YOUTH IN AG
Where Are They Now
Catching up with FCS Financial’s 2013 Scholarship Recipients
By Joann Pipkin
FCS Financial’s board of directors implemented a program in 2003 to encourage and support higher education
for children or grandchildren of FCS Financial customers. Since its inception, more than half a million dollars in
scholarships have been awarded to nearly 500 qualified applicants.
Now entering year 16, FCS Financial’s scholarship program annually distributes up to 35 scholarships of
$1,500 each. Funds were first distributed in 2004.
FCS Financial is committed to supporting the agricultural youth of Missouri. As a cooperative, this
scholarship is one of the ways FCS Financial gives back to its members and supports communities. Applications
are available on the FCS Financial website at www.myfcsfinancial.com and due March 1, 2019.
Each year, we like to look back to see what recipients from five years ago are up to now. Here’s an inside look
at the 2013 recipients.
jonathan bellis — aurora
A December 2016 graduate of
Missouri State University (MSU)
with a degree in environmental
plant science, Jonathan was China working in viniculture and
propagation of virus-free grapes.
Jonathan also worked in Haiti
teaching local farmers sustainable
agricultural practices. He was an
active in Collegiate Farm Bureau,
Missouri Cattlemen’s Association
and MSU’s Agronomy Club.
During his undergraduate
studies, he traveled to Taiwan
as an agricultural ambassador.
Additionally, he studied abroad in intern with Monsanto where he
worked in the final testing stages for
new varieties of corn and soybeans.
Other internships were in Jefferson
City at the Capitol with Senator
David Sater and in Washington,
D.C., with Senator Roy Blunt.
12 HEARTBEAT | WINTER 2018
Currently, Jonathan is a
project engineer with The Durham
Company, working with GEC
Durham Industries designing
current and voltage transformers
for metering applications. He
spends most of his time in
Lebanon, Mo., at the company
headquarters in their engineering
department although a portion
of his time is also dedicated to
its production facility in New
Bedford, Massachusetts.
“My experiences through
college and a through a variety of
internships helped me land a job in
an unlikely field of engineering,”
Jonathan explains. “When asked
how my plant science degree from
MSU helps me in my current field,
I say all science is the same. You
just have to learn the terms.”
In the future, Jonathan plans
to continue his career at Durham
while helping his sisters on the
farm their mother was raised