Sun, Jul 05, 2009
Crystal Lopez,
17, rounds up a lamb
to administer medication at the
Amphitheater Land Lab, 450 E. Wetmore Road.
Like Johnson, Lopez has been a member of FFA since her freshman year.
More Photos (4):
   
Telling stories
● A Voices project
110º is a project by Voices: Community Stories Past and Present Inc., a Tucson-based nonprofit organization that works to document community stories and inspire individuals to explore their own stories and their connections to their communities. For more information about how to donate, volunteer or obtain Voices publications, go to www.voicesinc.org or call 622-7458.
● It's a magazine
110º: Tucson's Youth Tell Tucson's Stories is an annual magazine produced by youths between 14 and 20 years old. It uncovers stories of people of all ages, backgrounds, colors and experiences. To tell these stories, youths are mentored in research, interviewing, writing and photography by professional writers and photographers.
● Look for it in June
The magazine will be published by the Arizona Daily Star in June. Excerpts and essays from Voices youths will appear in the print edition of the Star and online at azstarnet.com/sn/110degrees
Charles E. Gillman Company Accounting Specialist Health Care CENTRAL ARIZONA COLLEGE DIRECTOR OF HEALTH INFORMATION MANAGEMENT Mechanical Komatsu Equipment Co Resident Field Mechanic Trades/Construction RANCHO RESORT MAINTANANCE POSITION Sales and Marketing Everready Glass Sales Reps Administrative & Professional Jorgensen Brooks Group Counselor Health Care Dependable Health Services Physical Therapists Tucson Region Focus on Tucson: FFA and friends
Lessons in living Special to the Arizona Daily Star
Tucson, Arizona | Published: 03.13.2006
A few years ago, I moved from the lush, bluegrass-state of Kentucky to the desert of Arizona and started school at Amphitheater High, not knowing anyone.
Although I didn't know what to expect, I enrolled in agricultural science because I needed an extra class for my schedule. My teacher Jose Bernal was also the chapter adviser for the Future Farmers of America. After listening to me read out loud, he encouraged me to join FFA to participate in a speaking competition. The friendships I have made in FFA are the reason I am still a member three years later.
The Amphitheater Land Lab, 450 E. Wetmore Road, is nestled among the Holiday Inn Express, Best Buy, Wal-Mart and local housing. The lab gives students the opportunity to spend each day raising a young lamb, steer or pig for high school credit. Each day we wash, walk and feed the animals, as well as clean their pens.
Despite all of the work involved, and the fresh farm-animal stench, it is hard not to go back every day after school. The lab feels like my second home. Some of those same friends and people I met my freshman year are still raising animals and are participating in FFA events today. We always joke and have fun while working. We get together after work to play a game of 21 (basketball) or video games, to bowl, or to chill out at someone's house.
The program has taught me to be more responsible. You can't really slack if you have a 200-pound pig or a 1,000-pound steer to take care of. I stay in the FFA year after year because of my friends; if not for them that first year, I wouldn't have stayed in the class. They were my first clique in high school, and I have a strong bond with all of them. Because of that I can put up with the hard work that comes with raising farm animals.
● William C. Johnson II , 16, is a junior at Amphitheater High School, where he is a member of the Future Farmers of America. Johnson is a staff writer and photographer for 110°, an after-school youth magazine program of Voices Inc. that will be published in June by the Arizona Daily Star and at www.azstarnet.com/sn/110degrees
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