- Wood River High School
- Homepage
STUDENT SPOTLIGHT
Porter Larna
Carey Student Knows His Field
By Jesse Cole for The Weekly Sun
Carey High School junior Porter Larna has a deep appreciation for the land around him and everything that it yields.
“I’m already working in the field I want to go into,” he said.
Larna spends most of his time outdoors, snowmobiling, hunting, welding or farming.
“That’s something I’d be really interested in getting into, agronomy and plant science—going out and looking at people’s fields and helping them to fertilize and everything,” Larna said. “Last summer I was an apprentice to an agronomist from Twin [Falls]. It was really fun and educational in that field.”
This summer has been just as, if not more, busy for the Carey resident. Though the three-month vacation brings the oft-dreamed-of break from school, Larna hasn’t allowed himself to be too idle.
“I’m doing six or seven different things,” he said. “I’m farming at the fairgrounds [in Carey] and I change the pipes there. I have a landscaping business that I run two days a week, and I’m building a house, too, with the brother of the farmer I worked for.”
With this experience, Larna is already building a knowledge base for what he wants to do in his future. In addition to his regular class load, he plans to take some agronomy classes online next year.
While he said that these passions are in his blood and something he has always been interested in, he considers much of his skill in the field to also be a result of John Saili, a mentor from his childhood.
“He farms around here too, but he’s just been really great to me in getting me in the tractor and experiencing everything and putting me to work,” Larna said. “He’s just a really great all-around guy who’s been an amazing mentor to me.”
Larna also attributes much of his drive to pursue his different passions to his family, particularly his mother.
“My mom’s been one of my really amazing supporters,” he said. “She’s been really great about being there for me to talk to and pushing me to be the best person I can be. She loves that I’m out there working. She passed on her work ethic.”
During the school year, Larna translates this dedication and appreciation for physical work onto a different field as a member of both the Carey High School basketball and football teams. Last year, his football team won the 1-A Division II state tournament in Middleton.
“There’s so many different things that I want to do and that I’m doing right now that I love, and they could take me different places,” he said.
Whether he stays in Carey or heads to college, Larna understands the importance of the “backbone of farming” in a community, and he wants to further this through his own efforts.
Each week, the Weekly Sun will be profiling a local high-school student. If you know someone you'd like to see featured, e-mail emilee.struss@gmail.com.