From June 13 to 15, Lampeter-Strasburg High School's Garden Spot FFA team competed at the FFA State Convention at Penn State University in State College. Over the course of the three days, students competed in a variety of career and leadership development events, as well as multiple workshops that featured keynote speakers.

In the agricultural sales portion of the convention, Ava Immel placed first and Sarah Firestone placed second. Both students, who are sophomores at L-S, received gold medals. The high school's agricultural sales team, which comprised Immel, Firestone, Sydney Albright and Jaclyn Martin, placed first in the state, and it will compete at the national convention in October.

During the competition, each student on the team participated in an individual sales call, during which he or she was tasked with identifying a product that would best suit a group of customers. Each contestant was allotted 15 minutes to discern the customers' needs, formulate a presale call and present a sales pitch. The team members were also tested on different aspects of working in sales and what makes a salesperson successful.

Prior to the competition, the sales team was given a list of products that the students would be tested on during the convention. The list included different types of feed and tubs, and the team members spent months studying every detail of the products, such as the benefits of using them and potential objections that buyers might have.

"While we were preparing for the convention, we took a breath and reassured ourselves that we prepared and know what we're doing," Firestone said. "We wanted to enjoy it together; whether it's win or lose, we would know that we did our best."

To prepare for the national convention, the Garden Spot agricultural sales team convened for summer practices. Once qualified to compete at the national level, the team was provided with a new set of products to examine. In addition to studying the product list, the team members are also shadowing professional salespeople to hone their skills before the big competition.

The Garden Spot FFA team was especially motivated to qualify for the national convention to hear national FFA secretary Jessica Herr's retiring address, as Herr is a close friend of the team members. The students are also looking forward to supporting their FFA comrade Abigail O'Neil, a candidate for a national FFA officer position for the 2023-2024 school year.