Gilman 'could make you feel like you were the VIP of the world'

By MATTHEW WEAVER

Capital Press

Washington FFA members are mourning the death of the organization's state adviser.

H. Wayne Gilman died unexpectedly Feb. 3 at Virginia Mason Hospital in Seattle. He had been state FFA adviser since 2004.

FFA members honored Gilman with a moment of silence and a prayer Feb. 7 during the Spokane Ag Expo and Pacific Northwest Farm Forum.

"He could make you feel like a celebrity," said state FFA President Cole Snider, of Enumclaw, Wash. "He could make you feel like you were the VIP of the world."

Gilman exemplified FFA and its traditions, Snider said.

Gilman impacted students both as a teacher in Montana for more than 30 years and then as FFA adviser, said Jodi Monroe, executive director of Washington FFA. Gilman retired from teaching in Montana and then taught agriculture in Arlington, Wash., before joining the Washington Association of Agricultural Educators in the Office of Superintendent and Public Instruction and becoming state FFA adviser.

Gilman worked to make sure students had a life experience outside the classroom such as a supervised agriculture project, a soils competition or by developing their job interview skills, Monroe said.

"Everything he did, at the end of the day, he'd say, 'What's the impact on the kids?'" she said. "Wayne was Mr. FFA. He loved FFA. That was what he was passionate about. He loved watching the kids succeed."

Monroe and the state officers plan to attend Gilman's memorial service in Sheridan, Mont.

The memorial service was Feb. 12 at Bethel Methodist Church in Sheridan, Mont.

The family has asked that cards or memories be sent in care of the Wayne Gilman Family, P.O. Box 49, Alder, MT 59710.