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European illness sends FFA judges to Hawaii By DAMIAN MANN Four students in Crater High School's Future Farmers of America were disappointed that an outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease prevented them from attending a livestock show in Edinburgh, Scotland. Their consolation: a trip to Hawaii for a week in June. "We were planning to go to Scotland," said Mike Folin, 18. "But the disease is so easily transmitted, we didn't want to bring it back here." Morgan Criswell, 17, explained that humans - though unaffected by the disease - can be foot-and-mouth carriers, transporting the deadly illness in their respiratory systems. The students - Folin, Criswell, Emily Folin and Johnie Van Riper - were all set to be part of a judging team at the Royal Highland Show. But the event was canceled in April. In Great Britain, every livestock event has been canceled and more than 2.5 million animals have been destroyed in an attempt to prevent further spread of the disease, said Crater Vocational Agriculture teacher John Dimick. This is a disease that has ravaged the world for centuries. It is stopped only by killing the affected animals and burning their carcasses. "Entire breeds of sheep have been wiped out by this disease," Criswell said. Foot-and-mouth has not left the United States unscathed. In the 1920s, for instance, there was an outbreak in California, Criswell said. Disappointed they're not going to Europe, the students have opted for the big island of Hawaii, home to the largest cattle ranch in the United States. Hawaii is one of the most diverse agricultural regions in the country, offering tropical to desert-like conditions on the same island. The students say they know very little about tropical agriculture, so the journey will provide educational value. "It was an easy decision for us not to go (to Scotland)," said Emily Folin, 18. But there is still a sense of a missed opportunity among the students. Johnie Van Riper, 18, said, "It seems like a lot of people have the opportunity to go to Hawaii, but not to Europe." It was also cheaper to travel to Hawaii. The students were going to have a fund-raising auction to raise the $22,000 needed for the European vacation. Now they just need $10,000 to go Hawaii. As a result, they canceled a fund-raising auction scheduled for May but have planned another one for Sept. 22 to raise money for Crater's 2001 State Championship teams, who will be traveling to compete at the national level in Louisville, Ky. Reach reporter Damian Mann at 776-4476, or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2001 Mail Tribune, Inc.