Some members of Class VIII were able to accept Mike Janeczek's gracious invitation to attend The Andersons Inc.'s Customer Appreciation and Dove Shoot yesterday in Lake Placid. WLIANR alums were also well represented. Joe Hodges, The Andersons' Southern Region Vice President (and one of FFAA's Board members), is a Class IVgraduate and I also saw Dave Dymond/Class VI, David Evans/Class III graduate, Class II's Bob Adair and Pam Fentress there too. If I missed someone -- my apologies!

Thanks Mike for the hospitality and warm welcome! Class VIII members Stanley Perry and Jeremy Fountain were also there but not in this photo (I did get to meet their sons -- what a pleasure!).

L to R: Fred Fanizzi, Mike Janeczek, me, Kim Erickson, and Roland Yee (who got maybe 4 hours of sleep during this week of hard freezes -- hope he's caught up on some well-deserved rest!)

Happy Holidays to all!

Thinking about Dr. Burl Long's presentation on the value of reflection. This George Eliot quote made me think of his lesson: "The golden moments in the stream of life rush past us and we see nothing but sand; the angels come to visit us and we only know them when they are gone."

Thanks to all of you who will be helping me see those golden moments and recognize the angels in the next two years.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Michael, Jim, Will, Staci, Marcie & Jeremy about to take off and tour Gainesville.

Fellow Class VIII members-


WOW! What an amazing first week! From the ropes course to our airplane ride and all those presentations. You made the class fun and exciting. Just think, this is only the beginning.

Greetings WLI Alumni and a big welcome to Class VIII! Last week we had a wonderful experience in Gainesville getting to know everyone and getting reintroduced to the concept of leadership. Though I wasn’t part of the group, I personally took away much from being around Florida’s greatest leaders in its strongest industry.

To begin the blogging adventure for Class VIII, I have decided to post two photos. Both photos are of Stanley Perry conquering the high ropes challenge course. The first photo shows him about to jump off the platform to in order to hit the bell. The second shows the support structure of fellow class members.

It amazed me that thirty strangers could come together the first day, and begin to COMPLETELY trust eachother within the first few hours of knowing one another. Stanley knew that when he jumped, he would not fall, since Jeremy, Jenn, Jaime and others provided reassurance.

In agriculture, in our occupations, in our community involvement, and in life, we need to be reminded that someone is there to catch us and support us. We can attempt something new and take a risk, and those who surround us will not let us fall, and aid us in hitting the bell.

Have we surrounded ourselves with people that will support us? Will we support others during times of risk?

Happy Blogging!

IFAS/CALS TailGATOR 2010 - Sept. 25

TailGATOR 2010
September 25
3 hours before kickoff
Stephen C. O'Connell Center
www.cals.ufl.edu/TailGATOR

2010_TailGATOR_web.jpg

Join us on Saturday, Sept. 25 as we tell the story of IFAS and the College
of Agricultural and Life Sciences at the 14th annual TailGATOR.

The celebration begins three hours prior to kickoff of the UF vs. Kentucky
game in the Stephen C. O'Connell Center. Tickets are $12 and include a meal
catered by Hill's Bar-B-Que. Be sure to register by September 10.
<http://www.cals.ufl.edu/tailgator>

Talk with departmental representatives, take your picture with Albert and
Alberta, and watch as we celebrate the story of five of the most
<http://cals.ufl.edu/tailgator/2010awards.shtml> distinguished alumni in
the college as well as the CALS Alumni and Friends Scholarship recipient.
CALS Alumni and Friends will have several tempting silent auction items
<http://cals.ufl.edu/tailgator/silent-auction.shtml> available to raise
funds for its scholarship endowment.

See who's attending and learn more about TailGATOR and CALS Alumni and
Friends at www.cals.ufl.edu/TailGATOR.

Cathy Herren Carr
Director, Alumni and Career Services
Univ. of Florida College of Agricultural and Life Sciences
PO Box 110270, Gainesville, FL 32611
2002 McCarty Hall D ▪ <mailto:chcarr@ufl.edu> chcarr@ufl.edu
352.392.1963 ▪ Fax: 352.392.8988

Hannah at the podium

Very nice in her red dress. Giving out awards.
Sent via BlackBerry.

Jeff Lee at the podium

Sent via BlackBerry.