Love was in the air in Abby Snyder’s classroom Wednesday morning.

Table after table was covered with roses, carnations, baby’s breath, ferns and eucalyptus.

By 7:30 a.m., FFA students had arrived to assemble flower arrangements for Valentine’s Day to raise money to fund future competitions and projects for the program.

Students used a mix of the flowers to create arrangements that stood out, mixing reds, whites, pinks and greens in jars tied with ribbons.

Reed Richards, an FFA member who is a technical education exchange student from De Soto, said the idea to sell flowers came from the experience students have in their greenhouse management floriculture class.

“We just decided to put arrangements together for Valentine’s Day and then sell them to the community, teachers, parents, other students, whoever wants to buy,” Richards said. 

The Eudora FFA program allows students to gain experience in leadership, team building and agriculture involvement. Some of the classes they participate in are animal sciences, agriscience and greenhouse management. 

Taylor Hadl, who serves as the chapter president and district vice president of the FFA program, said her goal for the arrangements was to raise money to have more opportunities and help the program for years to come. 

“We’re raising money for different labs, such as floral arrangements, or for the vet classes, they can practice that, or even competitions for where we travel around and we compete in different things we’ve learned in class,” Hadl said. 

Snyder said the fundraiser was a success and she had to cut off orders due to supply shortages. 

“It seemed like a pretty easy idea to support the community and what they need for Valentine’s Day and then also what the kids want to do and use those skills as well,” Snyder said.

The flower arrangements will be available for pickup for those who pre-ordered starting Friday. 

Reach reporter Anna Denison at [email protected].