FFA Week Is in the Air

Recently, Heritage had their annual FFA Week

November Lansden, Staff Writer • March 7, 2025

FFA Week occurred from February 24th to the 28th, and it included an entire week of dress up days, games, and other events for both students and teachers to participate in. This week included a special day on Friday where FFA sponsor Mrs. Megan Handy brought in some farm animals for the students and teachers alike to enjoy. This included cows, goats, and even a rabbit that students were able to hold. “I like to think of really crazy things to do,” Mrs. Handy said. “This includes bringing animals to the school.”

This week helped communicate to students what FFA is all about. It helped to showcase the greenhouse and other different aspects of the agriculture industry to help students gravitate towards agriculture if they’re interested. The agriculture week has been going on in different schools since the 1950s, and it has become a staple of high school for many students.

On Monday, students were told that the theme was ‘Farmer’s Day Off,’ which meant pajamas. Members of FFA were awarded some sweet treats at lunch. On Tuesday, students were told to either wear boots or crocs in a mock-battle between the two. There was a contest during lunch for both students and staff to enjoy. On Wednesday, it was FFA T-Shirt day. There was an FFA Contest at Pickens, and a meeting during lunch. On Thursday, students were told that the theme was ‘Dress like a Farmer Day,’ where students were told to dress as much as a farmer as they could with the supplies they had. This was a day of service with Catoosa FFA Chapters and Catoosa County Parks and Recreation! Finally, on Friday, students were told to wear their favorite flannel to show their support for FFA. There was lemonade for FFA staff appreciation, interactive booths during lunch, and farm animals set up outside the academic courtyard for students to enjoy and learn more about farm animals.

Logistically, this week was tough to plan. From organizing students to run the booths at lunch, to planning trips and scheduling when and where the animals were gonna be, this week was a lot of stress, and it took time to organize and do well. Nonetheless, our agriculture teacher did it, and she did it well. Mrs. Handy even plans on presenting an amazing event like this again next year, despite all of the work that had to be put into the planning process. “Anything worth doing, and doing well, will be work,” Mrs. Handy said. “While it is tough to plan, it’s still a good thing to do, despite the challenges.”

About the Contributors

November Lansden, Staff Writer

November Lansden is a 14-year-old freshman at Heritage High School. She is particularly excited about working for the Journalism program as a whole. She has a fond love for animals and wants to be a Zoologist when she gets older. Normally, you can catch her reading a book about history or a Stephen King novel, but sometimes she dwindles in a bit of romance/sci-fi. Her favorite music artists at the time of writing this are Deftones, Tyler the Creator, and Radiohead, but she also likes to listen to Broadway soundtracks from her favorite musicals. Her favorite things to do are read, write, and help anyone in need whenever she can, whether it be sitting with them at lunch or giving them a piece of paper. She has two pet cats and two pet dogs, which she got to name herself. Her two cats are named Gizmo and Limp Bizkit, and her two dogs are named August and Little. In her spare time, she likes catching up with her assignments and playing many popular video games like Animal Crossing and Tomodachi Life. She enjoys attending after school events like football games and track meets, and she will stop at nothing to support her school and help them achieve their goals, both financially and in sports. She is excited to join the Journalism team as a freshman, and can’t wait to see what her first year at Heritage High School will be like.

Natalie Ferry, Editor-in-Chief

Natalie Ferry is the Editor-in-Chief of The General Journal and a senior at Heritage High School. She is extremely grateful to be working on “The Legacy” and the General Journal website during her final year of high school. Natalie attends Dalton State College for the majority of the day but stops by Heritage in the morning to hang out with her favorite people: the Journalism Class. Other than Journalism, she enjoys being a member of the Tea Club, National English Honor Society, Beta Club, and National Honor Society. Outside of school, she enjoys browsing around her local comic book store, trying out new restaurants, and going to the occasional yoga class. This past summer she was able to attend the Georgia Governor’s Honor Program as a major in Communicative Arts, and she is so thankful for all the opportunities and people she was able to meet at Georgia Southern. This experience has pushed her to new limits, and firmly cemented that she wants to continue working in publishing and media once she enters the workforce. Natalie hopes to attend the Georgia Institute of Technology for a degree in Literature, Media, and Communications.

Garrett Peace, Sponsor

Mr. Garrett Peace is in his fourth year as a teacher at Heritage High School, where he teaches 9th Grade English, Honors British Literature, and Journalism. A 2010 alum of Heritage High School, Mr. Peace went on to graduate summa cum laude from Berry College in 2014, receiving his B.A. in English and returning to Ringgold soon after. Mr. Peace greatly enjoys reading and writing but is widely known for his passion for music, traveling throughout the year to music festivals like Big Ears and Shaky Knees and attending live shows whenever possible. His favorite novel is Gilead by Marilynne Robinson, and his favorite musical artist is, at the moment, Pinegrove. He can be reached at [email protected].