At 3 years old, Riley Reid’s first wish was granted: Make-A-Wish sent her to Walt Disney World following an esophageal varices diagnosis. Esophageal varices are enlargements of the veins in the esophagus, which is the connector between the throat and the stomach.
Throughout her childhood, Reid’s family maintained close ties to Make-A-Wish. So, it was a natural fit for her FFA Supervised Agricultural Experience (SAE) to benefit that organization.
“There was a girl a couple of years ago who sold a market steer [to raise money] for cancer, and I always wanted to do that,” says the Knoxville FFA member from Iowa. “When I joined FFA my freshman year, I learned about SAE projects and was like, ‘Oh, I could sell a market goat [and donate the funds raised] to Make-A-Wish.’”
Community-Wide Support
Reid asked two Iowa farm families — Kelly and Peter Decious of 3D Livestock and Tipton FFA advisor Megan McCleary and her husband, Evan, of McCleary Livestock — to partner with her and donate a breeding goat and its kid.
“I was really glad to show a goat at the country fair that came from two really good families,” Reid says. “I’m also grateful that a family I didn’t know at this time — the McClearys — donated to my project.”
Reid showed the market goat at the county fair and put it into an online auction, where individuals submitted bids with a minimum of $10. She also sold three sponsorship levels, including Grand Champion, Champion and Blue Ribbon, to raise additional funds. The sponsors had their names and logos printed on a banner as well as on T-shirts sold during the fair.
The sponsorships Reid sold, combined with T-shirt sales and auction proceeds for the market goat, raised more than $5,000. After subtracting the expense of supplies and goat feed, she donated $5,350.78 to Make-A-Wish.
“I was surprised and grateful,” she says. “I had a lot of help from friends and family who supported me.”
After the auction, Reid donated the goat to Cultivating Hope Farms in Ames, Iowa, in memory of a Make-A-Wish recipient who passed away. The farm uses care practices to help participants with different abilities learn valuable life lessons and is Iowa’s first care farm for neurodivergent and varied ability families.
Start Your SAE
The possibilities for an FFA SAE are endless. For additional ideas and inspiration, explore this video collection featuring past projects.
