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CULTURE

Girl Fest

Girl Fest, a Girl Scout celebration sponsored by the Girl Scouts of Oregon and Southwest Washington, took place on Saturday, November 15. With over 100 booths, the attendees had the opportunity to learn about everything from the American Red Cross to the Oregon Zoo with STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) and The Arts activities making up a good portion of the day.

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Elected Leaders Reception

Last night I was able to attend our local Elected Leaders Reception hosted by the HBA and the Regional Chamber here in the Tri-Cities.

This was the 12th annual reception held in anticipation of the next legislative session to thank our state, regional, and local elected leaders for their service.

I have the opportunity to serve as a member of the Tri-Cities Legislative Council.  This annual event also allows us to present a summary of our priority positions for our community that we want to be top of mind in Olympia.  

With 150 attendees, this reception presented the opportunity to network with several clients, community partners, and local legislators.  

This is one way we support our communities through leadership and advocacy.  

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Congrats Cougs!

Friday evening, November 7, Al and I joined Tim and Kelli Schauer, Kris Strickler and Paige Phillips to celebrate the 25th Anniversary of Washington State University Vancouver.  The night shined with silver sparkles decking the tables and stage.  900 people celebrated the exact day, 25 year ago, the Washington State legislature established WSU Vancouver as one of four campuses making up the Washington State University system.

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Symbol of Freedom Event is All About Relationships

Relationships begin and get shaped in many ways – sometimes they can arise from the unexpected. At the recent Symbol of Freedom fundraising event benefitting CDM Caregiving Services (cdmcaregiving.org). All who attended learned of a relationship that first began between two jet fighter pilots in 1972 in a violent aerial dogfight over Vietnam, but ultimately turned into a close friendship.

It is an incredible story that I won’t attempt to tell in full detail here, but military veterans, USAF Dan Cherry and North Vietnamese Nguyen Hong My came to Vancouver to tell the story of how their relationship evolved from trying to shoot each other out of the sky to spending time together with each other’s’ families after being reunited in 2008 by a Vietnamese television show that was similar to “This is Your Life” here in the U.S.  Dan said he was curious to meet his former opponent but also apprehensive because he really had no idea what kind of person My was.  “What if I didn’t like him?” That all melted away when My came on stage part way through the show, walked straight up to Dan, extended his hand, and said, “Welcome to my country, I hope you and your family are well, I hope we can be friends.”

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