'Sometimes things happen in life that you cannot change, but you still have to accept it.' That was the message of Central Region National FFA Vice President Cortney Zimmerman, who delivered her retiring address titled 'The Courage to Live Life' on Thursday night at the National FFA Convention in Indianapolis.
The Spencer High School graduate reflected on the words of the Serenity Prayer during her speech and explained that she didn't always know what it meant to 'accept the things we cannot change, have courage to change the things we can, and wisdom to know the difference.'
"I never fully understood this saying nor have I fully comprehended it until life taught me the values behind those words," Zimmerman professed. "We all have moments in our life where everything seems so complicated and nothing goes as planned."
Cortney shared personal stories where obstacles came before success, such as slipping into a creek while on a family gathering, going head to head with the champion animal while showing her beef heifer at the state fair, and spending the latter half of her senior year in high school at home because of the pandemic.
She then shared examples of how someone else in her life faced his own adversities with courage--that being her late-father and FFA advisor, Mark Zimmerman, who passed away this summer after a long battle with cancer.
"As students walked out of his classroom, they left feeling respected and cared about, no matter who they were or where they came from," she recalled. "He changed the lives of students because he believed in the lives of students. He believed in me."
She recalled that while her dad went through his illness--which included keeping up with his cattle business in between chemotherapy treatments and writing lesson plans for his classroom while in a hospital bed--he continued to live his life in such a way where he chose to react with a positive attitude instead of focusing on the things he could not control.
"Rather than asking yourself 'why me?' ask yourself 'what's next?'" she advised her fellow FFA members. "What can I do to face the challenges that life has granted me? Because truthfully, life will only grant you what you can handle."
Zimmerman is currently attending South Dakota State University, majoring in agricultural communications. As a national officer, she spent the past year traveling throughout the country leading agriculture students and engaging top leaders in agribusiness.
Meanwhile, the Wisconsin delegation had even more things to celebrate during the day's events in Indy. Ethan Meissner of the Marshfield FFA was named winner of the Agricultural Processing Proficiency award. The Wisconsin FFA Alumni & Supporters has once again earned the national association award for the fourth consecutive year. And Charlotte Johnson of the Granton FFA Alumni was one of three individuals in the nation to be presented with an Outstanding FFA Alumni Achievement award.
On Friday, the organization will continue to honor other FFA proficiency award and judging contest winners. The Stars Over America program will also take place, where Emily Makos of the Juda FFA is a finalist for the American Star Farmer award.
The conference wraps up on Saturday with the presentation of the American FFA Degrees and the naming of the new national FFA officer team.
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