House Journal: Page 101: Friday, January 15, 1999

It is a day to look forward to the challenges and opportunities before us, to take 

stock of who we are and where we are, and to take aim at where we want to go.
Before I speak of the future let me say a word about Governor Branstad and 
Lieutenant Governor Corning and their families. Governor and Lieutenant Governor - 
you have led us during the best of times and through some of the worst of times. You 
have worked tirelessly to improve the management of state government and to 
diversify and strengthen the state's economy. You have worked for over two decades for 
the state and the people that you love - to make Iowa a better place to live - and you 
leave office having done so. On behalf of a grateful people I extend our deepest 
appreciation to you and to your families for the sacrifices you have made on our behalf. 
Twenty-three years ago I followed my heart to Iowa. My wife, Christie, and I settled 
in her hometown of Mt. Pleasant. We wanted to be close to family. Our hopes and 
dreams were simple. We wished to raise our own family in a caring, warm, and 
nurturing community. Our two sons, Jess and Doug benefited by that decision. Each 
day they give us reason to be proud. 
During those twenty-three years I've learned of Iowa's greatness. It starts with its 
bountiful natural resources, acres of rich black soil and miles of meandering streams 
and rivers. But its real greatness lies in its most enduring quality - its goodness. 
Iowa is great because Iowa is good. Let me repeat that Iowa is great 
because Iowa is good. Our goodness arises from the fundamental goodness of our 
people - caring, hard working, well educated, and decent. From child care providers to 
direct care staff at nursing homes, from teachers to social workers, from farmers to 
factory workers, from veterans to volunteers - caring, hard-working, well educated and 
decent.  No where is our goodness, and therefore our greatness, better displayed than 
in our dedication to family and community.
Family and community is how and where we raise our children and care for each 
other. Family and community is how and where we teach our values, how and where 
we mold our ambitions and our aspirations, and how and where today's dreams become 
tomorrow's Iowa. 
Family and community - more than genetics and geography - they are our 
collective frame of mind, our way of living, and our shared vision of how we want to be.
At the outset I spoke of the dawning of the new millennium and of challenge and 
opportunity. Stated simply our challenge at the close of this century and at the 
beginning of a new century is to preserve what is best about Iowa and to make it 
better. We must dedicate ourselves to preserving our natural resources - our land, 
water and air and to preserving the best of family and community while adapting each 
to the changing world that surrounds us. 
Making our best - better will not be easy. We will be challenged to change.
To preserve and to enhance our natural resources, we must rethink what we do 
with our land, our water, and our air. We must be good stewards and rededicate 
ourselves to restoring and conserving the land, to cleaning up the water, and to 
protecting the air. It is our natural resources that hold the key to a stronger, more 
prosperous Iowa. If we are able to mix good old - Iowa common sense with changing 
science we can enrich our natural resources and secure a better today and decades of 
better tomorrows.

© 1999 Cornell College and League of Women Voters of Iowa

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Last update: Thu Jul 15 13:40:03 CDT 1999
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