August 21, 2025 • 36 mins
🎙️ On this episode of the Growing Our Future Podcast, host Arron Alejandro sits down with Melissa Rosenbusch-Spicer, a lifelong educator and champion of agricultural science. 🌱
👩‍🏫 Melissa shares her journey from growing up in a family of ag teachers to shaping lives as a 29-year ag educator, and now carrying her passion into her work with Bloom for Good.
✨ What you’ll learn:
- Why faith, family, and purpose are the foundation of lasting leadership.
- How agricultural education builds life skills that go far beyond the classroom.
- The leadership traits every student—and professional—should practice: communication, work ethic, dependability, and compassion.
💡 Melissa’s mission is clear: to pour into the next generation so they can grow their future with confidence, character, and heart.
👉 Tune in to be inspired by the power of ag education and the mentors who make it possible.
Learn more at MyTexasFFA.org
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:02):
Welcome to the Growing Our Future podcast.
In this show, the Texas FFAFoundation will take on a
journey of exploration intoagricultural science, education,
leadership development andinsights from subject matter
experts and sponsors who providethe fuel to make dreams come
true.
Here's your host, AaronAlejandro.
Speaker 2 (00:30):
Well, good morning, good afternoon, good evening, or
whenever you may be tuning into the Growing Our Future
podcast, we want to, as numberone, start off by saying thank
you.
Thank you for taking time tojoin us.
I mean, we appreciate aplatform like this where we can
bring on guests that share theirinsights, their experiences,
(00:51):
their expertise, in hopes thatwe, we pour into people.
Like I always say, ifagriculture has taught me
anything, it's taught me this.
If you want to know what thefuture is growing, well, how do
you grow it?
Well, you got to have the rightinformation.
You got to have the right seeds,and that's what this podcast is
all about.
It's bringing on people thatcan pour into us and make us
(01:12):
better, make our communitiesbetter, our organizations, our
families, and today is nodifferent.
I have known this young ladyfor a very long time and I was
so excited when she changedroles and I said, hey, listen,
you got to come be a guest onthe podcast, and she graciously
accepted.
So, ladies and gentlemen, it'san honor to introduce you to
(01:34):
Melissa Rosenbush Spicer.
You're going to learn moreabout Melissa here in a second,
but, melissa, thank you forjoining us.
Speaker 3 (01:41):
Thank you so much, Aaron, for allowing me to be on
here.
This is quite an honor and aprivilege, and I am super
excited to talk to you todayabout definitely UNI's probably
favorite topic to discuss.
Speaker 2 (01:54):
Yeah, we share a lot and, again, I've known her and
her family for a long time.
I'm excited about thisopportunity to share.
Okay, every guest we start offthe show the same way with the
same question.
And I'm just curious, melissa,today, what are you grateful for
today?
Speaker 3 (02:13):
That's a great question and I think it all
comes down to one person, andit's the Lord and Savior above,
because without Him I wouldn'thave been able to wake up today
and take a breath and be able totackle all the things that are
in front of me without him andhis guiding light.
He provides everything we needfrom health and family, friends
(02:37):
and career paths and just everyday enjoying what he provides
for us.
So that's an easy one for me,wow.
Speaker 2 (02:46):
Okay, we can stop there.
That's all we needed.
So that was great, because it'sso true and I share, by the way
, with the young people and withteachers.
You know, one of my fun thingsI like to do with the kids is
ask them name the most famouspeople they can name.
And they will name entertainers, and they'll name movie stars
(03:07):
and sports figures and businesspeople.
And then I said, great, nowname me just one, that's all.
I want One Name, one that wakesup every day and makes their
own heartbeat.
And I said you've got to havefaith.
You've got to have faith, andfaith provides us the
(03:27):
opportunity to serve a purpose,and that's kind of what brought
us together, because you've hada life's purpose and I think
I've had a life's purpose, andit becomes a passion of what we
do and why we do it, and I'mhopeful that that's maybe today.
That's what people will takeout of this interview are some
of the very paths that we'vewalked, experiences that we've
(03:50):
had and things that we'd like toshare.
Speaker 3 (03:53):
So I agree wholeheartedly.
Speaker 2 (03:55):
Thank you for that, because I agree with you
completely.
So let's start off and kind ofgive us a little path.
You did not just fall into thatseat that you're in right now,
so I know that there was ajourney that brought you to
where you are at this stage inyour career, the stage in life.
Walk us through that.
Tell us what it was like, whereyou grew up, how you chose the
(04:18):
profession that you chose.
Take us through that journey.
Speaker 3 (04:22):
Absolutely.
I think I was very blessed.
There's a lot of people outthere that kind of probably have
similar stories as mine becausethere's a lot of ag teacher
kids out there and I was one ofthem.
My family from the beginning oftime.
I can remember wearing blue andgold little toboggans with FFA
emblems on them when I was twoyears old, but I have been
(04:44):
surrounded by the FFA program.
My uncle's an ag teacher, mydad was an ag teacher and I was
able to go K through 12 in ourlittle town where my parents
grew up and my dad was my agteacher and put me through
everything that I could beinvolved in with FFA.
And then I decided my junioryear.
(05:05):
I knew I wanted to go toTarleton State University and I
knew I wanted to do something inagriculture.
I thought I wanted to be an agteacher but, I, wasn't really
sure I had been an areapresident, had been very
involved in the officer andleadership roles and I enjoyed
working with people.
So I followed that path and I'mgoing to be honest.
At one time I thought, oh, I'mgoing to transfer to A&M and be
(05:26):
a vet by my sophomore year.
Well, the sophomore year cameand I was like you know what?
I think I'm supposed to be herefor a reason and we started the
classes with education andstarted learning about all the
things in agriculture.
And my path just kept rollingand God just kept putting me in
the right places where I neededto be.
I graduated, I applied for onejob and I said, ok, if I don't
(05:49):
get that one, I'm going to stayhere and work on my master's.
I didn't get it.
I laugh about that all the time.
I won't say where it's at, butjoke about that all the time.
But he come back to me laterand he said I really messed up
not hiring you.
I said you know what?
The good Lord had a path andwhere it ended up was a couple
months later, in the middle ofthe year, my high school
(06:11):
principal called me back andsaid there was an opening with
my dad back in Florence, and soI went back home.
Speaker 2 (06:19):
Wow.
Speaker 3 (06:20):
And that's where I stayed for 29 years.
So not only was it my K through12 school, but it's also where
I taught my entire you know agcareer and for 15 years of that
I got to teach with my dad and Ithink that those were some
gifts that I could never give upand what a great mentor he was
(06:40):
to me.
You know his friends were agteachers.
My family was, you know, devoutand, you know, going to believe
100 percent in what the programproduces, and I am a product of
that program and I know, justlike you are, aaron, that we,
you know, living proof of whatan ag education and FFA program
can, you know, produce and putout there.
(07:02):
So, after kind of going throughthe realm of 29 years and I
loved it 100 percent it was thebest career ag teaching.
I will forever be a champion ofag teachers.
That, what they do and the waythat they change lives and
impact and inspire studentsthere's nothing like it.
(07:22):
And they work hard and they arepassionate and they believe.
And I will, like I said, I will, champion them for the day I
die, till I have my last breath.
I will bleed blue and gold.
I will believe that this is thebest thing on earth.
And it just kind of happenedthat I crossed paths with Pete
Hexter a couple years back andwe had kind of crossed paths
(07:47):
with Bloom for Good and we werevery successful with a campaign
that he put out and he just said, man, you've got something
special there.
And I'm really thinking I wouldlike to grab some of that
energy you have.
And we started a you know, areal, you know a partnership and
relationship there as Ifinished out my career and was
(08:07):
ready to jump on board.
And I tell you what it's beengreat, because guess what I get
to do?
I still get to help ag teachersand support FFA programs and
still be involved in thisindustry that I love so very
much.
And so I again.
God has blessed me justunbelievably and I'm just
thankful every day for that.
Speaker 2 (08:28):
What a story.
By the way, let me ask you realquick how big is Florence?
What class school is that?
Speaker 3 (08:34):
It's a 3A school.
Speaker 2 (08:36):
So for listeners that are not from Texas, they might
not understand how big is a 3Aschool In the high school we had
around 350 students In theentire school district.
Speaker 3 (08:47):
it was about a little over a thousand.
Speaker 2 (08:49):
It was about a little over a thousand.
The reason I want to share thatis because, you know, a lot of
times people think well, youknow, to get the best of
something you've got to be inthe largest cities or the more
metropolis type suburban areas.
And I will tell you that theFlorence program was an
outstanding program in the stateof Texas.
They were very innovative insome of their approaches to some
(09:12):
of their industry connections.
You know I can tell you as anold meats judger, as a guy who
grew up, I mean, the top job atBoys Ranch where I grew up, the
top job I mean you could not doit until you were a senior was
to work in the meats lab and towork on the slaughter and the
kill floor of the slaughterhouse.
And I'll never forget workingmy way up to that top job and
(09:37):
then going to Texas TechUniversity.
That was my job.
I worked in the meats lab, Iworked with the Texas Tech
program and then I went to workfor one of the local grocery
stores and when I see whatFlorence had accomplished it was
very inspiring because it wasinnovative.
So I just want to throw thatout that.
You know, big schools are great.
(09:59):
They do have a lot ofopportunity, but don't think
that there's not some reallygood imaginative people out
there in the smaller schoolsthat are doing just incredible
things, and where Melissa camefrom is an example of that.
Speaker 3 (10:13):
And I think it's a great point that you made,
because even as small as aschool district we are and
people are always shocked bythis there's actually five ag
teachers there, and so we have amiddle school program and then
four at the high school.
But I think what a lot ofpeople don't realize, like oh
well, that's just an ag class.
When they don't realize half ofwhat.
I taught in the day wascommunications and radio and
(10:35):
video.
And we were, we were allowing tosatisfy other components in the
curriculum in our school andrequirements for graduation that
were not necessarily under theAFNR umbrella.
And I think a lot of peopledon't realize that because those
ag teachers are so passionateand creative and they understand
the world that kids arelearning some from those
(10:58):
hands-on things that they dothat they might not just from
just a general ed teacher andnothing against general ed
teachers but again, ag teachersthey're my heroes, they always
have been and what they canprovide students.
(11:27):
And you know, whether you learnfloral and it's a fine arts
career, or you know I'm learningspeech and I'm getting all the
time that the FFA program iswhat allows us to reach out.
It's so complex and if you willopen up those doors as an ag
teacher and let those studentsfeel, there's something for all
(11:47):
of them to be involved in.
You know, and I think that wasthe thing we tried to do, is
make sure we were touching everystudent that sat in a seat in
that building, whether it's ascience fair because they really
like science, which theywouldn't have thought that's ag
related or even they're in thenational band because they love
music and that's something.
But they were an FFA member, sothat's something we've really
(12:10):
worked hard at and I'm proud ofthat.
To be comprehensive of theprogram so here's something that
you know.
Speaker 2 (12:17):
You're starting a dialogue here that I would not
have taken us down, but I'm gladyou're going down this path.
You know, when we think of thescope of you know, melissa
referenced AFNR Agriculture,food and Natural Resources our
agriculture, food, naturalresources when she referenced
that, yes, that is a high schoolcourse, but the applications of
(12:43):
what goes on there really arethe basics of education that
could go all the way down to theelementary level Exactly.
I mean, I know of FFA chaptersin Texas.
We've got a chapter that is onNASA and they use longhorn
cattle to teach dominant andrecessive gene traits and they
bring in the pre-AP eighthgraders from the Houston ISD.
I know programs that are helpingthe kids connect with their
(13:06):
pigs and with their sheep andgoats and with their cattle and
they teach the little kids abouthow much does a scoop weigh and
with their cattle and theyteach the little kids about how
much does a scoop weigh?
How much is a half a gallon?
Hey, we got to fix this overhere.
I need you to weld me a 90degree angle.
And they say, well, I don'tknow what 90 degrees is, well,
just weld me a T.
Oh, that's 90 degrees.
And so to your point.
(13:27):
Agriculture programs have thecapacity to help kids comprehend
things that in a textbook theymay be harder to understand, but
in application they becomeeasier to understand and that
whole learning to do, doing tolearn, and then when you
accompany that with a teacherthat's enthused about that
(13:53):
learning opportunity, then Ithink that's a reason why,
statistically we knowstatistically, not because we
say so we know that our kids areoutperforming their peers.
We know that students in ag,science education and FFA are
outperforming, and I think it'sa lot of what Melissa's saying.
I think it's a lot of the factthat, yes, these are
(14:15):
agricultural courses, but we'reoffering something that creates
so much more, which I'm a bigyou're in business.
I'm a big believer in return oninvestment and, as a taxpayer,
I want ROI and when I see whaty'all do with our ag kids and
our FFA kids, I think it's someof the best return on investment
for tax dollars in the stateand I just think it's all the
(14:39):
things that you just said.
So that's why I wanted to bragthat I appreciate you bringing
it up.
So one of the things I like totalk about when we're talking to
kids and I'm talking toteachers, as I always tell them
practice R2A2.
And everybody always asks mewhat's R2A2?
Sounds like a Star Warscharacter.
R2a2 is recognize, relate,assimilate and apply.
(15:04):
Recognize what somebody says,relate to it, like you and I are
talking, what goes on inFlorence may not be the same as
what goes on in downtown Dallas,so you got to kind of relate to
it, but then you take it in,you assimilate it and then
you've got to apply it.
That's what this podcast isabout.
It's about bringing guests onand already just letting you
(15:27):
know.
Already you have talked aboutfamily faith, being flexible,
being committed to your goals.
Be on the lookout foropportunities.
All of those, in my opinion,are great seeds of greatness.
So I hope people that arelistening heard every one of
those, because those really areoutstanding.
(15:51):
So when we think aboutagriculture and we think about
food, you were in the classroomand now you're out of the
classroom, but you're kind of inthe classroom.
Do you think there'sopportunities out there in
agriculture?
Do you see if I'm a kid sittingin Houston, dallas, austin, san
Antonio right now, or maybesomebody's watching this.
(16:11):
We've got people that call mefrom New York that love this
podcast.
If I'm sitting in a classroomin one of these other states, is
there an opportunity inagriculture and FFA?
Can it promote me intosomething along a career?
What would you tell me is anopportunity?
Speaker 3 (16:29):
Anything, anything they want to do.
And I used to tell kids that onthe first day of school since
we're everybody's going back toschool now and they be in here
and they're freshmen and they'relike, you know, I don't even
know why I'm in here.
I'm not an ag kid.
That's what they would alwaystell me and I was like, really,
so how are you're not an ag kid?
How did you get to school today, you know?
(16:49):
And what did we eat forbreakfast?
And you put on clothes.
We touch agriculture through.
We wouldn't be alive without it.
And so for you to say, and Iwould tell them, you tell me
something you want to do, andI'm going to correlate it with
an ag career, you know, like,well, I want to be a nurse or I
want to be a doctor.
I said, well, great, because inour meat science class you're
(17:10):
going to learn about the anatomy.
The bones and muscles of ananimal are the same as they are
in a human.
You know, you're going to learnall of that, your basics and
your background.
I have a lot of students thatwould come back and then say,
hey, I got as a grad assistant,I got on a work project to do a
research, because I showedrabbits and chick and I was on
(17:32):
the poultry judging team.
But she's a doctor and becauseof her resume, because of that
experience, she was able to.
You know she got put on thatjob and you know those are the
things that they don't realizeand you know we think about all
the time.
I use the example.
You know a doctor who has tomake a split second decision
(17:53):
when you're in the ER.
Well, when you're judging ofanything, you've got to do that
in a small amount and you've gotto tell me why.
I don't want to hear, I don'tknow.
You know, I want to know whyyou are backing up.
If I'm on a gurney in the ERand they're fixing to have to do
surgery.
I want you to be confident, Iwant you to have a decision and
(18:18):
I want you to be able to back itup.
Well, that skill set that welearn in all of our career
development events are going tohelp you with anything, and so
really, I will not allow them totell me that they're not an ag
kid anymore and that without ityou know you've heard the
t-shirt you know without it we'dbe hungry and naked and all of
the things that we would be.
But agriculture touches everysingle person's life one way or
(18:40):
another and there's so manyopportunities for us to do.
I know that when you weretalking about reaching down into
the elementary, I'm going toadd in real quick I used to do
an ag science day withelementary students and we would
communicate with the teachersof the elementary in their
science curriculum and it wascalled ag science day because I
(19:01):
started to think.
I said, if our high schoolstudents are getting those
hands-on opportunities andexperiences where they're
learning those, we're, you know,we are basically supporting
history, we're supportingEnglish, we're supporting math
because they're actually doingthose in the ag education
classroom.
How can we do that inelementary?
So we started, you know, about15 years ago, doing Ag Science
(19:24):
Day, working with Texas FarmBureau and our county Farm
Bureau to sponsor that.
It was so successful becausethe kids they rotated it with a
different topic.
So in let's use third gradethey had to do a, the life cycle
of an animal.
So we use poultry science.
Or maybe in fifth grade I hadthe teachers there said man, we
(19:46):
are not doing good on the startest.
They don't understand soilparticle size, perfect, let's do
soil science and we would bringit in and they would touch it
and they make that and they weretaught by the high school FFA
students and talk aboutmentorship for that.
And then when they got in highschool I would say, hey, do you
remember Ag Science Day?
And they did, and that giveback, you know, and that
(20:08):
community outreach, it was justa blessing altogether.
Programs like that that we cando, where we can reach
elementary students, embed intoother curriculums, it's a win
because, like we just said, ittouches everything and you can
see I'm a fan.
Speaker 2 (20:26):
Hey, listen everything that you just said,
everything.
If you want to know what thefuture is growing to ag science
teachers, if you want to knowwhat the future is growing to ag
science teachers, if you wantto know what your future
classroom looks like, do exactlywhat Melissa just said.
There is no one cooler in thatelementary school than the high
school kids.
And if they show up in officialdress, what is this?
And next thing you know they'reshowing up with animals or
(20:49):
they're showing up withexperimental or plants.
That is what fascinates them.
So, to your point, you'regrowing your classroom and
business is about numbers andnumbers.
So if you're growing yourclassroom, that's a good thing
and the administration wouldlike that.
So keep growing your numbersMakes a lot of sense.
One of the things that you saidthere that I thought was just a
(21:12):
takeaway Wayne Gretzky, afamous hockey player.
They asked him one time whatmakes you such a great hockey
player and he said most playersskate to where the puck is.
I skate to where the puck isgoing.
And if we think about that, weknow that the world population
is growing.
Right now we're experiencing itright here in Texas a lot of
(21:35):
growth, a lot of urban sprawl,taking up of natural resources.
I got news for you we're goingto have more people in this
world in the next 30 years andwe're not going to have more
land to grow, more food, morewater to take care of our
growing, of our food supply toyour point.
(21:58):
It's going to take a lot ofbrilliant minds and we're going
to have to have people that sayI may not understand livestock
production, but I understandengineering or linguistics or
marketing to help get thiscommodity to the people that
need it.
If they don't, they're going todie.
So I think there is tremendousopportunity.
(22:20):
I think it's sad that when theypolled Americans, a lot of
Americans don't know whatagriculture is, but everybody
knows what food is and I lovewhat you said.
From the time we get up in themorning, we got a roof over our
head.
Ag commodity that's a productIf we eat.
Speaker 3 (22:39):
Breathe in oxygen that was produced by trees and
plants.
Speaker 2 (22:43):
Everything that, like you said, that we touch has
something to do with agriculture.
Let's talk leadership for asecond.
Let's talk leadership for asecond.
You've taught for a while.
You've trained a lot of teams,you've offered a lot of advice.
Give me your top threeleadership traits.
If you could tell somebody tobe an effective leader, what
would they be?
Speaker 3 (23:03):
I think the number one would be an effective
communicator.
You've got to be able tocommunicate with people and
always tell the kids read theroom, because sometimes they
don't, and unfortunately todayour students don't do that as
well, because they are glued tosomething that thinks for them a
lot of time, whether it's acomputer or a phone or whatever
(23:25):
it may be, and so communicationis definitely my number one.
The other one I'm going to sayis work ethic.
Work ethic is no leader shouldbe outworked by their other
people, you know, by the peoplebelow them.
It should always be a teameffort, and I want to work
(23:45):
alongside the leader and theyshould be giving that as an
example.
And so if, if you don'tunderstand how to work, or you
put your best foot forward oryou have pride in the work
you're producing, uh, you alwayswant to leave things.
My daddy used to always say youleave things better than you
got them, and I think that'ssomething with the work ethic as
(24:05):
well.
And then the third one Iactually have four, so
dependability, which might fallwith that work ethic.
If you your word meanssomething if you say you're
going to do it, then you need tomake sure that that you do.
You know there's nothing more,and that integrity or character
(24:28):
is, you know, part of that aswell.
And then with that I would rollin compassion.
I think people have to becompassionate because everybody
walks in different footsteps.
We're all trying to do the samething, but their paths are
different, and so just be, youknow, compassionate, to
understand that people you knowmay be having a rough time or
(24:51):
hard time, and that's where thatservant heart comes from.
That we talk about a lot is,with community service, the
living to serve.
I could dissect the entire FFAmotto for you because it fits
every single thing we're doing,but I do believe that that's
something that we try to teachour kids.
You know that that is somethingthat you want.
To be a productive citizen, youwant to make sure that you're
(25:11):
giving back and that compassionand understanding, living to
serve.
Speaker 2 (25:16):
That was really good, by the way.
That's real good.
No doubt a good leader is aneffective communicator, both in
the written word and the spokenword.
And the other thing is I likethat you said this, by the way
but don't lose your voice.
Don't let technology becomeyour voice.
(25:38):
It can help you amplify yourvoice, but be discerning.
I love that you said bediscerning and don't be afraid
of technology, but don't let itreplace, because it's not going
to replace your work ethic, it'snot going to replace your
integrity.
I love to ask the kids.
A lot of times I ask them.
(25:58):
I said tell me about yourbusiness.
And they always look at me andsay, mr Alejandro, I don't have
a business.
I said, yeah, you are, you'reit.
I said what time?
Speaker 1 (26:06):
do you open in?
Speaker 2 (26:07):
the morning.
What?
Speaker 1 (26:08):
kind of customer service.
Speaker 2 (26:09):
Do you deliver?
Are you responsive?
Do you do what you say you'regoing to do?
I mean, we are our business.
That's why everybody knows I goby the handle of your brand,
because that's who we are.
And to your point, I think thoseare great examples.
Work that could.
(26:31):
Dependability, compassion,empathy, vulnerability, all of
those are signs of great leaders.
So I hope people picked up onthose, because that's gold right
there, gold All right.
So now let's talk about alittle bit about Bloom.
So it's really interesting.
I love meeting people, by theway, and I'm always fascinated
to learn about people, to learnabout their backgrounds.
(26:52):
And I remember, before COVID, Ihad an opportunity to meet this
gentleman and he was telling meall about Bloom.
His name was Pete Hexter and Ijust liked Pete Hexter, and I
liked it because he was veryaccomplished in his career.
But he was looking at what wasnext and it's like Tom Ziegler
(27:18):
and Zig Ziegler say we're allgoing to leave a legacy.
We're either going to leavethat legacy by design or by
default.
Legacy by design or by default.
And I just remember Pete tellingme Aaron, I'm looking to do
something that's going to makethe world better, and I love it.
When people have that FFA ahamoment and I remember when Pete
(27:43):
had that moment at theconvention, both national and
state convention when Pete hadthat moment at the convention,
both national and stateconvention, he's like, OK, this
is, I know we've got to supportthis.
And so he's made several pivotsin the company for the very
purpose of wanting to supportand why do you think it is that
Pete's so committed to that?
Why do you know him?
Now?
You work with him, what y'alldo so focused on helping young
(28:06):
people.
Speaker 3 (28:08):
Well, I do believe you know they changed the name
from Bloom to Bloom for Good,because I do believe you nailed
that that Pete is looking toleave a legacy of good and that
goes right back to that servantheart which you know being a
leader and wanting to give back,and he understands completely
(28:28):
that, just like you said, we'vegot to grow our future in the
youth, in all of our youthleadership programs.
I mean, that is our mission.
Bloom is about supporting youthin agriculture and other
leadership programs, because ifwe don't lift them up and we
don't help them and you know, Ithink a lot of times even my
experience as an ag teacher astudent will tell me later well,
(28:50):
if you hadn't told me that Iwas going to be good at that, I
wouldn't have done that.
I'm like oh my gosh, you wereso talented, you know, did you
not see that?
And I've said no.
If you hadn't told me to be onthis team, if you had not told
me to write that speech.
If you had not told me to runfor this office, I would have
done it because I didn't know Icould or that I had the ability,
(29:11):
and so I think a lot of timesthey are so fragile in the age
that we're talking about.
These youth are the future andagain I say that, aaron, you and
I are living proof of what anFFA program can build and grow.
I mean, when I was a sophomore,I was so shy, I did not want to
talk.
(29:32):
I know this is unbelievable,people don't believe this.
But my daddy said, nope, you'regoing to district leadership
camp and he sent me away and I'mlike, no, I won't know anybody,
you can't do that to me.
Came back and my mom says youhaven't shut up since.
So it was really that pivotalthing where it opens it up and
then you talk about aha moments.
Even as students we have thatand that's so cool to watch when
(29:55):
it switches and you realizeabout the premier leadership,
the personal growth and leadingyou to career success.
And I truly believe that Petesaw that and he wanted to be a
part of it and he picked thebest organization and I just I'm
so happy to be on the journeywith him and the entire Bloom
team to help and serve, becauseI do.
(30:19):
I have a servant heart and soit was.
It was a no brainer for me atthe time of retirement, when I
had to get out of the classroom,that this was exactly what I
wanted to do at the time ofretirement when I had to get out
of the classroom.
Speaker 2 (30:27):
That this was exactly what I wanted to do.
That's the reason why I wantedto mention that, because I can
tell you from the seat that Isit in.
It was fun, and has been fun,to watch where Bloom was, to
watch their connection with mycolleagues across the United
States, to see what role you'replaying now and its next steps,
(30:47):
if you will.
But at the end of the day, Ilove it that it's not just about
it is a business.
Businesses are not.
Like I tell my colleagues,businesses are not a fountain of
funds for nonprofits.
Businesses are in business tomake money.
But as a result of theirsuccess there comes a lot of
(31:13):
philanthropy, and I like it whenI see that they say, hey,
listen, we want to supportbecause businesses could put
their money in a lot of places.
And so I'm always thrilledPeople that know me know I say
this when I write proposals andwe've been very successful.
I'm very proud of what we'vebeen able to accomplish.
When we write proposals,there's two questions that I ask
(31:33):
myself so what and according towho?
It's real easy for us to goaround and say we're the
greatest youth organization inAmerica, but we may have a
stakeholder that their son ordaughter was exceptional in
sports or band or UIL, or speechand debate or Eagle Scout.
(31:54):
So it's very arrogant for us tosay that.
But when I can say, well,according to Ford Motor Company,
according to McCoy's, accordingto Justin Boots, according to
Bloom, our kids are pretty good.
So there's my so what and myaccording to who.
(32:16):
So when we have stakeholdersthat believe in us, it makes our
efforts more rewarding.
So I just want to say thank you, thank you to you, thank you to
Pete, and again, it's all aboutthe leadership.
We could sit and talk all dayabout all this.
(32:36):
The good thing is, we bothagree that we want a better
Texas, we want a better UnitedStates and we believe that Ag,
food and Natural Resources andthe FFA could be a great portal
to get those great leaders outthere in business, in
agriculture, in classrooms, andthank you for sharing that with
(33:00):
us and joining us today.
Before we leave, everybody getsa fun question.
Okay before we leave, everybodygets a fun question, okay.
Speaker 3 (33:14):
So melissa rosenbush basher, tell me what is the best
concert you've ever been to, oh, wow, okay.
Well, I just went to onerecently that was pretty
fantastic.
Um, it was Zach Topp, becausemy son that was his his
graduation president from highschool was that?
That's what he said.
He's such an old soul.
I couldn't afford George Straittickets to see Zach Topp, but I
(33:39):
did sneak into the Astrodome inhigh school with my best friend
and we did get to peek throughthe fence there and get to see
George Strait ride around on hishorse.
So that was pretty good too.
But I would say those are mytop two for sure.
Speaker 2 (33:52):
Wow, that's good.
That's really good.
Yeah, no, it's a fun questionto ask and it's amazing the
spectrum of artists andentertainers and stories that
have come out of this podcast,everything from Metallica to
Pitbull to, obviously.
Speaker 3 (34:14):
King George.
Speaker 2 (34:17):
Even the greatest showman.
I mean, it's been fascinatingto hear people, but I just think
it's a reminder that we're allthe same.
We all like a good movie, agood book, a good song, and
those are just things that wehave in common.
So thank you for sharing that.
Speaker 3 (34:34):
Tom, absolutely yeah.
Speaker 2 (34:37):
All right folks.
Well, thank you for stopping byfor another edition of the
Growing Our Future podcast.
This is just another reason Iloved Melissa coming on, for
several reasons.
Melissa really is an example ofwhy I love my job.
People ask me that all the time.
They said you really like yourjob.
I said I do.
I said I get to work with someincredible educators, I get to
(34:58):
work with young people that wantto serve, and then I work with
some incredible sponsors whohave a heart for the future, and
Melissa just kind of embodiesall of that.
So thank you all for stoppingby.
Until we meet again, go out anddo something great for somebody
.
You'll feel better about it,you'll make things better and
(35:23):
grow the future.
Plant the seeds you heard today.
Plant them, take care of them,harvest them and then share them
.
Thanks for stopping by.
We'll see you next time on theGrowing Our Future podcast.
Speaker 1 (35:41):
We hope you've enjoyed this episode of the
Growing Our Future podcast.
This show is sponsored by theTexas FFA Foundation, whose
mission is to strengthenagricultural science education
so students can develop theirpotential for personal growth,
career success and leadership ina global marketplace.
Learn more at mytexasffaorg.
Welcome to the Growing Our Future podcast.
In this show, the Texas FFAFoundation will take on a
journey of exploration intoagricultural science, education,
leadership development andinsights from subject matter
experts and sponsors who providethe fuel to make dreams come
true.
Here's your host, AaronAlejandro.
Speaker 2 (00:30):
Well, good morning, good afternoon, good evening, or
whenever you may be tuning into the Growing Our Future
podcast, we want to, as numberone, start off by saying thank
you.
Thank you for taking time tojoin us.
I mean, we appreciate aplatform like this where we can
bring on guests that share theirinsights, their experiences,
(00:51):
their expertise, in hopes thatwe, we pour into people.
Like I always say, ifagriculture has taught me
anything, it's taught me this.
If you want to know what thefuture is growing, well, how do
you grow it?
Well, you got to have the rightinformation.
You got to have the right seeds,and that's what this podcast is
all about.
It's bringing on people thatcan pour into us and make us
(01:12):
better, make our communitiesbetter, our organizations, our
families, and today is nodifferent.
I have known this young ladyfor a very long time and I was
so excited when she changedroles and I said, hey, listen,
you got to come be a guest onthe podcast, and she graciously
accepted.
So, ladies and gentlemen, it'san honor to introduce you to
(01:34):
Melissa Rosenbush Spicer.
You're going to learn moreabout Melissa here in a second,
but, melissa, thank you forjoining us.
Speaker 3 (01:41):
Thank you so much, Aaron, for allowing me to be on
here.
This is quite an honor and aprivilege, and I am super
excited to talk to you todayabout definitely UNI's probably
favorite topic to discuss.
Speaker 2 (01:54):
Yeah, we share a lot and, again, I've known her and
her family for a long time.
I'm excited about thisopportunity to share.
Okay, every guest we start offthe show the same way with the
same question.
And I'm just curious, melissa,today, what are you grateful for
today?
Speaker 3 (02:13):
That's a great question and I think it all
comes down to one person, andit's the Lord and Savior above,
because without Him I wouldn'thave been able to wake up today
and take a breath and be able totackle all the things that are
in front of me without him andhis guiding light.
He provides everything we needfrom health and family, friends
(02:37):
and career paths and just everyday enjoying what he provides
for us.
So that's an easy one for me,wow.
Speaker 2 (02:46):
Okay, we can stop there.
That's all we needed.
So that was great, because it'sso true and I share, by the way
, with the young people and withteachers.
You know, one of my fun thingsI like to do with the kids is
ask them name the most famouspeople they can name.
And they will name entertainers, and they'll name movie stars
(03:07):
and sports figures and businesspeople.
And then I said, great, nowname me just one, that's all.
I want One Name, one that wakesup every day and makes their
own heartbeat.
And I said you've got to havefaith.
You've got to have faith, andfaith provides us the
(03:27):
opportunity to serve a purpose,and that's kind of what brought
us together, because you've hada life's purpose and I think
I've had a life's purpose, andit becomes a passion of what we
do and why we do it, and I'mhopeful that that's maybe today.
That's what people will takeout of this interview are some
of the very paths that we'vewalked, experiences that we've
(03:50):
had and things that we'd like toshare.
Speaker 3 (03:53):
So I agree wholeheartedly.
Speaker 2 (03:55):
Thank you for that, because I agree with you
completely.
So let's start off and kind ofgive us a little path.
You did not just fall into thatseat that you're in right now,
so I know that there was ajourney that brought you to
where you are at this stage inyour career, the stage in life.
Walk us through that.
Tell us what it was like, whereyou grew up, how you chose the
(04:18):
profession that you chose.
Take us through that journey.
Speaker 3 (04:22):
Absolutely.
I think I was very blessed.
There's a lot of people outthere that kind of probably have
similar stories as mine becausethere's a lot of ag teacher
kids out there and I was one ofthem.
My family from the beginning oftime.
I can remember wearing blue andgold little toboggans with FFA
emblems on them when I was twoyears old, but I have been
(04:44):
surrounded by the FFA program.
My uncle's an ag teacher, mydad was an ag teacher and I was
able to go K through 12 in ourlittle town where my parents
grew up and my dad was my agteacher and put me through
everything that I could beinvolved in with FFA.
And then I decided my junioryear.
(05:05):
I knew I wanted to go toTarleton State University and I
knew I wanted to do something inagriculture.
I thought I wanted to be an agteacher but, I, wasn't really
sure I had been an areapresident, had been very
involved in the officer andleadership roles and I enjoyed
working with people.
So I followed that path and I'mgoing to be honest.
At one time I thought, oh, I'mgoing to transfer to A&M and be
(05:26):
a vet by my sophomore year.
Well, the sophomore year cameand I was like you know what?
I think I'm supposed to be herefor a reason and we started the
classes with education andstarted learning about all the
things in agriculture.
And my path just kept rollingand God just kept putting me in
the right places where I neededto be.
I graduated, I applied for onejob and I said, ok, if I don't
(05:49):
get that one, I'm going to stayhere and work on my master's.
I didn't get it.
I laugh about that all the time.
I won't say where it's at, butjoke about that all the time.
But he come back to me laterand he said I really messed up
not hiring you.
I said you know what?
The good Lord had a path andwhere it ended up was a couple
months later, in the middle ofthe year, my high school
(06:11):
principal called me back andsaid there was an opening with
my dad back in Florence, and soI went back home.
Speaker 2 (06:19):
Wow.
Speaker 3 (06:20):
And that's where I stayed for 29 years.
So not only was it my K through12 school, but it's also where
I taught my entire you know agcareer and for 15 years of that
I got to teach with my dad and Ithink that those were some
gifts that I could never give upand what a great mentor he was
(06:40):
to me.
You know his friends were agteachers.
My family was, you know, devoutand, you know, going to believe
100 percent in what the programproduces, and I am a product of
that program and I know, justlike you are, aaron, that we,
you know, living proof of whatan ag education and FFA program
can, you know, produce and putout there.
(07:02):
So, after kind of going throughthe realm of 29 years and I
loved it 100 percent it was thebest career ag teaching.
I will forever be a champion ofag teachers.
That, what they do and the waythat they change lives and
impact and inspire studentsthere's nothing like it.
(07:22):
And they work hard and they arepassionate and they believe.
And I will, like I said, I will, champion them for the day I
die, till I have my last breath.
I will bleed blue and gold.
I will believe that this is thebest thing on earth.
And it just kind of happenedthat I crossed paths with Pete
Hexter a couple years back andwe had kind of crossed paths
(07:47):
with Bloom for Good and we werevery successful with a campaign
that he put out and he just said, man, you've got something
special there.
And I'm really thinking I wouldlike to grab some of that
energy you have.
And we started a you know, areal, you know a partnership and
relationship there as Ifinished out my career and was
(08:07):
ready to jump on board.
And I tell you what it's beengreat, because guess what I get
to do?
I still get to help ag teachersand support FFA programs and
still be involved in thisindustry that I love so very
much.
And so I again.
God has blessed me justunbelievably and I'm just
thankful every day for that.
Speaker 2 (08:28):
What a story.
By the way, let me ask you realquick how big is Florence?
What class school is that?
Speaker 3 (08:34):
It's a 3A school.
Speaker 2 (08:36):
So for listeners that are not from Texas, they might
not understand how big is a 3Aschool In the high school we had
around 350 students In theentire school district.
Speaker 3 (08:47):
it was about a little over a thousand.
Speaker 2 (08:49):
It was about a little over a thousand.
The reason I want to share thatis because, you know, a lot of
times people think well, youknow, to get the best of
something you've got to be inthe largest cities or the more
metropolis type suburban areas.
And I will tell you that theFlorence program was an
outstanding program in the stateof Texas.
They were very innovative insome of their approaches to some
(09:12):
of their industry connections.
You know I can tell you as anold meats judger, as a guy who
grew up, I mean, the top job atBoys Ranch where I grew up, the
top job I mean you could not doit until you were a senior was
to work in the meats lab and towork on the slaughter and the
kill floor of the slaughterhouse.
And I'll never forget workingmy way up to that top job and
(09:37):
then going to Texas TechUniversity.
That was my job.
I worked in the meats lab, Iworked with the Texas Tech
program and then I went to workfor one of the local grocery
stores and when I see whatFlorence had accomplished it was
very inspiring because it wasinnovative.
So I just want to throw thatout that.
You know, big schools are great.
(09:59):
They do have a lot ofopportunity, but don't think
that there's not some reallygood imaginative people out
there in the smaller schoolsthat are doing just incredible
things, and where Melissa camefrom is an example of that.
Speaker 3 (10:13):
And I think it's a great point that you made,
because even as small as aschool district we are and
people are always shocked bythis there's actually five ag
teachers there, and so we have amiddle school program and then
four at the high school.
But I think what a lot ofpeople don't realize, like oh
well, that's just an ag class.
When they don't realize half ofwhat.
I taught in the day wascommunications and radio and
(10:35):
video.
And we were, we were allowing tosatisfy other components in the
curriculum in our school andrequirements for graduation that
were not necessarily under theAFNR umbrella.
And I think a lot of peopledon't realize that because those
ag teachers are so passionateand creative and they understand
the world that kids arelearning some from those
(10:58):
hands-on things that they dothat they might not just from
just a general ed teacher andnothing against general ed
teachers but again, ag teachersthey're my heroes, they always
have been and what they canprovide students.
(11:27):
And you know, whether you learnfloral and it's a fine arts
career, or you know I'm learningspeech and I'm getting all the
time that the FFA program iswhat allows us to reach out.
It's so complex and if you willopen up those doors as an ag
teacher and let those studentsfeel, there's something for all
(11:47):
of them to be involved in.
You know, and I think that wasthe thing we tried to do, is
make sure we were touching everystudent that sat in a seat in
that building, whether it's ascience fair because they really
like science, which theywouldn't have thought that's ag
related or even they're in thenational band because they love
music and that's something.
But they were an FFA member, sothat's something we've really
(12:10):
worked hard at and I'm proud ofthat.
To be comprehensive of theprogram so here's something that
you know.
Speaker 2 (12:17):
You're starting a dialogue here that I would not
have taken us down, but I'm gladyou're going down this path.
You know, when we think of thescope of you know, melissa
referenced AFNR Agriculture,food and Natural Resources our
agriculture, food, naturalresources when she referenced
that, yes, that is a high schoolcourse, but the applications of
(12:43):
what goes on there really arethe basics of education that
could go all the way down to theelementary level Exactly.
I mean, I know of FFA chaptersin Texas.
We've got a chapter that is onNASA and they use longhorn
cattle to teach dominant andrecessive gene traits and they
bring in the pre-AP eighthgraders from the Houston ISD.
I know programs that are helpingthe kids connect with their
(13:06):
pigs and with their sheep andgoats and with their cattle and
they teach the little kids abouthow much does a scoop weigh and
with their cattle and theyteach the little kids about how
much does a scoop weigh?
How much is a half a gallon?
Hey, we got to fix this overhere.
I need you to weld me a 90degree angle.
And they say, well, I don'tknow what 90 degrees is, well,
just weld me a T.
Oh, that's 90 degrees.
And so to your point.
(13:27):
Agriculture programs have thecapacity to help kids comprehend
things that in a textbook theymay be harder to understand, but
in application they becomeeasier to understand and that
whole learning to do, doing tolearn, and then when you
accompany that with a teacherthat's enthused about that
(13:53):
learning opportunity, then Ithink that's a reason why,
statistically we knowstatistically, not because we
say so we know that our kids areoutperforming their peers.
We know that students in ag,science education and FFA are
outperforming, and I think it'sa lot of what Melissa's saying.
I think it's a lot of the factthat, yes, these are
(14:15):
agricultural courses, but we'reoffering something that creates
so much more, which I'm a bigyou're in business.
I'm a big believer in return oninvestment and, as a taxpayer,
I want ROI and when I see whaty'all do with our ag kids and
our FFA kids, I think it's someof the best return on investment
for tax dollars in the stateand I just think it's all the
(14:39):
things that you just said.
So that's why I wanted to bragthat I appreciate you bringing
it up.
So one of the things I like totalk about when we're talking to
kids and I'm talking toteachers, as I always tell them
practice R2A2.
And everybody always asks mewhat's R2A2?
Sounds like a Star Warscharacter.
R2a2 is recognize, relate,assimilate and apply.
(15:04):
Recognize what somebody says,relate to it, like you and I are
talking, what goes on inFlorence may not be the same as
what goes on in downtown Dallas,so you got to kind of relate to
it, but then you take it in,you assimilate it and then
you've got to apply it.
That's what this podcast isabout.
It's about bringing guests onand already just letting you
(15:27):
know.
Already you have talked aboutfamily faith, being flexible,
being committed to your goals.
Be on the lookout foropportunities.
All of those, in my opinion,are great seeds of greatness.
So I hope people that arelistening heard every one of
those, because those really areoutstanding.
(15:51):
So when we think aboutagriculture and we think about
food, you were in the classroomand now you're out of the
classroom, but you're kind of inthe classroom.
Do you think there'sopportunities out there in
agriculture?
Do you see if I'm a kid sittingin Houston, dallas, austin, san
Antonio right now, or maybesomebody's watching this.
(16:11):
We've got people that call mefrom New York that love this
podcast.
If I'm sitting in a classroomin one of these other states, is
there an opportunity inagriculture and FFA?
Can it promote me intosomething along a career?
What would you tell me is anopportunity?
Speaker 3 (16:29):
Anything, anything they want to do.
And I used to tell kids that onthe first day of school since
we're everybody's going back toschool now and they be in here
and they're freshmen and they'relike, you know, I don't even
know why I'm in here.
I'm not an ag kid.
That's what they would alwaystell me and I was like, really,
so how are you're not an ag kid?
How did you get to school today, you know?
(16:49):
And what did we eat forbreakfast?
And you put on clothes.
We touch agriculture through.
We wouldn't be alive without it.
And so for you to say, and Iwould tell them, you tell me
something you want to do, andI'm going to correlate it with
an ag career, you know, like,well, I want to be a nurse or I
want to be a doctor.
I said, well, great, because inour meat science class you're
(17:10):
going to learn about the anatomy.
The bones and muscles of ananimal are the same as they are
in a human.
You know, you're going to learnall of that, your basics and
your background.
I have a lot of students thatwould come back and then say,
hey, I got as a grad assistant,I got on a work project to do a
research, because I showedrabbits and chick and I was on
(17:32):
the poultry judging team.
But she's a doctor and becauseof her resume, because of that
experience, she was able to.
You know she got put on thatjob and you know those are the
things that they don't realizeand you know we think about all
the time.
I use the example.
You know a doctor who has tomake a split second decision
(17:53):
when you're in the ER.
Well, when you're judging ofanything, you've got to do that
in a small amount and you've gotto tell me why.
I don't want to hear, I don'tknow.
You know, I want to know whyyou are backing up.
If I'm on a gurney in the ERand they're fixing to have to do
surgery.
I want you to be confident, Iwant you to have a decision and
(18:18):
I want you to be able to back itup.
Well, that skill set that welearn in all of our career
development events are going tohelp you with anything, and so
really, I will not allow them totell me that they're not an ag
kid anymore and that without ityou know you've heard the
t-shirt you know without it we'dbe hungry and naked and all of
the things that we would be.
But agriculture touches everysingle person's life one way or
(18:40):
another and there's so manyopportunities for us to do.
I know that when you weretalking about reaching down into
the elementary, I'm going toadd in real quick I used to do
an ag science day withelementary students and we would
communicate with the teachersof the elementary in their
science curriculum and it wascalled ag science day because I
(19:01):
started to think.
I said, if our high schoolstudents are getting those
hands-on opportunities andexperiences where they're
learning those, we're, you know,we are basically supporting
history, we're supportingEnglish, we're supporting math
because they're actually doingthose in the ag education
classroom.
How can we do that inelementary?
So we started, you know, about15 years ago, doing Ag Science
(19:24):
Day, working with Texas FarmBureau and our county Farm
Bureau to sponsor that.
It was so successful becausethe kids they rotated it with a
different topic.
So in let's use third gradethey had to do a, the life cycle
of an animal.
So we use poultry science.
Or maybe in fifth grade I hadthe teachers there said man, we
(19:46):
are not doing good on the startest.
They don't understand soilparticle size, perfect, let's do
soil science and we would bringit in and they would touch it
and they make that and they weretaught by the high school FFA
students and talk aboutmentorship for that.
And then when they got in highschool I would say, hey, do you
remember Ag Science Day?
And they did, and that giveback, you know, and that
(20:08):
community outreach, it was justa blessing altogether.
Programs like that that we cando, where we can reach
elementary students, embed intoother curriculums, it's a win
because, like we just said, ittouches everything and you can
see I'm a fan.
Speaker 2 (20:26):
Hey, listen everything that you just said,
everything.
If you want to know what thefuture is growing to ag science
teachers, if you want to knowwhat the future is growing to ag
science teachers, if you wantto know what your future
classroom looks like, do exactlywhat Melissa just said.
There is no one cooler in thatelementary school than the high
school kids.
And if they show up in officialdress, what is this?
And next thing you know they'reshowing up with animals or
(20:49):
they're showing up withexperimental or plants.
That is what fascinates them.
So, to your point, you'regrowing your classroom and
business is about numbers andnumbers.
So if you're growing yourclassroom, that's a good thing
and the administration wouldlike that.
So keep growing your numbersMakes a lot of sense.
One of the things that you saidthere that I thought was just a
(21:12):
takeaway Wayne Gretzky, afamous hockey player.
They asked him one time whatmakes you such a great hockey
player and he said most playersskate to where the puck is.
I skate to where the puck isgoing.
And if we think about that, weknow that the world population
is growing.
Right now we're experiencing itright here in Texas a lot of
(21:35):
growth, a lot of urban sprawl,taking up of natural resources.
I got news for you we're goingto have more people in this
world in the next 30 years andwe're not going to have more
land to grow, more food, morewater to take care of our
growing, of our food supply toyour point.
(21:58):
It's going to take a lot ofbrilliant minds and we're going
to have to have people that sayI may not understand livestock
production, but I understandengineering or linguistics or
marketing to help get thiscommodity to the people that
need it.
If they don't, they're going todie.
So I think there is tremendousopportunity.
(22:20):
I think it's sad that when theypolled Americans, a lot of
Americans don't know whatagriculture is, but everybody
knows what food is and I lovewhat you said.
From the time we get up in themorning, we got a roof over our
head.
Ag commodity that's a productIf we eat.
Speaker 3 (22:39):
Breathe in oxygen that was produced by trees and
plants.
Speaker 2 (22:43):
Everything that, like you said, that we touch has
something to do with agriculture.
Let's talk leadership for asecond.
Let's talk leadership for asecond.
You've taught for a while.
You've trained a lot of teams,you've offered a lot of advice.
Give me your top threeleadership traits.
If you could tell somebody tobe an effective leader, what
would they be?
Speaker 3 (23:03):
I think the number one would be an effective
communicator.
You've got to be able tocommunicate with people and
always tell the kids read theroom, because sometimes they
don't, and unfortunately todayour students don't do that as
well, because they are glued tosomething that thinks for them a
lot of time, whether it's acomputer or a phone or whatever
(23:25):
it may be, and so communicationis definitely my number one.
The other one I'm going to sayis work ethic.
Work ethic is no leader shouldbe outworked by their other
people, you know, by the peoplebelow them.
It should always be a teameffort, and I want to work
(23:45):
alongside the leader and theyshould be giving that as an
example.
And so if, if you don'tunderstand how to work, or you
put your best foot forward oryou have pride in the work
you're producing, uh, you alwayswant to leave things.
My daddy used to always say youleave things better than you
got them, and I think that'ssomething with the work ethic as
(24:05):
well.
And then the third one Iactually have four, so
dependability, which might fallwith that work ethic.
If you your word meanssomething if you say you're
going to do it, then you need tomake sure that that you do.
You know there's nothing more,and that integrity or character
(24:28):
is, you know, part of that aswell.
And then with that I would rollin compassion.
I think people have to becompassionate because everybody
walks in different footsteps.
We're all trying to do the samething, but their paths are
different, and so just be, youknow, compassionate, to
understand that people you knowmay be having a rough time or
(24:51):
hard time, and that's where thatservant heart comes from.
That we talk about a lot is,with community service, the
living to serve.
I could dissect the entire FFAmotto for you because it fits
every single thing we're doing,but I do believe that that's
something that we try to teachour kids.
You know that that is somethingthat you want.
To be a productive citizen, youwant to make sure that you're
(25:11):
giving back and that compassionand understanding, living to
serve.
Speaker 2 (25:16):
That was really good, by the way.
That's real good.
No doubt a good leader is aneffective communicator, both in
the written word and the spokenword.
And the other thing is I likethat you said this, by the way
but don't lose your voice.
Don't let technology becomeyour voice.
(25:38):
It can help you amplify yourvoice, but be discerning.
I love that you said bediscerning and don't be afraid
of technology, but don't let itreplace, because it's not going
to replace your work ethic, it'snot going to replace your
integrity.
I love to ask the kids.
A lot of times I ask them.
(25:58):
I said tell me about yourbusiness.
And they always look at me andsay, mr Alejandro, I don't have
a business.
I said, yeah, you are, you'reit.
I said what time?
Speaker 1 (26:06):
do you open in?
Speaker 2 (26:07):
the morning.
What?
Speaker 1 (26:08):
kind of customer service.
Speaker 2 (26:09):
Do you deliver?
Are you responsive?
Do you do what you say you'regoing to do?
I mean, we are our business.
That's why everybody knows I goby the handle of your brand,
because that's who we are.
And to your point, I think thoseare great examples.
Work that could.
(26:31):
Dependability, compassion,empathy, vulnerability, all of
those are signs of great leaders.
So I hope people picked up onthose, because that's gold right
there, gold All right.
So now let's talk about alittle bit about Bloom.
So it's really interesting.
I love meeting people, by theway, and I'm always fascinated
to learn about people, to learnabout their backgrounds.
(26:52):
And I remember, before COVID, Ihad an opportunity to meet this
gentleman and he was telling meall about Bloom.
His name was Pete Hexter and Ijust liked Pete Hexter, and I
liked it because he was veryaccomplished in his career.
But he was looking at what wasnext and it's like Tom Ziegler
(27:18):
and Zig Ziegler say we're allgoing to leave a legacy.
We're either going to leavethat legacy by design or by
default.
Legacy by design or by default.
And I just remember Pete tellingme Aaron, I'm looking to do
something that's going to makethe world better, and I love it.
When people have that FFA ahamoment and I remember when Pete
(27:43):
had that moment at theconvention, both national and
state convention when Pete hadthat moment at the convention,
both national and stateconvention, he's like, OK, this
is, I know we've got to supportthis.
And so he's made several pivotsin the company for the very
purpose of wanting to supportand why do you think it is that
Pete's so committed to that?
Why do you know him?
Now?
You work with him, what y'alldo so focused on helping young
(28:06):
people.
Speaker 3 (28:08):
Well, I do believe you know they changed the name
from Bloom to Bloom for Good,because I do believe you nailed
that that Pete is looking toleave a legacy of good and that
goes right back to that servantheart which you know being a
leader and wanting to give back,and he understands completely
(28:28):
that, just like you said, we'vegot to grow our future in the
youth, in all of our youthleadership programs.
I mean, that is our mission.
Bloom is about supporting youthin agriculture and other
leadership programs, because ifwe don't lift them up and we
don't help them and you know, Ithink a lot of times even my
experience as an ag teacher astudent will tell me later well,
(28:50):
if you hadn't told me that Iwas going to be good at that, I
wouldn't have done that.
I'm like oh my gosh, you wereso talented, you know, did you
not see that?
And I've said no.
If you hadn't told me to be onthis team, if you had not told
me to write that speech.
If you had not told me to runfor this office, I would have
done it because I didn't know Icould or that I had the ability,
(29:11):
and so I think a lot of timesthey are so fragile in the age
that we're talking about.
These youth are the future andagain I say that, aaron, you and
I are living proof of what anFFA program can build and grow.
I mean, when I was a sophomore,I was so shy, I did not want to
talk.
(29:32):
I know this is unbelievable,people don't believe this.
But my daddy said, nope, you'regoing to district leadership
camp and he sent me away and I'mlike, no, I won't know anybody,
you can't do that to me.
Came back and my mom says youhaven't shut up since.
So it was really that pivotalthing where it opens it up and
then you talk about aha moments.
Even as students we have thatand that's so cool to watch when
(29:55):
it switches and you realizeabout the premier leadership,
the personal growth and leadingyou to career success.
And I truly believe that Petesaw that and he wanted to be a
part of it and he picked thebest organization and I just I'm
so happy to be on the journeywith him and the entire Bloom
team to help and serve, becauseI do.
(30:19):
I have a servant heart and soit was.
It was a no brainer for me atthe time of retirement, when I
had to get out of the classroom,that this was exactly what I
wanted to do at the time ofretirement when I had to get out
of the classroom.
Speaker 2 (30:27):
That this was exactly what I wanted to do.
That's the reason why I wantedto mention that, because I can
tell you from the seat that Isit in.
It was fun, and has been fun,to watch where Bloom was, to
watch their connection with mycolleagues across the United
States, to see what role you'replaying now and its next steps,
(30:47):
if you will.
But at the end of the day, Ilove it that it's not just about
it is a business.
Businesses are not.
Like I tell my colleagues,businesses are not a fountain of
funds for nonprofits.
Businesses are in business tomake money.
But as a result of theirsuccess there comes a lot of
(31:13):
philanthropy, and I like it whenI see that they say, hey,
listen, we want to supportbecause businesses could put
their money in a lot of places.
And so I'm always thrilledPeople that know me know I say
this when I write proposals andwe've been very successful.
I'm very proud of what we'vebeen able to accomplish.
When we write proposals,there's two questions that I ask
(31:33):
myself so what and according towho?
It's real easy for us to goaround and say we're the
greatest youth organization inAmerica, but we may have a
stakeholder that their son ordaughter was exceptional in
sports or band or UIL, or speechand debate or Eagle Scout.
(31:54):
So it's very arrogant for us tosay that.
But when I can say, well,according to Ford Motor Company,
according to McCoy's, accordingto Justin Boots, according to
Bloom, our kids are pretty good.
So there's my so what and myaccording to who.
(32:16):
So when we have stakeholdersthat believe in us, it makes our
efforts more rewarding.
So I just want to say thank you, thank you to you, thank you to
Pete, and again, it's all aboutthe leadership.
We could sit and talk all dayabout all this.
(32:36):
The good thing is, we bothagree that we want a better
Texas, we want a better UnitedStates and we believe that Ag,
food and Natural Resources andthe FFA could be a great portal
to get those great leaders outthere in business, in
agriculture, in classrooms, andthank you for sharing that with
(33:00):
us and joining us today.
Before we leave, everybody getsa fun question.
Okay before we leave, everybodygets a fun question, okay.
Speaker 3 (33:14):
So melissa rosenbush basher, tell me what is the best
concert you've ever been to, oh, wow, okay.
Well, I just went to onerecently that was pretty
fantastic.
Um, it was Zach Topp, becausemy son that was his his
graduation president from highschool was that?
That's what he said.
He's such an old soul.
I couldn't afford George Straittickets to see Zach Topp, but I
(33:39):
did sneak into the Astrodome inhigh school with my best friend
and we did get to peek throughthe fence there and get to see
George Strait ride around on hishorse.
So that was pretty good too.
But I would say those are mytop two for sure.
Speaker 2 (33:52):
Wow, that's good.
That's really good.
Yeah, no, it's a fun questionto ask and it's amazing the
spectrum of artists andentertainers and stories that
have come out of this podcast,everything from Metallica to
Pitbull to, obviously.
Speaker 3 (34:14):
King George.
Speaker 2 (34:17):
Even the greatest showman.
I mean, it's been fascinatingto hear people, but I just think
it's a reminder that we're allthe same.
We all like a good movie, agood book, a good song, and
those are just things that wehave in common.
So thank you for sharing that.
Speaker 3 (34:34):
Tom, absolutely yeah.
Speaker 2 (34:37):
All right folks.
Well, thank you for stopping byfor another edition of the
Growing Our Future podcast.
This is just another reason Iloved Melissa coming on, for
several reasons.
Melissa really is an example ofwhy I love my job.
People ask me that all the time.
They said you really like yourjob.
I said I do.
I said I get to work with someincredible educators, I get to
(34:58):
work with young people that wantto serve, and then I work with
some incredible sponsors whohave a heart for the future, and
Melissa just kind of embodiesall of that.
So thank you all for stoppingby.
Until we meet again, go out anddo something great for somebody
.
You'll feel better about it,you'll make things better and
(35:23):
grow the future.
Plant the seeds you heard today.
Plant them, take care of them,harvest them and then share them
.
Thanks for stopping by.
We'll see you next time on theGrowing Our Future podcast.
Speaker 1 (35:41):
We hope you've enjoyed this episode of the
Growing Our Future podcast.
This show is sponsored by theTexas FFA Foundation, whose
mission is to strengthenagricultural science education
so students can develop theirpotential for personal growth,
career success and leadership ina global marketplace.
Learn more at mytexasffaorg.
Popular Podcasts
On Purpose with Jay Shetty
I’m Jay Shetty host of On Purpose the worlds #1 Mental Health podcast and I’m so grateful you found us. I started this podcast 5 years ago to invite you into conversations and workshops that are designed to help make you happier, healthier and more healed. I believe that when you (yes you) feel seen, heard and understood you’re able to deal with relationship struggles, work challenges and life’s ups and downs with more ease and grace. I interview experts, celebrities, thought leaders and athletes so that we can grow our mindset, build better habits and uncover a side of them we’ve never seen before. New episodes every Monday and Friday. Your support means the world to me and I don’t take it for granted — click the follow button and leave a review to help us spread the love with On Purpose. I can’t wait for you to listen to your first or 500th episode!
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
The Joe Rogan Experience
The official podcast of comedian Joe Rogan.