FFA begins hay drive for fire victims

ST. JOHN—The St. John-Endicott FFA Chapter began efforts this week to provide hay for those who may have lost their stock in the Malden fire.

“WE want to give back and help out those who have suffered the devastation of the fire,” said Brooklyn Biley, chapter president.

At least two members of the chapter were effected by the fire, but already the youth are looking far beyond their own needs.

“We want to help out the whole community,” said Biley. FFA Advisor Maya Aune has also reached out to other chapters that have had fires in their area about the drive.

The idea came about at an officer’s meeting after the fires. As the chapter can not attend competitions at this time, they decided to turn their focus on community service. Aune noted the core beliefs of FFA include personal growth, leadership and service; this project builds all those.

The first step of the drive is assessing the need and discovering who lost hay in the fires. The chapter is distributing a survey via Facebook to find cattlemen and small animal livestock owners who suffered loss due to the fires. Those who would like to fill out a survey can contact Aune at [email protected].

The second part is collecting donations of hay in any size bale. Chapter Vice President Kyra Holt noted there are many opportunities for donating cash to fire victims, their focus is just on gathering hay donation. The chapter will collect the smaller deliveries of hay at the shop behind the school. Large donations will be directed straight to the place in need. Biley estimated one cow over five months would require five tons of hay to feed.

“We’re excited to help out the people who need it,” Holt said.

The intent is for the drive to go through the month of October, but the chapter will continue to collect and distribute as long as needed.

“We can extend this project throughout the fall,” said Aune. With fires throughout much of Eastern Washington, there is likely to be more need.

Anyone who would like to donate can contact Aune via email or 509-660-0056. Holt noted donations need to call ahead to coordinate drop-off.