Her goal is to one day teach agriculture to people who love it as much as she does.
San Benito County resident Kristine Hernandez got one step closer to achieving that goal when she discovered she will receive the highest degree the Future Farmers of America can bestow upon one of its 451,997 members.
She will receive the American FFA Degree at the 77th National FFA Convention in Louisville, Ky. on Oct. 30 – an honor that less than one in 165 FFA members ever attain, according to an FFA statement.
Hernandez entered the program five years ago and has tirelessly worked towards this degree since, she said.
“It was worth every slaving hour of everything I did,” she said. “It is the highest degree you can receive in FFA and it took a lot of hard work to receive it but it will help a lot through school and applying for jobs in the future.”
Hernandez will be a sophomore at California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo in the fall.
Her mother, Jerrianne Hernandez, conceded it was a long haul to get to that point, she but couldn’t be more proud of her daughter.
“She had to do a thousand fundraisers, a lot of community service, have a good grade point average, have business skills and learn responsibilities,” her mother said. “It’s been a long five years… but I think about kids where their parents are having so many problems with them over drugs and alcohol, and I’m so proud of her that she stayed on the right path.”
Hernandez is on vacation in Arizona, and when her mother called her to notify her that she’d received the degree, she was so happy she started to cry, her mom said.
“There’s a lot of competition,” she said. “To get to that level is a big deal. And she’s the first person in three years in San Benito County to have gotten it.”
Kelly Bianchi, Hernandez’s FFA advisor while at San Benito High School, wasn’t surprised Hernandez received the prestigious degree.
“She’s a very outstanding young lady who has great dreams and goals, and she will achieve those dreams because she has the desire to do it,” Bianchi said. “And she’ll make a wonderful ag teacher one day.”
Erin Musgrave can be reached at 637-5566, ext. 336 or at
