2022 FFA STARS OVER ILLINOIS HONORED DURING THE 

94th ANNUAL ILLINOIS FFA STATE CONVENTION

The Illinois Star Awards were announced Wednesday, June 15, during the 94th annual Illinois FFA State Convention, Bank of Springfield Center, Springfield, IL.  

Illinois Star Awards honor FFA members who have developed the organization’s most outstanding agricultural skills and competencies through their Supervised Agricultural Experience, demonstrated outstanding management skills, and earned the State FFA Degree – the Illinois Association FFA’s highest degree of membership. Eligible FFA members must also have met other agricultural education, scholastic, and leadership requirements.  A special thank you to Illinois Department of Agriculture Director Jerry Costello for speaking and presenting these prestigious awards.

Illinois FFA State Star in Agribusiness

Katie Wagner was selected as the District 1 Star in Agribusiness. Katie is the daughter of Scott and Julie Wagner. She is a member of the Mercer County FFA Chapter, advised by Aaron Heartt, Brandon Livingston, and Hannah Libby. Katie’s Supervised Agricultural Experience is conducted through her business, Centennial Farm Labradors. Since 2018, she has raised and sold labrador retriever puppies. Currently, she has five females and two males. Looking into the future, she plans to continue her business and is excited to see how she can expand.

Illinois FFA State Star in Agricultural Placement

Loren Pribble was selected as the District 5 Star in Agricultural Placement. Loren is the son of Jeremiah and Dana Pribble. He is a member of the Goreville FFA Chapter, advised by Jeff Robison. Loren’s Supervised Agricultural Experience is in Grain Production, Fiber and Oil Crop Production, and Forage Crops. There are two farms, one is located in Goreville, IL and the other is located in Thompsonville, IL. He is responsible for 95% of all decisions made and 100% of all labor on both farms. For the 2021 growing season, Loren raised 95 acres of corn, 61 acres of soybeans, and baled roughly 300 5x6 round bales.

Illinois FFA State Star in Agriscience

Lizzie Schafer was selected as the District 4 Star in Agriscience. Lizzie is the daughter of Aaron & Sue Schafer. She is a member of the Taylorville FFA Chapter, advised by Sue Schafer, Katie King, and Lori Parks. This past year, Lizzie invested 179 hours into her IVF Embryo Grade bovine research project. She started by speaking with embryologists, veterinarians, and local producers on how to properly create an accurate project. Through her research, she’s been able to compare Grade 1, Grade 2, and Grade 3 embryos. Lizzie was able to prove that using low-quality embryos can be a great way to generate more offspring. Grade 3 embryos produced a pregnancy at the rate of 40%, Grade 2 40%, and a Grade 1 55%.  This project gave Lizzie an opportunity to work with industry leaders and researchers, all while gaining valuable knowledge that she plans to use in her future operation.  

Illinois FFA State Star Farmer

Braydon DeCounter was selected as the District 3 Star Farmer. Braydon is the son of Sam and Heather DeCounter. He is a member of the West Prairie FFA Chapter, advised by Sam DeCounter and Corinne Biswell. Braydon has Supervised Agricultural Experiences in the areas of Small Animal Production, Swine Entrepreneurship, and Goat Production. In his Small Animal Production project, he breeds California and New Zealand rabbits to have kits any time of the year. Then, he will show the offspring at local, county, state, and American Rabbit Breed Association (ARBA) shows. The offspring that does not meet his breed criteria are then sold for human consumption and through markets he has developed. In Braydon’s Swine Entrepreneurship project, he purchases pigs from local producers and prepares them to be shown at local, county, and state shows. Lastly, in his Goat Production Supervised Agricultural Experience he breeds 13 Boer does to 1 Boer buck to have kids in the middle of November. His focus is to produce goats for the commercial producer with the main focus of selling production type bucks. He retains all does in order to expand his operation. Any progeny that does not meet his standards are then sold to others for market, production, or show ring purposes. Braydon’s projects have taught him many different life lessons such as time management and fiscal responsibility.