BRYAN, Texas (KBTX) - Producers Cooperative recently held an annual banquet where 12 students chosen from more than 90 applicants were awarded scholarships."Tonight is about scholarships, but it's also about something much bigger. It is about investing in the next season because agriculture teaches us something that much of modern society has forgotten. We reap what we sow," Stan Gerdes, the District 17 state representative, said.

Gerdes, the District 17 state representative, said the harvest never begins in the field."It begins with a decision, a decision to invest today for a result that may not come for months, years, or even generations. Every farm, every ranch, every agricultural operation represented here tonight exists because somebody came before you," Gerdes said.

Gerdes pointed out that somebody passed along knowledge that could never be learned from a textbook."And if agriculture teaches us anything, it is that we have an obligation to plant seeds for those who come after us. The journey of growth has always been a story of seasons. There is a season for preparing the soil, a season for planting, a season for growth, and eventually a season for harvest. Every farmer and rancher in this room understands that none of those seasons can be skipped," Gerdes said.