The 2024-25 California FFA state officers. Photo courtesy of the California FFA Association.
As the California State Leadership Convention grows closer, the 2024-25 California FFA state officers’ time in office is coming to a close. Camille Zavala, John Dein, Gianna Gonzalez, Melissa Lua-Duarte and Joshua Wolford have worked hard all year to visit chapters, hold conferences and run elections.
President Zavala (Kingsburg FFA) and Vice President Dein (Turlock Christian FFA) visited the Salinas FFA Chapter in October 2024 and gave an exclusive interview to FFA in the USA Reporter Audrey DeCarli. During this interview, both officers spoke about their experiences in FFA, their motivations, their plans for after office and their advice for FFA members. As their time in office comes to a close, it’s time to reflect on their FFA journeys and their advice for FFA members.
Q: What got you interested in FFA?
Camilla Zevala: I was raised in a very agriculture-focused town, which is right next to the raisin capital of the world. Sun-Maid Raisins are all processed and packaged in Kingsburg. When I got into FFA, I joined by accident. It was the COVID-19 school year and I didn’t know what to do, so I ended up in two agriculture classes and was automatically enrolled in FFA. I had an advisor encourage me to run for Greenhand office, and I ended up loving it. I got super into it, and that was [the beginning of] my journey.
The 2024-25 California FFA State President, Camille Zavala. Photo courtesy of Merced FFA.
John Dein: I always had this dream of showing an animal. Growing up, my parents told me they’d gotten responsibility as a kid by doing 4-H and FFA. When I was given the opportunity to show a pig at school, it was the first question on the first day that I asked my principal. He told me I’d have to wait a few years since I was still in junior high. Once I was a freshman, I asked my advisor how to get involved, sign up and show an animal. Ever since then, I’ve been hooked and never looked back.
Q: What kind of FFA activities were you involved in?
CZ: Throughout high school, I did a couple of different things, specifically Career and Leadership Development Event teams. For LDEs, I did impromptu speaking and job interview. As far as CDEs, I did Best Informed Greenhand (BIG) my freshman year and my team got third in state. I was so hooked on that feeling of doing well and pushing yourself to go further and further. During my sophomore, junior and senior years, I was in floral design and I loved it; I took that class for three years.
During my senior year, I made a deal with my advisor that if I got enough members to restart our vine pruning team, she would learn how to coach it. The previous advisor had coached an amazing team and we were notorious for it since our community grows a lot of grapes. I got enough members to join and tried out vine pruning.
JD: I started off with the classic impromptu speaking. I came from a very small school, so it didn’t offer a lot. I also participated in the co-ops marketing test since I’ve always been interested in business. I feel like I thrived there, and I did that for three years.
I also did agricultural issues, where you assemble a group, research a controversial issue in your community or the world, then deliver the pros and the cons of it. One topic we focused on was Prop 12, which is all about confinement of swine units. We went around to different businesses and partnerships to present and build our resume. At the California Polytechnic State University (Cal Poly) state finals, we took on the roles of people we had presented to (I was a sheriff), and it was a super cool competition.
I did these competitions in high school, but would like to point out that I wasn’t the one winning. I found out my happiness was derived from what I was learning, meeting new people and having a good time.
The 2024-25 California FFA State Vice President, John Dein. Photo courtesy of Merced FFA.
Q: How did your advisor or advisors support you in FFA?
CZ: I had three advisors, but I only took classes from one; her name is Mrs. Ferguson. When we were doing online school, she was the only teacher of mine who sought out a relationship, made sure to ask all her students how they were doing and checked in individually to make sure we were doing well. It really stuck out to me to know there was someone, besides my parents, who cared about me in that sense.
She has 100% been my biggest supporter throughout everything I’ve done. She was the one who told me to run for Greenhand office and pushed me to run for sectional and regional offices. Sometimes you just need that push, and she was that for me. Even today, she still checks on me almost daily, just to be there. She’s awesome, and I love her.
JD: My advisor, Mr. Bongiovonni, always told me he saw something in me that he didn’t see in most of his students. He has the gift of being a very observant person, seeking out potential and catering to it. He noticed I was a shy kid and hanging out with probably the wrong group of kids at the time. He pulled me out of that and started putting me in competitions, which was the healthiest thing for me.
He and I have gotten very close throughout the years, in class and in faith. We did Bible studies together and prayed with each other, and it’s super cool to have that support at my own school. He tried to get me to run for state office all year. I was like, “Leave me alone, I’m going to Grand Canyon University,” and was dead set on that. I also told him, “I’m content. I’m going to move on with my life.”
Three days before applications were due, he said, “I’m going to ask you for the final time. God has two doors for you — all you have to do is walk up to them. One is GCU, and the other is state office. At this point, it’s in God’s hands, and he will open the right door for you. All you need to do is walk.” I said, “Okay, we’ll see what happens.”
I still reflect on that today and the ability I have to share [that experience] with others — I owe it all to him. He still drives up to Galt on his off days, and we have lunch and talk.
Q: What do you plan to do next?
CZ: My plan is definitely different from my teammates’. Everyone else is going into an agricultural career, and I’m not. This is something I was very transparent about while running for state office. They asked us in the last interview, before the final cut, and I debated saying it because I thought it might limit my chances. But at the end of the day, being honest was the best thing I could have done in that situation.
The plan for me is a four-year university. I deferred my admission to the University of California-Berkeley; I’m not sure if I will go there or not. I’m weighing my opportunities, so that could change. My major is biology and the pre-medicine path.
JD: I’m not going to go to GCU. I’m planning on going to Modesto Junior College for two years and study agricultural business. From there, I will transfer to Chico, Fresno, Cal Poly or somewhere else.
Q: Do you have any advice for FFA members?
CZ: Every opportunity you get, take advantage of it — they are offered to you for a reason. If someone tells you something, I think there is a reason for it. I wouldn’t be here today if I hadn’t taken advantage of the opportunities I had at my chapter.
JD: As Michael Scott says, “You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take!”
Thank you to Zavala and Dein for giving this interview.
