By Kyle Coppola
Umatilla High FFA Floriculture Team Earns Top-5 Finish At State Finals
UMATILLA, Fla. – The Umatilla High School Futures Farmers of America (FFA) Floriculture Team showcased their skills at the Florida FFA State Finals last week, earning an impressive fifth-place finish in the statewide competition.
Floriculture, a specialized branch of horticulture, focuses on the cultivation and management of ornamental and flowering plants. The competition tested students on their knowledge of plant identification, pest management, floral design, and industry practices.
The Umatilla team, composed of Jamie Stephens, Drew Parkinson, Roxie Calcott, and Lynzee Bowling, will be formally recognized for their achievement at the Florida FFA State Convention in June.
Please join us in congratulating these outstanding students on their hard work and success! Way to go ladies!
Kyle Coppola was born in Newton, Massachusetts and received his Bachelor of Fine Arts in Communications from Curry College in 2016. After traveling to Florida on a family vacation, he decided he could not get enough of the warm weather and made the move from snowy Massachusetts to central Florida 8 years ago.
For the last decade Kyle has gained valuable experience in social media content creation, marketing and sales, writing, video production, sports announcing and even broadcasting for local radio stations, such as FM 102.9 in The Villages and FM 91.5 in Massachusetts. Every year he volunteers at The Villages Charter High School as a play-by-play sports announcer for the football games as well as a public address announcer for the basketball games, including the annual Battle at The Villages Tournament.
Outside the office Kyle is a husband and father to two beautiful girls along with their cat. In his spare time he likes to spend time with his family, travel, play golf and swim. He is also a huge sports junkie and even bigger motorsports fan and loves to attend racing events when he can.
