‘New Century Farmer’: Gar/Pal grad Garret Pfaff in national program

Garret Pfaff of Farmington participated in the 2012 New Century Farmer Program July 8-14 in Johnston, Iowa. He was among 50 students from 24 states selected to take part in the session.

Pfaff participated in the competitive program which develops young men and women committed to pursuing a career in production agriculture.

Pfaff, who will be a junior at WSU, took part in a series of workshops, industry visits and other sessions during the conference. Topics included the global marketplace, farm financing, demographic trends and risk management.

“The best part for me was getting to see all of the different aspects of agriculture across the country,” said Pfaff. He is the the son of David and April Pfaff.

Garret graduated from Garfield/Palouse High School in 2010. He is majoring in agriculture technology and production management at Washington State University.

At Gar-Pal, Pfaff was FFA chapter president his senior year and finished fifth in state competition in agriculture mechanics. As a sophomore, he was a member of the Gar-Pal team which won state and went to nationals in Oklahoma City.

The New Century Farmer program is designed to provide participants with skills and knowledge applicable to their own farming operations.

Pfaff said that he would like to work in the agriculture industry away from the farm for a few years after college.

“Then, ultimately, I’d like to come back to the farm,” said Pfaff.

The National FFA organization provides agricultural education to 540,000 student members in grades seven through 12, belonging to local chapters in the U.S., Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands.