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Wayne County Farm Bureau purchased a milk vending machine for Smithville High School. The vending machine is a fund-raising venture for the school’s FFA chapter. Smithville High School vocational agriculture teacher Tony Stoller approached the county Farm Bureau with the proposition, and the county agreed to make the venture a true business opportunity for the students. Farm Bureau paid 20 percent of the cost of the machine, then loaned the FFA the rest of the money to make the purchase. FFA is paying Farm Bureau back with 50 percent of the profits from the vending machine until the loan debt is retired. The other money made from sales goes to the chapter.

"This is a business proposition that ties into their curriculum," according to Organization Director John Fitzpatrick. Once the machine is paid for, 100 percent of the profits will go to the FFA program, and the vending machine will be the property of the FFA chapter. It appears the chapter will pay the debt off quickly: Fitzpatrick said Smith Dairy supplied the vending machine with what it believed to be an adequate supply of milk – but it sold out in two days.

Caption: Paul Mercer, Smithville FFA president; Lloyd Mumaw, Wayne County Farm Bureau president; and Ben Van Zile, business manager of Smithie Milk Enterprises, pose with Smithville FFA’s newest fund-raising venture, a milk vending machine. Smithie Milk Enterprises was created to manage the vending machine sales.