:51,170 --> 00:24:52,252 food, the la familia, the family connection. 534 00:24:52,252 --> 00:24:53,557 So I think all of that is important because when we're 535 00:24:53,576 --> 00:24:55,844 listening to you describe your students and describe some of 536 00:24:55,884 --> 00:25:00,234 those mental hurdles that they may have to get over, they have 537 00:25:00,275 --> 00:25:04,584 to have a mentor that helps them see beyond the city limits, 538 00:25:05,470 --> 00:25:09,721 that sees beyond the county, and I think that's kind of what 539 00:25:09,761 --> 00:25:13,057 you're lending to their discussion, is you're helping 540 00:25:13,076 --> 00:25:15,522 them see a bigger worldview. 541 00:25:17,590 --> 00:25:21,357 Speaker 3: And I don't think I had ever put it into perspective 542 00:25:21,357 --> 00:25:24,624 until we started to expand and leave. 543 00:25:24,624 --> 00:25:26,973 A lot of my kids have never been outside of the Valley. 544 00:25:26,973 --> 00:25:31,040 When I love the Valley also because something I've learned 545 00:25:31,060 --> 00:25:38,011 to love being in that part, because obviously I'm from the 546 00:25:38,031 --> 00:25:39,094 Valley, but we are also the citrus capital where, where, 547 00:25:39,114 --> 00:25:40,577 where you find all of your citrus it's probably come from 548 00:25:40,597 --> 00:25:43,673 down here, and so I started to tie those connections to kids 549 00:25:43,733 --> 00:25:47,690 and I didn't realize just how much we were opening doors until 550 00:25:47,690 --> 00:25:49,574 we started to go to different events. 551 00:25:49,574 --> 00:25:53,643 Some of the only times my students have been out of the 552 00:25:54,509 --> 00:25:56,296 valley have been with FFA. 553 00:25:56,296 --> 00:25:58,101 We've traveled to Texas A&M. 554 00:25:58,101 --> 00:26:01,891 We've traveled to Texas Tech they love Texas Tech, by the way 555 00:26:01,891 --> 00:26:07,362 but they had never been past McAllen, they had never seen 556 00:26:07,481 --> 00:26:10,817 outside of the valley and I really enjoyed opening those 557 00:26:10,876 --> 00:26:11,799 opportunities to them. 558 00:26:11,840 --> 00:26:14,609 Because now I smile and smirk when they talk to other kids 559 00:26:14,650 --> 00:26:17,635 Because like, yes, that one time I went to tech and we judged 560 00:26:17,695 --> 00:26:19,840 horse judging, like they think they're the coolest things now 561 00:26:20,141 --> 00:26:21,364 because they've seen so much. 562 00:26:21,364 --> 00:26:25,938 But for some of my students that have never experienced 563 00:26:25,978 --> 00:26:28,563 anything like that, for them now to be like I think I can go to 564 00:26:28,603 --> 00:26:31,737 school here, Like that's where I'm like, OK, we're doing 565 00:26:31,777 --> 00:26:34,818 something right, they can see what they can do. 566 00:26:34,818 --> 00:26:38,192 Not that nothing's available for them in the valley, but I 567 00:26:38,252 --> 00:26:41,601 wanted them to open doors and I wanted them to see what they're 568 00:26:41,621 --> 00:26:42,202 capable of. 569 00:26:43,570 --> 00:26:45,958 Speaker 2: Man, that's good, that's real good. 570 00:26:45,958 --> 00:26:47,563 Man, that's good, that's real good. 571 00:26:47,563 --> 00:27:08,269 No-transcript. 572 00:27:16,509 --> 00:27:17,451 Speaker 3: Like I mentioned before, I always tie back to 573 00:27:17,471 --> 00:27:19,476 being open, and one of the biggest blessings I have in my 574 00:27:19,536 --> 00:27:22,280 life is the fact that I didn't grow up in agriculture, but now 575 00:27:22,321 --> 00:27:23,503 my life revolves around it. 576 00:27:23,503 --> 00:27:27,359 I had mentioned before, or I haven't mentioned it yet, but my 577 00:27:27,359 --> 00:27:31,544 husband's also an ag teacher, so we're a family of ag teachers 578 00:27:31,544 --> 00:27:31,544 . 579 00:27:32,287 --> 00:27:33,891 Speaker 2: So you were telling me a little bit about your 580 00:27:33,931 --> 00:27:36,436 husband and go ahead and keep going from there. 581 00:27:37,358 --> 00:27:37,740 Speaker 3: Yes, sir. 582 00:27:37,740 --> 00:27:39,810 So he's also an ag teacher. 583 00:27:39,810 --> 00:27:43,076 We met in college, going through the ag science program 584 00:27:43,096 --> 00:27:47,663 there at Kingsville, and I've learned how important support is 585 00:27:47,663 --> 00:27:52,657 through him because he's been there so much throughout my 586 00:27:53,078 --> 00:27:54,421 whole entire career. 587 00:27:54,421 --> 00:27:58,734 We started dating outside of me first getting my first job. 588 00:27:58,734 --> 00:28:02,282 He was always there for me when I was learning the ropes 589 00:28:02,343 --> 00:28:06,461 because he grew up in a family that was agriculture based. 590 00:28:06,461 --> 00:28:09,711 He grew up with his family owning a cattle business, which 591 00:28:09,771 --> 00:28:11,934 was always a dream of mine because I said I lived in a 592 00:28:11,954 --> 00:28:14,076 neighborhood, didn't have access to that. 593 00:28:14,210 --> 00:28:17,070 So he's really taught me all the things that it takes and the 594 00:28:17,111 --> 00:28:20,621 hard work to own and run a program. 595 00:28:20,621 --> 00:28:26,538 So his support has showed me what opportunities can provide 596 00:28:26,578 --> 00:28:30,493 to people, just knowing that you have somebody in your corner 597 00:28:30,513 --> 00:28:33,902 and knowing that there's always someone there to cheer you on 598 00:28:33,942 --> 00:28:36,213 and help you and teach you what you need to know. 599 00:28:36,213 --> 00:28:40,163 He's always taking the time and I think that's something that 600 00:28:40,691 --> 00:28:45,560 people need to do more of is to teach not only his students but 601 00:28:45,580 --> 00:28:51,132 myself and really just show me that everybody's capable of 602 00:28:51,492 --> 00:28:51,792 anything. 603 00:28:51,792 --> 00:28:52,575 You just have to try. 604 00:28:52,575 --> 00:28:57,584 And so he was one of my, is one of my biggest supporters and 605 00:28:57,630 --> 00:29:01,096 he's helped me get through and do a lot of what we do as a 606 00:29:01,136 --> 00:29:05,571 chapter, and so he's also taught me looking for opportunities 607 00:29:05,652 --> 00:29:10,719 for students and we've been able to figure out and find things 608 00:29:10,880 --> 00:29:15,145 that are available to our students and fit their their 609 00:29:15,205 --> 00:29:15,807 specialties. 610 00:29:15,807 --> 00:29:20,180 So we've figured out the opportunities that open when you 611 00:29:20,180 --> 00:29:22,992 are a good speaker, things learning those leadership skills 612 00:29:22,992 --> 00:29:26,078 that are super important to not just being successful in a 613 00:29:26,098 --> 00:29:28,703 contest but just being a good person. 614 00:29:29,329 --> 00:29:33,239 I think the FFA does such an amazing job of that because it 615 00:29:33,298 --> 00:29:35,324 teaches you those real life world skills. 616 00:29:35,324 --> 00:29:39,559 I feel like every coach says that they're teaching them 617 00:29:39,700 --> 00:29:43,440 lifelong skills and every teacher says they're teaching 618 00:29:43,480 --> 00:29:44,430 them lifelong skills. 619 00:29:44,430 --> 00:29:48,811 But I think this organization goes above and beyond when it 620 00:29:49,232 --> 00:29:50,676 talks about molding our students . 621 00:29:50,676 --> 00:29:54,834 Something my principal always says is I can tell our students 622 00:29:54,973 --> 00:29:58,582 from typical acts or typical ideas students right away, 623 00:29:58,662 --> 00:30:01,115 because our kids know how to shake a hand, they know how to 624 00:30:01,154 --> 00:30:05,011 talk to adults, they know how to advocate for themselves. 625 00:30:05,011 --> 00:30:08,401 They've done so much advocating for themselves in growing our 626 00:30:08,441 --> 00:30:08,801 chapter. 627 00:30:08,801 --> 00:30:12,074 And she says you don't see that , you don't see that in students 628 00:30:12,074 --> 00:30:16,583 outside of this organization, and so I've learned that that 629 00:30:16,663 --> 00:30:17,750 opens a lot of opportunities. 630 00:30:17,750 --> 00:30:18,913 It's not who you know. 631 00:30:18,913 --> 00:30:21,260 It's what you can do and what you bring to the table. 632 00:30:21,630 --> 00:30:23,396 Speaker 2: And success begets success. 633 00:30:23,396 --> 00:30:25,415 So by teaching those kids those little things, they have 634 00:30:25,435 --> 00:30:26,559 success and they're like, wow, igets success. 635 00:30:26,559 --> 00:30:28,307 So by teaching those kids those little things, they have 636 00:30:28,366 --> 00:30:31,778 success and they're like, wow, I had success. 637 00:30:31,778 --> 00:30:35,496 Well, maybe I can have it over here, or maybe I can pursue it 638 00:30:35,596 --> 00:30:36,057 over here. 639 00:30:36,057 --> 00:30:38,809 And then the other thing that I like that you're doing. 640 00:30:38,809 --> 00:30:42,913 One of my favorite quotes from Tony Robbins is he says success 641 00:30:43,034 --> 00:30:49,395 leaves clues, and I love that, because your success, you're 642 00:30:49,455 --> 00:30:50,740 leaving clues for them. 643 00:30:50,740 --> 00:30:54,469 Their success, they're now leaving clues for the kids that 644 00:30:54,489 --> 00:30:57,656 are following in their footsteps and it's just going to keep 645 00:30:57,724 --> 00:30:59,750 getting better and better and better. 646 00:30:59,750 --> 00:31:01,554 So talk leadership with me. 647 00:31:01,554 --> 00:31:06,491 If you could give a kid three leadership skills and say here 648 00:31:06,551 --> 00:31:09,837 are three skills to be successful in life, what would 649 00:31:09,857 --> 00:31:10,199 they be? 650 00:31:11,726 --> 00:31:13,127 Speaker 3: Number one is confidence. 651 00:31:13,127 --> 00:31:18,398 That's something that I lacked and I still lack at times, and 652 00:31:18,459 --> 00:31:24,538 that's why I say support is so important, because I am very 653 00:31:24,618 --> 00:31:28,229 much an overthinker when it comes to things and that's what 654 00:31:28,490 --> 00:31:32,227 limited me sometimes when it comes to putting myself out 655 00:31:32,267 --> 00:31:36,016 there and I kind of have to put myself in a mindset Like my 656 00:31:36,056 --> 00:31:38,451 husband says you've got this, you can do it, just try it, just 657 00:31:38,451 --> 00:31:38,833 try it. 658 00:31:38,833 --> 00:31:39,938 And so I have to. 659 00:31:39,938 --> 00:31:43,888 I have to put myself out there in a lot of ways and I think 660 00:31:43,949 --> 00:31:45,471 kids need to have that confidence. 661 00:31:45,471 --> 00:31:49,258 It's not being cocky, it's not being, it's not saying you're 662 00:31:49,278 --> 00:31:52,269 better than everyone else, it's just having the confidence in 663 00:31:52,609 --> 00:31:56,617 yourself to just take that chance with yourself, do what 664 00:31:56,637 --> 00:31:57,207 you need to do. 665 00:31:57,207 --> 00:32:01,721 So confidence, I feel, is key and I've humbled my kids a lot 666 00:32:01,781 --> 00:32:02,905 because I said you know what? 667 00:32:02,905 --> 00:32:04,651 You're not better than anyone, you're just good. 668 00:32:04,651 --> 00:32:07,847 You got to be better, you can always be better and we always 669 00:32:07,887 --> 00:32:09,151 look for opportunity to grow. 670 00:32:09,151 --> 00:32:12,096 So confidence is one of my best ones. 671 00:32:12,356 --> 00:32:16,605 I also think a good leadership skill to have is going to be 672 00:32:16,665 --> 00:32:17,467 responsibility. 673 00:32:17,467 --> 00:32:21,836 With roles comes a lot of responsibility, and I've learned 674 00:32:21,836 --> 00:32:27,554 that as I've gone through my career is you start to get 675 00:32:27,614 --> 00:32:28,154 offered things. 676 00:32:28,154 --> 00:32:30,519 Like you said, because you're successful, like you know what 677 00:32:30,539 --> 00:32:31,201 you'd be great at this. 678 00:32:31,201 --> 00:32:34,465 Like you said, because you're successful, like you know what 679 00:32:34,486 --> 00:32:35,590 you'd be great at this, you do this and so it's a lot of 680 00:32:35,611 --> 00:32:36,856 responsibility and it's making sure that you're able to not 681 00:32:36,876 --> 00:32:39,046 only be responsible for yourself , but if you're leading others, 682 00:32:39,066 --> 00:32:41,631 you need to be a good leader in that set. 683 00:32:41,631 --> 00:32:46,486 So being able to manage all the things you need to manage and 684 00:32:46,526 --> 00:32:49,472 be responsible for that, I think responsibility is a big 685 00:32:49,953 --> 00:32:51,317 leadership skill to have. 686 00:32:51,317 --> 00:32:55,414 The other one, I would have to say, is going to be 687 00:32:55,454 --> 00:32:56,257 vulnerability. 688 00:32:56,257 --> 00:32:59,895 I think that you need to be open to the ideas of others, 689 00:33:00,577 --> 00:33:03,470 because there's not always going to be. 690 00:33:03,470 --> 00:33:05,204 Your path changes, right. 691 00:33:05,204 --> 00:33:09,426 Like you said, you find clues to what you want to do, and just 692 00:33:09,426 --> 00:33:13,034 the change that I've seen in students has made me realize 693 00:33:13,094 --> 00:33:15,679 they're very vulnerable with me because they don't know what 694 00:33:15,699 --> 00:33:16,140 we're doing. 695 00:33:16,140 --> 00:33:18,430 I tell them to get ready for a contest. 696 00:33:18,430 --> 00:33:19,352 We're leaving in the morning. 697 00:33:19,352 --> 00:33:21,978 They're going to jump in and if they figure it out, they figure 698 00:33:21,978 --> 00:33:22,198 it out. 699 00:33:22,198 --> 00:33:31,385 Be open to it. 700 00:33:31,405 --> 00:33:32,729 Like a lot of them, I always use my Spanish creed eighth grade 701 00:33:32,749 --> 00:33:33,632 Spanish creed contestant as my example. 702 00:33:33,632 --> 00:33:38,304 I talk about this because she was a EB student, meaning 703 00:33:38,423 --> 00:33:39,645 Spanish was her first language. 704 00:33:39,645 --> 00:33:45,952 She wasn't the most confident when I got her, but she wanted 705 00:33:45,992 --> 00:33:52,580 to be active and she comes from a part of Mexico that has a very 706 00:33:52,580 --> 00:33:53,241 heavy diction. 707 00:33:53,241 --> 00:33:58,173 So me, naturally, I was like you know what it's going to be a 708 00:33:58,173 --> 00:34:01,606 challenge because, number one, it's your second language, 709 00:34:01,647 --> 00:34:02,650 you're still learning English. 710 00:34:02,650 --> 00:34:07,833 Number two, you're going to have to overcome that part of 711 00:34:09,097 --> 00:34:09,759 your life, right. 712 00:34:09,759 --> 00:34:11,443 And so I said you know what? 713 00:34:11,443 --> 00:34:12,326 What about Spanish creed? 714 00:34:12,326 --> 00:34:14,632 I said you speak beautiful Spanish. 715 00:34:14,751 --> 00:34:18,065 I said let's take advantage of this, let's let's be vulnerable 716 00:34:18,186 --> 00:34:19,188 and look at it together. 717 00:34:19,188 --> 00:34:22,333 And so I gave her the creed. 718 00:34:22,333 --> 00:34:25,764 She got the creed down and it's . 719 00:34:25,764 --> 00:34:30,748 It was just like a duck to water, like I can listen to her 720 00:34:30,807 --> 00:34:31,688 say the creed every day. 721 00:34:31,688 --> 00:34:32,588 She just has. 722 00:34:32,588 --> 00:34:36,871 It was her passion and they got her to that top five spot as an 723 00:34:36,871 --> 00:34:37,411 eighth grader. 724 00:34:37,411 --> 00:34:41,574 I never thought I would have that, to be able to say that we 725 00:34:41,614 --> 00:34:43,914 had a top five student in our first year chartering. 726 00:34:43,914 --> 00:34:48,438 So that kind of opened her doors to be vulnerable to other 727 00:34:48,498 --> 00:34:49,117 opportunities. 728 00:34:49,117 --> 00:34:53,679 Now she's our chapter president , she's a district officer, she 729 00:34:53,760 --> 00:34:57,041 wants to go to school to become an agricultural recruiter. 730 00:34:57,041 --> 00:35:00,206 She wants to work in agriculture and this is a little 731 00:35:00,206 --> 00:35:04,235 girl if she never was vulnerable, would not have that 732 00:35:04,335 --> 00:35:06,018 opportunity that she has now. 733 00:35:06,018 --> 00:35:10,295 So vulnerability it sounds like a weakness to some, but I think 734 00:35:10,295 --> 00:35:12,047 you need to be open to ideas. 735 00:35:12,748 --> 00:35:15,534 Speaker 2: Every good leader that I deal with and that I 736 00:35:15,594 --> 00:35:17,278 communicate with, that I talk with. 737 00:35:17,278 --> 00:35:20,257 These are the very conversations we have, Because 738 00:35:20,297 --> 00:35:22,686 if you're not willing to be vulnerable, then you might not 739 00:35:22,726 --> 00:35:23,347 be coachable. 740 00:35:23,347 --> 00:35:28,858 Being vulnerable opens you up to be coachable and you know, 741 00:35:28,945 --> 00:35:32,346 sometimes you have to be willing to say critique me, Tell me 742 00:35:32,407 --> 00:35:36,594 what I can do better, Tell me where I might have missed an 743 00:35:36,693 --> 00:35:37,275 opportunity. 744 00:35:37,275 --> 00:35:41,094 And if you're coachable, that being coachable is a sign of 745 00:35:41,135 --> 00:35:45,213 vulnerability and most good leaders have that built into 746 00:35:45,233 --> 00:35:45,815 their DNA. 747 00:35:47,186 --> 00:35:49,278 Speaker 3: And it's been amazing to see her grow into that 748 00:35:49,318 --> 00:35:53,090 leadership role, because she was a girl that didn't really talk 749 00:35:53,152 --> 00:35:55,757 a lot because she felt like she couldn't communicate. 750 00:35:55,757 --> 00:35:59,893 And to see her, she she's told me she's like Ms V, like I want 751 00:35:59,914 --> 00:36:00,074 to do. 752 00:36:00,074 --> 00:36:01,157 This is this, is it. 753 00:36:01,157 --> 00:36:04,811 She's like FFA is my priority, this is where I belong, and so 754 00:36:04,911 --> 00:36:09,378 she's been our biggest advocate for our students to see, like if 755 00:36:09,378 --> 00:36:13,853 Ximena can do it, I can do it, and so she's in her district 756 00:36:13,873 --> 00:36:14,594 leadership role. 757 00:36:14,594 --> 00:36:17,079 I've been just so proud of her because I feel like sometimes 758 00:36:17,139 --> 00:36:20,313 those higher level officers have that reputation where it's like 759 00:36:20,313 --> 00:36:24,048 , oh, it's so-and-so, whose daddy was an FFA and they came 760 00:36:24,088 --> 00:36:26,670 from this such great stock, which doesn't take any away from 761 00:36:26,670 --> 00:36:36,009 the kid, but I feel like it means a little bit more when you 762 00:36:36,009 --> 00:36:37,572 come from somewhere like she does, and you inspire those 763 00:36:37,612 --> 00:36:38,954 other kids, like my kids at Palm Beauty do better. 764 00:36:38,976 --> 00:36:41,221 Speaker 2: Well, I appreciate so much of what you're sharing. 765 00:36:41,221 --> 00:36:44,512 People ask me all the time about all the podcasts that I've 766 00:36:44,512 --> 00:36:47,844 done and the people that I've had the honor of interviewing 767 00:36:48,045 --> 00:36:51,315 and talking to, and they've been great. 768 00:36:51,315 --> 00:36:55,152 But I got to say, when I hear your story, when I hear Kat 769 00:36:55,172 --> 00:36:58,726 Villareal's story, when I hear Justin Reyes's story, when I 770 00:36:58,847 --> 00:37:04,096 hear Archimedes Reyes's story, when I hear Lata Garcia's story 771 00:37:05,217 --> 00:37:07,349 especially three of y'all, because y'all come from the Rio 772 00:37:07,369 --> 00:37:10,137 Grande Valley it is very inspiring. 773 00:37:10,137 --> 00:37:15,360 It's inspiring because of some of the cultural norms that 774 00:37:15,440 --> 00:37:21,353 sometimes become barriers to taking risk, to stepping out, to 775 00:37:21,353 --> 00:37:26,166 trusting others, to finding those clues, and so when I hear 776 00:37:26,226 --> 00:37:31,099 y'all speak and I hear you on your journey, I hope that 777 00:37:31,219 --> 00:37:37,052 teachers and students alike will hear and say, wow, if they do 778 00:37:37,112 --> 00:37:38,454 it, maybe we can do it too. 779 00:37:38,454 --> 00:37:44,150 If Kat can do it and Della Cern has done it who's on the 780 00:37:44,190 --> 00:37:45,112 foundation board? 781 00:37:45,112 --> 00:37:49,150 And all these people that are just extraordinary young leaders 782 00:37:49,150 --> 00:37:51,487 , if they can do it, why can't I do it? 783 00:37:51,487 --> 00:37:54,673 And that's the reason I wanted you on the podcast. 784 00:37:54,894 --> 00:37:58,635 So you know one of the things I like to share with people is 785 00:37:58,695 --> 00:38:03,530 always ask them I said how many high schools are in Texas, and 786 00:38:03,570 --> 00:38:08,157 they always joke and somebody will say a lot yeah, so there's 787 00:38:08,197 --> 00:38:09,871 over 3000 high schools in Texas. 788 00:38:09,871 --> 00:38:13,230 Now think about this over 3000 high schools, how many of them 789 00:38:13,250 --> 00:38:15,295 are going to have a graduating class this coming year? 790 00:38:15,295 --> 00:38:17,186 Every one of them. 791 00:38:17,186 --> 00:38:20,536 That means kids are going to be out looking for a job, a 792 00:38:20,576 --> 00:38:22,027 scholarship or an opportunity. 793 00:38:22,027 --> 00:38:25,297 Question that I ask is what's your competitive edge? 794 00:38:25,297 --> 00:38:28,206 What separates you from the competition? 795 00:38:28,206 --> 00:38:32,548 It could be exactly what you said a while ago firm handshake, 796 00:38:32,548 --> 00:38:33,211 look him in the eye. 797 00:38:33,211 --> 00:38:33,894 Yes or no, sir? 798 00:38:33,894 --> 00:38:34,657 Yes, ma'am, no ma'am. 799 00:38:34,657 --> 00:38:37,789 It could be the fact that you made a connection in Lubbock, 800 00:38:37,829 --> 00:38:42,818 texas, which is miles from the Grand Dix-Saint-Mobilier. 801 00:38:42,818 --> 00:38:46,086 It could be the fact that you went to Texas A&M and made a 802 00:38:46,106 --> 00:38:46,527 connection. 803 00:38:46,527 --> 00:38:49,889 It could be the fact that you went to Austin, texas or Waco, 804 00:38:50,891 --> 00:38:53,413 but the end of the day, students . 805 00:38:54,313 --> 00:38:55,635 So, kat, what I appreciate? 806 00:38:55,635 --> 00:38:56,695 Something else that you're saying? 807 00:38:56,695 --> 00:38:57,996 This is just my soapbox. 808 00:38:57,996 --> 00:39:03,621 I tell the adults our job as adults, our job is to create 809 00:39:03,702 --> 00:39:04,302 opportunities. 810 00:39:04,302 --> 00:39:11,264 That's our job. 811 00:39:11,264 --> 00:39:12,646 And then I look at the kids and I say your job is to determine 812 00:39:12,666 --> 00:39:12,927 the outcome. 813 00:39:12,927 --> 00:39:14,108 You're not entitled to anything . 814 00:39:14,108 --> 00:39:18,514 We're going to do everything we can to encourage you, equip you 815 00:39:18,514 --> 00:39:22,719 and empower you, but at the end of the day, you've got to 816 00:39:22,759 --> 00:39:23,860 determine the outcome. 817 00:39:23,860 --> 00:39:32,527 You have to find your competitive edge and I just 818 00:39:32,547 --> 00:39:35,552 think it's great that teachers like you are out there pushing 819 00:39:35,572 --> 00:39:36,532 these kids. 820 00:39:36,532 --> 00:39:40,679 Tell them don't see hurdles, don't see boundaries, look for 821 00:39:40,858 --> 00:39:48,438 opportunities, work hard, be responsible and get it done and 822 00:39:48,498 --> 00:39:51,826 next thing you know, they could be the next podcast interview on 823 00:39:51,826 --> 00:39:53,333 the Growing Our Future podcast. 824 00:39:54,507 --> 00:39:59,735 Speaker 3: And I think competitive edge is such a 825 00:40:00,557 --> 00:40:03,769 controversial topic with kids these days because their idea of 826 00:40:03,769 --> 00:40:08,565 competitive edge is what they already have within them, like 827 00:40:08,666 --> 00:40:11,695 oh well, I know this because I grew up doing this and whatever 828 00:40:12,105 --> 00:40:14,474 that they feel like that entitles them to a competitive 829 00:40:14,574 --> 00:40:14,715 edge. 830 00:40:14,715 --> 00:40:19,637 But seeing my kids come from nothing to what they've done, 831 00:40:20,166 --> 00:40:24,427 you grow your competitive edge and you have to create it and 832 00:40:25,110 --> 00:40:29,768 it's something that it's open to everyone, like I always told my 833 00:40:29,768 --> 00:40:32,695 kids when we first started, I said everybody wears the same 834 00:40:32,735 --> 00:40:33,077 jacket. 835 00:40:33,077 --> 00:40:35,913 Everybody is where you're at. 836 00:40:35,913 --> 00:40:37,490 You are all on the same page. 837 00:40:37,490 --> 00:40:38,730 I said how bad do you want it? 838 00:40:38,730 --> 00:40:43,731 You got to put yourself in the game and it's just locking in 839 00:40:43,972 --> 00:40:45,175 and getting things done. 840 00:40:45,465 --> 00:40:49,454 And that's something that I've been very blessed to have so 841 00:40:49,494 --> 00:40:53,349 many mentors in my life that have showed me the opportunities 842 00:40:53,349 --> 00:40:53,349 . 843 00:40:53,349 --> 00:40:57,559 But it just means and I know every ag advisor thinks their 844 00:40:57,605 --> 00:41:03,199 kids are the best but my kids have come from nothing and 845 00:41:03,380 --> 00:41:05,967 anytime we would go into scenarios where we're going to 846 00:41:06,007 --> 00:41:09,822 state contests or an area contest they have that minute, 847 00:41:09,922 --> 00:41:11,849 like every kid does, where they're like oh no, what am I 848 00:41:11,909 --> 00:41:12,170 doing? 849 00:41:12,170 --> 00:41:13,393 And I said you're meant to be here. 850 00:41:13,393 --> 00:41:18,092 You need to get to work, do what you need to do, and they've 851 00:41:18,092 --> 00:41:24,525 made my career what it is, and I take no credit other than just 852 00:41:24,525 --> 00:41:27,311 being that ag teacher that's there to not let them turn 853 00:41:27,331 --> 00:41:28,934 around because I said I was you. 854 00:41:29,836 --> 00:41:34,753 I, I know what it's like to feel like you didn't come from your 855 00:41:34,793 --> 00:41:36,559 sister showing livestock all your life. 856 00:41:36,559 --> 00:41:39,528 You your first contest was a district contest. 857 00:41:39,528 --> 00:41:39,949 You didn't. 858 00:41:39,949 --> 00:41:41,432 You never knew anything about it. 859 00:41:41,432 --> 00:41:45,030 And that's my favorite part of watching them grow is because, 860 00:41:45,753 --> 00:41:48,804 when the history and everything comes down to it, people on 861 00:41:48,824 --> 00:41:50,771 paper and like, wow, these kids are so successful. 862 00:41:50,771 --> 00:41:54,972 But it's like if you only knew that they had no idea what FFA 863 00:41:55,012 --> 00:41:58,099 was before they took an ad class , you would be amazed. 864 00:41:58,625 --> 00:42:00,512 Speaker 2: Well, I mean, life's not a solo project. 865 00:42:00,512 --> 00:42:02,972 You're helping them understand that. 866 00:42:02,972 --> 00:42:07,333 You're helping them, that you have to be looking to know, like 867 00:42:07,333 --> 00:42:10,599 you said, you've got somebody there helping you build the 868 00:42:10,639 --> 00:42:11,400 confidence. 869 00:42:11,400 --> 00:42:13,210 You've got people that are willing to help you. 870 00:42:13,210 --> 00:42:14,916 But you've got to be looking. 871 00:42:14,916 --> 00:42:17,871 You've got to be working on developing your skills so that 872 00:42:17,891 --> 00:42:21,360 when the time comes to win that you can win because you're 873 00:42:21,400 --> 00:42:22,684 willing to outwork somebody. 874 00:42:22,684 --> 00:42:24,211 That was your competitive edge. 875 00:42:24,211 --> 00:42:29,425 So that's why I say I enjoy these conversations so much and 876 00:42:29,606 --> 00:42:31,833 they're not complicated conversations. 877 00:42:31,833 --> 00:42:34,293 These are not complicated ideas . 878 00:42:34,293 --> 00:42:38,295 It's like I tell people it's what you got inside called want 879 00:42:38,315 --> 00:42:38,476 to. 880 00:42:38,476 --> 00:42:42,228 You got to have a little want to and when you can find a 881 00:42:42,288 --> 00:42:45,717 person like you or a mentor or somebody that pulls that want to 882 00:42:45,717 --> 00:42:49,612 out of us, it's hard to stop somebody that's committed to 883 00:42:49,632 --> 00:42:50,092 greatness. 884 00:42:50,092 --> 00:42:52,706 So keep doing what you're doing . 885 00:42:52,706 --> 00:42:54,411 I just want to thank you. 886 00:42:54,753 --> 00:42:56,878 Okay, before we leave, you get one fun question. 887 00:42:56,878 --> 00:42:58,268 Everybody gets a fun question. 888 00:42:58,989 --> 00:42:59,630 Speaker 3: Okay, I'm ready. 889 00:43:00,052 --> 00:43:00,271 Speaker 2: Ready. 890 00:43:00,271 --> 00:43:03,164 What's the best concert you've ever been to? 891 00:43:04,347 --> 00:43:06,972 Speaker 3: The best concert I've ever been to. 892 00:43:06,972 --> 00:43:08,255 That's a tough one. 893 00:43:08,255 --> 00:43:16,288 Well, I have to think about that one for a little while. 894 00:43:16,288 --> 00:43:16,768 Oh, I know what, it is OK. 895 00:43:16,768 --> 00:43:19,155 So the best concert I've ever been to was actually my first 896 00:43:19,215 --> 00:43:19,697 concert. 897 00:43:20,385 --> 00:43:27,304 So this was back in the day I was in elementary school and 898 00:43:27,326 --> 00:43:29,693 this is where I told my parents I said all the signs were there, 899 00:43:29,693 --> 00:43:32,351 like I was meant to be a country kid, you guys. 900 00:43:32,351 --> 00:43:35,222 Just I was misplaced at birth or something. 901 00:43:35,222 --> 00:43:38,114 And because now my mom talks about it and she's always like 902 00:43:38,797 --> 00:43:41,206 man, if I would have known you would have taken this seriously, 903 00:43:41,206 --> 00:43:42,913 I would have bought you that steer, I would have bought you a 904 00:43:42,913 --> 00:43:44,246 heifer, you would have been everywhere. 905 00:43:44,246 --> 00:43:45,007 And I said you know what, mom? 906 00:43:45,007 --> 00:43:49,277 I think it makes my story even that much better, because I see 907 00:43:49,336 --> 00:43:52,088 all these people that are so successful and they become ag 908 00:43:52,108 --> 00:43:54,896 teachers and they're just these powerhouses and I sometimes I'm 909 00:43:54,916 --> 00:43:58,172 like I'm not going to get there, but I'm like it gives me that 910 00:43:58,353 --> 00:44:00,346 edge to show my kids you know what, you can do it. 911 00:44:01,168 --> 00:44:05,195 And I love country music since I was little and my favorite 912 00:44:05,436 --> 00:44:07,539 artist was Alan Jackson. 913 00:44:07,539 --> 00:44:12,856 I loved Alan Jackson and he was coming to the Rio Grande Valley 914 00:44:12,856 --> 00:44:15,592 , and this was back in the day when you couldn't buy your 915 00:44:15,612 --> 00:44:18,226 tickets online and you couldn't do all that right, and I was 916 00:44:18,288 --> 00:44:18,929 begging my dad. 917 00:44:18,929 --> 00:44:20,273 I said, please, please, please, I want to go. 918 00:44:20,273 --> 00:44:21,465 He's like what do you want to go see? 919 00:44:21,465 --> 00:44:26,452 I said I just I like country music and my dad is a hardcore 920 00:44:27,353 --> 00:44:32,920 rocker, beach boy type vibe, which I love that side of me too 921 00:44:32,920 --> 00:44:37,112 but country was where it was at and he surprised me and he 922 00:44:37,152 --> 00:44:39,257 spent all day on the phone with Ticketmaster and bought me 923 00:44:39,324 --> 00:44:43,373 tickets to Alan Jackson and it was my first concert I was ever 924 00:44:43,413 --> 00:44:47,889 gonna go to and I remember my dad buying the CD and he's like, 925 00:44:47,889 --> 00:44:49,755 okay, we, we got to know these songs, like I got to know them 926 00:44:49,775 --> 00:44:55,536 too, and so it became this kind of passion that we had together 927 00:44:56,025 --> 00:45:01,478 and to this day we we fell in love with Alan Jackson together 928 00:45:01,485 --> 00:45:04,313 and it was just him and I was my first thing me and my dad did 929 00:45:04,353 --> 00:45:04,655 alone. 930 00:45:05,264 --> 00:45:08,927 He took me to the concert and our song has always been the 931 00:45:08,987 --> 00:45:09,349 song Drive. 932 00:45:09,349 --> 00:45:10,670 He took me to the concert and our song has always been the 933 00:45:10,750 --> 00:45:10,969 song drive. 934 00:45:10,969 --> 00:45:14,273 And he says that that's our relationship, because I did not 935 00:45:14,313 --> 00:45:16,514 want to let you go. 936 00:45:16,514 --> 00:45:17,514 I didn't want you to drive. 937 00:45:17,514 --> 00:45:20,297 And he's like and now look where you've driven, to look 938 00:45:20,317 --> 00:45:21,018 what you've become. 939 00:45:21,018 --> 00:45:31,065 And so he, that is a very special moment to me and I not 940 00:45:31,085 --> 00:45:32,509 only it's my first concert, but it was the one that was most 941 00:45:32,528 --> 00:45:34,032 special to me because he's getting up there in age, we're 942 00:45:34,072 --> 00:45:36,306 getting up there in age, and he's always like remember, 943 00:45:36,367 --> 00:45:39,519 that's the first concert I took you to and he'll put, he'll 944 00:45:39,539 --> 00:45:41,786 request that song when we're hanging out and barbecuing, and 945 00:45:42,327 --> 00:45:48,155 he, it's a very special tie to me it's's beautiful and I 946 00:45:48,195 --> 00:45:53,240 appreciate you sharing that and I know your dad's very proud of 947 00:45:53,344 --> 00:45:53,485 you. 948 00:45:54,447 --> 00:45:57,652 Speaker 2: Thank you, that's a beautiful connection that you 949 00:45:57,713 --> 00:45:57,954 have. 950 00:45:57,954 --> 00:46:03,831 You know, I lost my dad when I was 10 years old and caused a 951 00:46:03,891 --> 00:46:04,753 lot of problems for me. 952 00:46:04,753 --> 00:46:07,907 I got sent to a boy's rank because of it, but thankfully 953 00:46:07,967 --> 00:46:11,695 God put other people in my life that kind of took on some of 954 00:46:11,735 --> 00:46:12,177 that role. 955 00:46:12,177 --> 00:46:16,710 But when I became a dad I can tell you I've drug my kids to 956 00:46:16,791 --> 00:46:17,291 everything. 957 00:46:17,291 --> 00:46:18,536 I've spoiled them. 958 00:46:18,536 --> 00:46:19,431 I've made them go to. 959 00:46:19,431 --> 00:46:22,987 They've got yeah, they've got to see more concerts than most 960 00:46:23,027 --> 00:46:24,231 kids see in a lifetime. 961 00:46:24,231 --> 00:46:28,831 But to your point, I did that because I want what you just 962 00:46:28,891 --> 00:46:33,094 described and I hope one day my kids look back and say you know 963 00:46:33,134 --> 00:46:37,509 what I remember, we got to do those things and I hope they 964 00:46:37,528 --> 00:46:38,893 cherish them as much as you do. 965 00:46:40,146 --> 00:46:41,550 Speaker 3: And we had that conversation. 966 00:46:41,550 --> 00:46:42,534 It's funny that it comes up. 967 00:46:42,534 --> 00:46:45,485 We had that conversation just the other day because I'm older, 968 00:46:45,485 --> 00:46:48,726 I don't live at home, but I live near them and me and my 969 00:46:48,746 --> 00:46:51,849 husband spend a lot of time golfing with him and stuff. 970 00:46:51,849 --> 00:46:56,148 And we were having lunch one time after around and he said I 971 00:46:56,208 --> 00:46:57,791 gave you a lot of opportunities, right. 972 00:46:57,791 --> 00:46:59,036 And I was like where's this coming from? 973 00:46:59,036 --> 00:47:00,867 And he's like I was a good dad. 974 00:47:00,867 --> 00:47:02,190 I said yes, you were a great dad. 975 00:47:02,190 --> 00:47:04,016 And he's like I took you here. 976 00:47:04,016 --> 00:47:04,536 We did this. 977 00:47:04,536 --> 00:47:12,333 I said, dad, it was never about where you took me, it was just 978 00:47:12,353 --> 00:47:13,376 the fact that we were doing things as a family. 979 00:47:13,376 --> 00:47:13,798 We did this together. 980 00:47:13,798 --> 00:47:15,364 And he's like I just want to know that I did enough and I 981 00:47:15,403 --> 00:47:16,387 don't need to do anymore. 982 00:47:16,387 --> 00:47:19,675 And I said no, I said you're great Like retire, retire, live 983 00:47:19,695 --> 00:47:20,846 your life Like you're good. 984 00:47:20,846 --> 00:47:25,856 But I think that's such a special connection is just the 985 00:47:25,976 --> 00:47:27,907 opportunities that your parents give you. 986 00:47:27,907 --> 00:47:31,264 They don't ever realize what they're doing and I I know it's 987 00:47:31,666 --> 00:47:37,115 something that you, you mold your children, but it's my 988 00:47:37,177 --> 00:47:39,648 parents always tell me we had no idea, like we had no idea this 989 00:47:39,708 --> 00:47:40,552 is where you were gonna end up. 990 00:47:40,552 --> 00:47:41,255 But we're so. 991 00:47:41,255 --> 00:47:42,320 We're so thankful. 992 00:47:42,320 --> 00:47:45,889 Um, they enjoy our, my lifestyle so much more. 993 00:47:45,889 --> 00:47:46,150 Now. 994 00:47:46,230 --> 00:47:50,318 My, my dad, is a chancla cowboy what me and my husband call him. 995 00:47:50,318 --> 00:47:53,652 He loves to come out to the ranch and whenever we go out of 996 00:47:53,693 --> 00:47:55,485 town he's like I'll check the cows, I'll do all this. 997 00:47:55,485 --> 00:47:56,527 He eats it up. 998 00:47:56,527 --> 00:47:57,469 He loves it. 999 00:47:57,469 --> 00:47:59,614 So, him and my husband. 1000 00:47:59,614 --> 00:48:02,427 He's taught my, my husband's got to give him so many 1001 00:48:02,487 --> 00:48:05,893 opportunities too, and it's just opened a whole new door to our 1002 00:48:05,952 --> 00:48:06,293 family. 1003 00:48:06,293 --> 00:48:09,378 Like we never thought that this was where I would end up. 1004 00:48:09,378 --> 00:48:11,641 I I always thought I knew I was going to be a teacher. 1005 00:48:11,641 --> 00:48:15,148 I love that part, I love education, but being an ag 1006 00:48:15,168 --> 00:48:18,855 teacher has made me, made my life what it is. 1007 00:48:19,155 --> 00:48:22,467 Speaker 2: Well, let me tell you , um, uh, I'm honored to know 1008 00:48:22,507 --> 00:48:27,081 you, um, I'm glad that our paths have crossed several times and, 1009 00:48:27,081 --> 00:48:31,454 um, that we were able to make this happen, and I appreciate 1010 00:48:31,474 --> 00:48:39,277 you sharing your heart, your dreams, the challenges, but all 1011 00:48:39,336 --> 00:48:42,367 these little steps along the way that have put you where you're 1012 00:48:42,548 --> 00:48:45,476 at, so that you can pour into the kids that are in your care. 1013 00:48:45,476 --> 00:48:49,922 I find all that inspiring and I want to wish you the best and 1014 00:48:49,961 --> 00:48:53,550 don't ever hesitate to call If we can ever be of assistance. 1015 00:48:53,550 --> 00:48:55,775 We're always just one phone call away. 1016 00:48:56,637 --> 00:48:57,378 Speaker 3: I appreciate it. 1017 00:48:57,885 --> 00:48:58,226 Speaker 2: All right. 1018 00:48:58,226 --> 00:49:00,773 Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for stopping by for the Growing 1019 00:49:00,773 --> 00:49:02,016 Our Future podcast. 1020 00:49:02,016 --> 00:49:05,309 You can see why I told you Kat was going to be a great 1021 00:49:05,349 --> 00:49:09,315 interview and I hope you found some seeds of greatness there. 1022 00:49:09,315 --> 00:49:13,730 I sure did, and remember we've got to plant them. 1023 00:49:13,730 --> 00:49:16,382 You know, if agriculture has taught me anything. 1024 00:49:16,382 --> 00:49:18,067 If you want to know what the future is, grow it. 1025 00:49:18,067 --> 00:49:20,012 You got to plant them. 1026 00:49:20,012 --> 00:49:24,547 You've got to take care of them , you got to harvest them and 1027 00:49:24,567 --> 00:49:25,588 then you got to share them. 1028 00:49:25,588 --> 00:49:28,914 And Kat just told us that entire story. 1029 00:49:29,735 --> 00:49:30,577 Speaker 1: And it was beautiful. 1030 00:49:31,277 --> 00:49:33,849 Speaker 2: So until we meet again, everybody go out, do 1031 00:49:33,909 --> 00:49:35,172 something great for somebody. 1032 00:49:35,172 --> 00:49:38,527 You'll feel good about it and in the process you might just 1033 00:49:38,608 --> 00:49:42,876 make our world a better place to live, work and raise our kids. 1034 00:49:42,876 --> 00:49:44,565 Thank you for joining us. 1035 00:49:45,387 --> 00:49:46,188 Speaker 3: Thank you for having me. 1036 00:49:51,414 --> 00:49:53,398 Speaker 1: We hope you've enjoyed this episode of the 1037 00:49:53,438 --> 00:49:55,000 Growing Our Future podcast. 1038 00:49:55,000 --> 00:50:02,228 This show is sponsored by the Texas FFA Foundation, whose 1039 00:50:02,250 --> 00:50:03,594 mission is to strengthen agricultural science education 1040 00:50:03,614 --> 00:50:05,722 so students can develop their potential for personal growth, 1041 00:50:06,083 --> 00:50:09,275 career success and leadership in a global marketplace. 1042 00:50:09,275 --> 00:50:11,650 Learn more at mytexasffaorg.