Everyone knew Maddie Griffiths. The 2017 Redmond High School graduate and Redmond FFA alumna participated in sheep shows throughout the Pacific Northwest, earning awards and making new friends at every stop.
“There was not one showmanship contest where she either didn’t make the final drive or didn’t win; she stacked up buckles like no one else,” says Lance Hill, agricultural education teacher and FFA advisor in Redmond, Ore. “She was one of my shining stars.”
Maddie Griffiths
It wasn’t just her presence in the show ring that made Griffiths a standout; she also embodied the “Live to Serve” motto. When she wasn’t working with her own sheep, Griffiths helped with showmanship practices and taught others how to show small ruminants.
Griffiths died in a car accident June 18, 2022. The news spread fast, and the community wanted to do something to honor her memory.
Live Life Like Maddie
“Maddie had such an infectious smile and she could light up a room,” Hill says. “Our community saw how important [Griffiths] was for setting an example for the youth in our county.”
An FFA member donated a cut and wrapped hog to the Deschutes County Youth Livestock Auction, and Jessica Juvinall, a close friend and fierce competitor of Griffiths, established a GoFundMe campaign. The efforts raised a combined $80,000 for the Maddie Griffiths Memorial Award.
“Our ag family runs deep and is very generous,” says Hill. “They couldn’t open up their pocketbooks quickly enough.”
The details of how all the funds will be used are still being worked out, but Hill notes donations could be used to fund college scholarships, livestock scholarships, showmanship awards or supervised agriculture experience (SAE) grants. One thing is certain: Recipients of the Maddie Griffiths Memorial Award will be youth who live life like Maddie, sharing their time, talents and passion for livestock to help others.
Paige Hess was the first recipient of a Maddie Griffiths Memorial Award. Hess, a Redmond County FFA member who shows sheep in Deschutes County, was awarded a belt buckle to honor her passion for agriculture.
Hill is confident that the endowment not only honors the memory of a remarkable young woman, but it also ensures that her legacy lives on.
“With the amount of money we raised, the sky is the limit,” he says. “We can help a lot of kids in our community who live like Maddie.”
