Years after Donna Moeller, director of Steinbrenner’s Agriculture Department, passed away from cancer, the Future Farmers of America (FFA) officer team has decided to redesign her memorial on campus. A tree was planted in remembrance of her but has fallen under poor conditions. The surrounding area has become overgrown with weeds and the tree is now covered in lichens and algae. A small, yet meaningful project has been taken on to improve the appearance and carry on Moeller’s legacy.
“She truly cared about the program and its success,” current FFA Advisor Jessica Switzer said, “We only felt it is right to honor her memory.”
Donna Moeller was responsible for founding Steinbrenner High School’s FFA chapter. She dedicated her career as a teacher and mentor to showing students a passion for the agricultural and animal industry. Over the years, the program she established has continued to grow and become a well accomplished club at Steinbrenner and with them, they wish to carry Moeller’s legacy as a reminder of their roots.
“We hope that we can teach students that we need to understand our past in order to be better in the future and Mrs. Moeller was the reason that Steinbrenner FFA had such a great start,” Switzer said.
In order to uphold her legacy, the FFA officer team has decided to give her memorial on campus a makeover. By cleaning up the space and adding tokens of appreciation along with a plan to maintain the space, they hope to bring more awareness to the small section of campus that holds great meaning to their program.
“This is a great remembrance of her in our program,” FFA President Brianna Valdez said, “I hope our members will want to learn more about her legacy and about FFA.”
Turning appreciation into action, the officer team, in addition to their current advisors, are hoping that this simple project has a lasting impact on their program. As they take on their first project of the year, there are hopes that this opens the path for more accomplishments and opportunities to make Moeller proud of the chapter she initiated.
“Mrs. Moeller wanted to see the success of the chapter, and we hope that she is smiling down on us for how far we have come in the short time Steinbrenner High School has been open,” Switzer said.
Kaitlyn Estrada // Staff Writer
