Montana Farm Bureau Foundation announces Youth Speech Contest

The Montana Farm Bureau Foundation announces their annual Youth Speech Contest in conjunction with the Montana FFA State Convention, March 25-28, 2020 in Great Falls. One of the Foundation’s most important goals is to aid in the agricultural education and the leadership development of Montana’s youth.

Although FFA has similar contests for high school students the MFB Foundation wants to complement, rather than compete, with those contests. The Youth Speech Contest is open to students in the 7th, 8th and 9th grades, who are not able to participate in the State FFA Prepared Speech Contest. Contestants must submit a transcript of their speech by March 23, 2020. Those will be judged prior to the FFA State Convention and the top 20 contestants will be invited to compete during the event.

Speech topic: Farm life can be demanding and stressful. It’s even tougher now with trade wars, natural disasters, depressed commodity prices, labor shortages and many other issues weighing heavily on the farm economy. Given these challenges, more and more farmers today are experiencing stress and mental health issues, either directly or by having a friend or family member in distress. No one is immune. How can we address mental health concerns among rural Montanans and improve access to healthcare and mental health education resources?

A prepared speech needs to be between 2.5 – 4 minutes in length. FFA members, 4-H members and any other student in Montana are all eligible to enter the contest.

Prizes: 1st place = $400; 2nd = $300; 3rd = $200; 4th = $100; 5th = $50.

Registration and a copy of your speech must be received by the Montana Farm Bureau Federation office by March 23, 2020. For registration details, resource links and additional information visit https://mfbf.org/Foundation/Youth-Speech-Contest or contact Scott Kulbeck at scottk@mfbf.org, 406-587-3153.

–Montana Farm Bureau Federation