Dinville discovers confidence, community through FFA

Like many Nebraska students, Emersyn Dinville had long been familiar with FFA and the iconic blue jackets that set its members apart. But it wasn’t until her freshman year that she truly understood the organization’s impact — not just in agriculture, but in shaping who she could become.
“I knew a lot of people in it, so I just started signing up for events and learning more about it,” she recalled. “By the end of my freshman year, I thought, maybe I’ll run for office and see what that’s about. That’s when I really started learning about leadership skills.”
Dinville quickly became an active member, competing in livestock judging, land judging, leadership and career development events. The experience, and the confidence that came with it, led to her being elected chapter president as she entered her junior year.
“I would say this has definitely helped me in a lot of aspects of life,” she said of her leadership role. “Just being able to talk to people and understand my responsibilities in all areas, I’ve really enjoyed that part of it.”
Her schedule reflects that drive. In addition to FFA, Dinville participates in cross country, soccer, journalism, God Teens, National Honor Society and Youth Engaged in Philanthropy.
Though Aurora is surrounded by agriculture, Dinville did not grow up on a farm, something people often assume is routine for FFA membership.
“I didn’t necessarily grow up in it, but I was around it,” she said. “Both my parents did FFA, my cousins did it, and when I saw all the things they got to do, I wanted to do it too.”
Her cousins live on a ranch, and their example helped spark her own hands-on experience.
The Dinville family — parents James and Joni and younger brothers Cooper and Callen — moved to Aurora about 13 years ago. James works for SouthernCarlson, a construction/industrial supply company based in Omaha, while Joni teaches special education at Aurora Elementary.

Dinville Poultry 
The family lives on a two-acre property just outside town — providing enough space to nurture Emersyn’s growing interest in livestock.
“I got a steer in middle school, and that was kind of my entry project,” she said.
These days, her focus is poultry. What began with broilers has evolved into a small egg business she calls Dinville Poultry.
“I started with broilers, and two summers ago I had 25 that I raised for meat,” she said. “Eventually we converted one of our sheds into a coop and bought hens. Now I have about 15 chickens.”
It hasn’t all been easy.
“With the broilers, a lot of them died, and that was scary,” she admitted. “That was hard because I was taking care of them. But once I got hens, I started to understand more of the circle of life, you know, and how to care for them better. And when egg production drops, I have to research ways to improve it. It’s definitely a learning process.”
Dinville now sells eggs and makes weekly deliveries, another lesson in responsibility and entrepreneurship.
As she became more involved in FFA, she discovered just how broad the agricultural world really is.
“I’ve learned so much going to events,” she said. “There’s CVA Ag Awareness Day, where you can explore different careers and see how the whole sector works. I’ve really enjoyed opportunities like that.”
She is currently preparing to compete in poultry science and livestock management at this year’s Career Development Events.
Serving as chapter president has also challenged her personally. Though outgoing as a child, Dinville said she became more reserved in middle school and during her freshman year.
“I didn’t think I really had an important role on the officer team,” she said. “They all knew what they were doing, and I didn’t.”
That mindset changed this year.
“I realized I needed to step up and figure it out,” she said. “At the start of the year, I was leading an officer team with seniors, juniors and sophomores — some who had never served before. I wanted to grow involvement, especially for younger members. When I was a freshman, I had no clue how many opportunities there were. If you don’t go to events, you don’t realize all you’re missing.”
Encouraging participation has become one of her top priorities.
During National FFA Week, the chapter will host a Farmer and Teacher Appreciation Breakfast and a youth petting zoo. Later on, officers will participate in “Connecting Chapters,” visiting elementary classrooms to teach students about agriculture.
“It’s a training day where we learn how to teach younger kids about ag,” she said. “It’s a really cool way to give back.”
Though she still has time before graduation, Dinville is already thinking ahead. She is considering pursuing animal science, possibly in Wyoming, but is also exploring the idea of becoming a physical therapist assistant.
“I’ve looked a lot at the animal science program in Wyoming,” she said. “Or maybe something completely different like physical therapy. I’d probably start at Laramie County Community College and then transfer to the University of Wyoming.”
Wherever her path leads, the foundation has already been laid — one built on responsibility, resilience and a willingness to step forward.
For a student who once joined “blindly,” Dinville now wears the blue jacket with purpose and is helping others see what’s possible when they do the same.

A surge in membership 
The Aurora FFA chapter is strong in numbers this year, according to co-advisor Sarah Cordonier.
“Typically we have around 50 members, but this year we have right around 60 and most of them are very active,” she reported during a presentation to the Aurora Rotary Club last week. “I would say around 50 of our members are very active, coming to most of the meetings, and almost all of them have competed in at  least two or three of our main cour competitions, which is huge. 
“Almost everybody in the chapter does livestock judging, so for some reason they all want to do that in November,” Cordonier added. “We will also see a big surge again in career development events toward the end of this month, and those are the fun ones. I mean, they are hands on, very practical as to what they want to do in life. And as for the numbers, we didn’t hvae a huge senior class graduate last year and we had a lot of freshmen come in. We have a big sophomore group that’s really into ag, so we just have big numbers this year.”