When Joe McCarty reflects on his life and career, one of the many bright spots is the strong foundation built by FFA and his ag teacher, Mr. Stanley DeBoe. Mr. DeBoe even drove Joe and his father to visit the University of Kentucky, where McCarty later enrolled. It was Joe and his dad’s first trip to Lexington.

McCarty went on to become a successful ag sales professional, spending most of his career with Elanco. Although it’s been 68 years since he served as Lyon County FFA chapter president and was awarded State Star Farmer, McCarty still fondly remembers DeBoe’s guiding presence.

“I was very fortunate to have Mr. DeBoe,” said McCarty. “He loved what he did and had the ability to pass his knowledge on to students. If a student was willing to learn, he could help him.”

DeBoe put himself through college at Western Kentucky University (then Western Kentucky State College) by teaching at a one room school house for a semester then going to college for a semester until he obtained his degree. After he graduated, he taught at Caldwell County, Green County and Spencer County before he started as the agriculture teacher at the newly formed consolidated Lyon County High School. He would spend the rest of his career there, finishing his last few years as the young farmer adult education instructor for Lyon, Trigg and Caldwell counties.

“Mr. DeBoe was a very gentle man. Very active in his community, very active in his church,” said McCarty. He had this innate ability to bring people together. You just wanted to be around him. He was the glue that made everything stick together.”

McCarty wanted to create a scholarship for Lyon County students that would honor Mr. DeBoe’s legacy. His $50,000 gift to the to the Lyon County FFA Forever Blue Endowment has made possible the Lyon County FFA Scholarship in Honor of Mr. Stanley DeBoe. This $1,000 scholarship will be awarded annually to a graduating student from Lyon County who has demonstrated leadership and academic achievement.

DeBoe had three daughters, Joyce DeBoe, Helen Rogers, and Nancy Beck. Ms. Beck shared their thoughts about this honor and the lasting legacy their father had on Lyon County students.

“My sisters and I appreciate Mr. Joe McCarty honoring our father through this scholarship. It will allow his legacy to continue assisting students in pursuing their goals through higher education. Dad was a servant leader and would be humbled by his former student’s generosity.”

Thanks to Mr. McCarty’s gift, the Lyon County FFA endowment is now valued at more than $120,000. The endowment is made possible by 37 donors.

In addition to the scholarship, the fund will generate $5,000 a year for Lyon County FFA members. In 2022, endowment funds paid for the chapter’s State FFA Convention trip, where several students took their first trip to Lexington with their ag teacher, just like McCarty and Mr. DeBoe did all those years ago.

“The fact that Mr. DeBoe’s legacy still carries to this day is a testament not only to him as a person, but to the tremendous impact of FFA and agricultural education,” said Sheldon McKinney, executive director of the Kentucky FFA Foundation. “It is a privilege for the Kentucky FFA Foundation to steward the gifts of those who want to pay forward the great things they experienced through FFA. The Forever Blue Endowment Fund is making it possible for our former members to do that in a meaningful and effective way.”

Kentucky FFA Foundation initiatives impact more than 20,000 FFA members in 165 FFA chapters across Kentucky. For more information about planned giving or the Kentucky FFA Foundation, contact Sheldon McKinney at sheldon.mckinney@kyffa.org.

Picutred is Mr. Joe McCarty and his son, Todd McCarty at the 2023 Lyon County FFA Banquet.