Housatonic Valley FFA student speakers contend at district-wide competition

Housatonic Valley FFA student speakers contend at district-wide competition

Housatonic Valley FFA’s Riley Mahaffey placed second in the Extemporaneous Public Speaking event March 27.

Patrick L. Sullivan

FALLS VILLAGE — On Thursday, March 27, the Housatonic Valley FFA hosted the Connecticut FFA District 1 Public Speaking Competition.

Students from five area FFA chapters — Shepaug, Northwestern, Wamogo, Woodbury and Housatonic Valley — participated in three different events.

The first of the three events is creed speaking, a competition where freshmen memorise and recite the FFA Creed written by E.M. Tiffany in 1928.

Prepared public speaking is the second competition, in which participants write and deliver a six to eight minute speech about the agricultural topic of their choice.

Those competing in extemporaneous public speaking have 30 minutes to draw a topic, research, prepare and deliver a three to five minute speech.

Housatonic’sRiley Mahaffey finished second and Byron Bell took third place in extemporaneous public speaking. Zayre Traill was the runner-up in FFA Creed, and Madison Gulatta took first place in prepared public speaking.

Mahaffey, a junior, is a two-time national public speaker, winning creed speaking at the state FFA convention her freshman year and prepared public speaking at the state level her sophomore year. Her second-place finish in extemporaneous public speaking at the district level last week secured her spot in this year’s state competition, and she plans to compete at the national level again next fall.

Hannah Johnson is Housatonic Valley FFA’s reporter.

Latest News

Mountaineers keep kicking in state tournament

Ava Segalla, Housatonic Valley Regional High School's all-time leading goal scorer, has takes a shot against Coventry in the Class S girls soccer tournament quarterfinal game Friday, Nov. 7.

Photo by Riley Klein

FALLS VILLAGE — Housatonic Valley Regional High School’s girls soccer team is headed to the semifinals of the state tournament.

The Mountaineers are the highest seeded team of the four schools remaining in the Connecticut Interscholastic Athletic Conference Class S playoff bracket.

Keep ReadingShow less
Legal Notices - November 6, 2025

Legal Notice

The Planning & Zoning Commission of the Town of Salisbury will hold a Public Hearing on Special Permit Application #2025-0303 by owner Camp Sloane YMCA Inc to construct a detached apartment on a single family residential lot at 162 Indian Mountain Road, Lakeville, Map 06, Lot 01 per Section 208 of the Salisbury Zoning Regulations. The hearing will be held on Monday, November 17, 2025 at 5:45 PM. There is no physical location for this meeting. This meeting will be held virtually via Zoom where interested persons can listen to & speak on the matter. The application, agenda and meeting instructions will be listed at www.salisburyct.us/agendas/. The application materials will be listed at www.salisburyct.us/planning-zoning-meeting-documents/. Written comments may be submitted to the Land Use Office, Salisbury Town Hall, 27 Main Street, P.O. Box 548, Salisbury, CT or via email to landuse@salisburyct.us. Paper copies of the agenda, meeting instructions, and application materials may be reviewed Monday through Thursday between the hours of 8:00 AM and 3:30 PM at the Land Use Office, Salisbury Town Hall, 27 Main Street, Salisbury CT.

Keep ReadingShow less
Classifieds - November 6, 2025

Help Wanted

Weatogue Stables has an opening: for a full time team member. Experienced and reliable please! Must be available weekends. Housing a possibility for the right candidate. Contact Bobbi at 860-307-8531.

Services Offered

Deluxe Professional Housecleaning: Experience the peace of a flawlessly maintained home. For premium, detail-oriented cleaning, call Dilma Kaufman at 860-491-4622. Excellent references. Discreet, meticulous, trustworthy, and reliable. 20 years of experience cleaning high-end homes.

Keep ReadingShow less