Rapid City Stevens FFA members wait for the stock show to end.
Community service is a pillar of FFA that aligns with the last line of the FFA motto, “Living to Serve.” Rapid City Stevens FFA in South Dakota works to give back to its chapter by cleaning up after its community’s biggest event, the Black Hills Stock Show & Rodeo.
The Black Hills Stock Show & Rodeo in Rapid City, S.D., is the second-largest event in the state. An estimated 331,000 people attend the western festival that features 120 different livestock, horse and rodeo events, along with more than 300 vendors to shop from. Cowboys and ranchers come to town to compete in cattle shows, ranch rodeos and horse events.
It is also the region’s largest trade show, livestock sale and competition, and was named the top indoor Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA) rodeo in the country in 2023. Established in 1959, the stock show takes place in late January through early February each year and covers more than 500,000 square feet of space at The Monument.
Rapid City Stevens FFA is a 24-member chapter. Each year, it offers to help out the stock show by supplying members to help clean up The Monument and rodeo arena. Members spend six to seven hours tearing down and cleaning up tarps, drapes, tables and chairs.
Rapid City Stevens FFA members Kaiva Coleman and Daphne White take a break from cleaning up.
The chapter volunteers at this event because, in the past, the stock show helped it with contest preparation, sponsorships, letters of recommendation and more. Members believe the least they can do is help event organizers tear down The Monument. The clean-up also affects the community because it shows that youth are still capable of helping, and it gets The Monument ready for events that happen the next day.
By helping their community, Rapid City Stevens FFA members ensure they have an avid support group that is willing to assist them.
