Breckenridge Texan

By Carla McKeown/Breckenridge Texan

When Breckenridge High School junior Rylee Fuller set out to audition for a place on the National FFA Band, she wasn’t just thinking of herself. Rylee wanted to get a delegation of Breckenridge FFA members to the national convention in Indianapolis next month, and she’s hoping her plan is working.

Rylee Fuller plays the trumpet during the Buckaroos’ Homecoming halftime last year. She will be playing the trumpet in the National FFA Band at the national convention in Indianapolis next month. (Photo by Tony Pilkington/Breckenridge Texan)

Rylee, who plays the trumpet in the BHS marching band, is an officer in the Breckenridge FFA chapter and the Pecan Valley FFA district, and she started working diligently to audition for the national band about five months ago. She practiced regularly with BHS Band Director Joe Barrow, former BHS band director Dane Richardson and a band director in the Fort Worth area. She also consulted with the BHS FFA sponsors/advisers throughout the process.

The application process included submitting a recorded video audition, as well as a written application. The recorded audition consisted of two sets of scales and an etude, and, despite the months of practice, making the recording wasn’t easy, Rylee said.

“The audition tape had to be continuous; I couldn’t stop and edit it,” she said. “So if I messed up on my scales, I had to start over, which was rough. It took me, like, two and a half days to get the audition how I wanted it to be. So my lips were bruised for a week.”

She was notified in late August that she succeeded and was chosen to be in the National FFA Band, representing Texas and Breckenridge in Indianapolis.

Although the FFA doesn’t officially release the number of applicants, Rylee’s mom, Kim Fuller, said there were thousands of applicants. Through the recorded auditions and written applications, the FFA narrowed it down to 77 members who will represent the 50 states and two territories in the band. The number of students in the band varies from year to year, she said.

“The way they decide that is, cohesively, how do the kids sound and play? And that’s how they put the band together,” Kim said. “So, it doesn’t have to be ‘We’re taking 100 this year.’ It’s, ‘What do this group of kids bring to the table? How can we put them together?’ And, that’s how the band is chosen.”

Rylee said that she and fellow BHS FFA officers Kadynce Kennedy and Sylee Mitchell have been talking about going to the national FFA convention since they first went to the state convention as freshmen.

The convention is Oct. 29-Nov. 1, but Rylee will have to be there early on Oct. 25 to practice with the band. While the other convention attendees will be spending their days attending workshops, visiting the expo, taking ag-related career tours, and spending free time in Indianapolis, Rylee and the other band members will be spending most of their time either practicing or performing the nine performances they are scheduled to give during the three-day event. In fact, practice starts the night they all arrive in Indianapolis.

Kim said that, as far as anyone knows, there has never been a Breckenridge FFA member — or even a Pecan Valley district member — selected for the national band and the last time local members attended the national convention was in the 1980s.

Being involved with the local, district and state FFA organizations in the past few years has opened Rylee’s eyes to the many opportunities t

hat are connected to agriculture. She is also a Buckaroo athlete, competing in powerlifting and discus events. Her plans have been to go to the state competitions in athletics and then go to college and get a law degree.

“Recently, when I went to (the state FFA convention) and I went to area (FFA) leadership camp as a district officer, I met all of the area officers and the state officers … I realized that FFA is not just about having a farm and raising cattle,” Rylee said. “You can do ag business. You can be a lawyer through ag. You can do ag science. You can work with soils and plants. I didn’t realize how many different avenues you can go down.”

Now, she realizes that she can still pursue her dreams of being a lawyer while still being involved in the ag world. “FFA has left a big impact on me these last two, three years, and it would just be a disservice if I didn’t pay it back,” she said. “So I’m hoping I can go into a job through ag, like, through law or politics.”

Rylee is also hoping that her younger sister, Rihana, who is also a local FFA officer, will be able to go to the national convention next month. “I wouldn’t have been able to do it without Rihana,” she said. “All summer long…she was always with me, and she supported me through everything.”

Rylee Fuller, center, along with other members of the Pride of Breckenridge – Breckenridge High School Marching Band, entertained the crowd during the halftime show of the Buckaroos’ first game this season. (Photo by Tony Pilkington/Breckenridge Texan)

Cutline, top photo: Earlier this year, Rylee Fuller, center, and other members of the Breckenridge FFA chapter, attended the state FFA convention. There, she met many other FFA members, including state officers, Hunter Lawson, left, and Brady Lambert, right. Next month, Rylee will represent Breckenridge and the state of Texas FFA in the National FFA Band at the national convention in Indianapolis. She’s hoping other members of the Breckenridge chapter can attend the event, as well. (Courtesy photo)