New England isn’t just the home of the Patriots football team but is also the home of the Big E State Fair. The Eastern State Exposition in Massachusetts hosted the North Harford FFA students participating in agricultural competitions to show off their knowledge. 

     Over the summer, FFA participants went to the Maryland State Convention to compete in certain competitions. Those students who were able to place second, were able to go to the Big E fair. North Harford was able to place second in multiple categories. 

     The students on the environmental science team, sophomore Solomon Brundridge, and seniors Emily Boling, Diana Woosley, and Gonzalo Revilla competed together had placed sixth at this competition.     Sophomore Teagan Flaherty was the only student competing in creed speaking had placed sixth. Those who competed in horse evaluation had placed seventh and ninth. 

     Members of the North Harford FFA chapter had competed in creed speaking, horse evaluation, and the environmental and natural resources teams battled their knowledge. According to Brundridge, “If we did well in the Big E competition, we would win awards and bring glory to the North Harford name.” 

     Flaherty had placed second at the Maryland State FFA Convention in creed speaking. She had stated “This placing had allowed me to compete at the Big E against other creed speakers from other states along the East coast. I competed with other members from our FFA chapter to represent Maryland and North Harford.”

     Within the four-day trip, students were able to do things they never imagined were possible. Revilla exclaimed, “My favorite part was getting to touch an elephant. I have never gotten to touch one in real life. Emily had also ridden a camel and that was really cool too.”

     Being at the fair and traveling on the bus for the same amount of time was not as fun as it may seem Flaherty had stated. Revilla added “I am not a big fan of driving places because I hate sitting for too long and I cannot lay down.” However, the bus wasn’t the worst part for Brundridge, he exclaimed “My least favorite part was having to take tests for my CDE.

     Compared to Maryland, New England brought a lot to the table. Flaherty exclaimed that the fair was much bigger than any one back home and it was fun to walk around. She also added that the fair included normal things such as vendors, but they also had agricultural related things such as livestock competitions. 

     Concluding the trip, everyone who came to the Big E fair, went to a banquet. At this banquet, they ate dinner and received awards. Even the national FFA officer attended to the last day celebratory dinner.