Bob Evans Restaurants announces National FFA grant recipients

NEW ALBANY, Ohio — Bob Evans Restaurants continues to pay homage to its founder and former farmer, Bob Evans, through its long-standing partnership with the National FFA Organization.

As part of its ongoing investment in the organization, Bob Evans will be awarding Supervised Agricultural Experience Grants to 12 deserving high school student FFA members.

The grant program, now in its third year, signifies Bob Evans’ ongoing commitment to supporting and inspiring the next generation of agricultural leaders in our nation’s farming communities.

Each grant recipient will receive $1,000 to help them achieve the goals they outlined for their SAE this year. These experiential learning projects will help students learn more about agriculture, marketing and running a business.

The funds from Bob Evans will assist these 12 high school students with agricultural initiatives, such as building hydroponic gardens and greenhouses to produce larger crop yields and improving an existing beehive to harvest honey for income and increasing the local bee population to pollinate nearby gardens.

This year, students noted in their project applications the importance of providing healthy options, like fresh produce, to local families at an affordable price during a time of high inflation and rising grocery prices.

“Inspired by our farming roots, we’re proud to support another group of young, aspiring farmers and we look forward to seeing their innovative projects come to fruition this year,” said Bob Holtcamp, president and CMO for Bob Evans Restaurants.

“At Bob Evans, serving up ‘America’s Farm Fresh’ is the promise to our guests and by partnering with FFA to support these student projects, we are able to extend this to local communities across America in a new way.”

The Bob Evans 2023 SAE Grant recipients were selected from more than 1,296 applications nationwide:

• Lilly Cappitte — Sunbury, Ohio

• Brooklynn Fleming — Leeton, Missouri

• Nathan Gallimore — Clinton, Kentucky

• Joslyn L. Hinton — Hodgenville, Kentucky

• Veronica Hummel — Middleburg, Pennsylvania

• Alexandra Kinney — Lewiston, Ohio

• Delaney Nekolny — St. Joseph, Illinois

• Quinn Pendley — Athens, Georgia

• Isaac Pohl — Fort Branch, Indiana

• William Rogers — Saline, Michigan

• Whitney Smith — Clayton, Indiana

• Stone Stauch — Greencastle, Indiana

To raise funds for 2024 SAE Grants, Bob Evans will hold its annual “Egg Crack, Give Back” fundraiser on Feb. 23.

This is also Give FFA Day, an annual celebration that takes place each year during National FFA Week, Feb. 18-25.

For every Farmer’s Choice Breakfast sold on Feb. 23, Bob Evans will donate $1 to the FFA up to $15,000.