Future Farmers to float a higher profile at Tournament of Roses parade

What do former President Jimmy Carter, singer Taylor Swift, Garfield-creator Jim Davis, multi-platform athlete Bo Jackson, and Willie Nelson have in common?

They were all members of the Future Farmers of America, the youth agricultural organization now called simply the National FFA Organization.

For that matter, so were the Eagles'  Don Henley, Morris Dees, founder of the South Poverty Law Center, Jeremy Shockey of the New Orleans Saints and Jared Hess, writer and director of the film Napoleon Dynamite.

But the FFA is largely unknown on the East and West Coasts, especially in urban areas, even though it has chapters in such big cities as New York and a growing presence among big city charter schools.

The organization is trying to change all that. This year, the FFA, for the first time is mounting a Tournament of Roses Parade float, sponsored by RFD-TV, the rural-oriented cable station that Don Imus jumped to after being dumped by MSNBC.  

Farm and Dairy quotes RFD's founder, Patrick Gottsch, as saying the goal of the Rose Bowl float is "to connect and educate the urban world about the positive aspects of rural America." 

One big potential PR boost, though, continues to elude the FFA. A spokesperson says the organization is constantly being asked if actor Ashton Kutcher, who grew up in Iowa, was a member. For some reason, Wikipedia makes that claim, but FFA can't find any records on him.

Nor will he be riding on their Rose Bowl float.

(Posted by Doug Stanglin)