Over the last two years, on the issues that you have said are most important - education, property tax relief, health care, environment, and transportation - we have achieved positive results. On education, we increased funding to our schools by $850 million to help them continue to recover from the devastating 2003 budget cuts and restored past funding cuts to critically important early childhood education programs like Head Start and ECFE. We passed nation-leading renewable energy legislation and made health care accessible to more than 100,000 Minnesotans and we made strides to keep property taxes in check. We were able to pass a Transportation bill that provided thousands of jobs for Minnesotans to build and maintain our transportation infrastructure.

The 2008 legislative session was considered by many to be the most productive Legislature in years. But our work is not done. I want to continue to keep Minnesota on the right path toward prosperity. Providing health care for all Minnesotans, developing and utilizing various means of alternative energy, and creating a 21st Century Transportation system are all major issues that the citizens of District 25B have expressed to me that are important to them.

In the coming months, I look forward to talking about the issues with people in District 25B from Nerstrand to Belle Plaine. I’ll be out and about quite a bit, so if you have any questions, comments, or ideas, track me down and I’d love to talk with you.

Not far from Bridge Square is the Northfield Library. While the vast majority of people were enjoying the “Taste of Northfield” festivities, Sen. Kevin Dahle, Rep. Shelly Madore , and myself hosted a forum on Special Education for special needs children. Nowhere near the amount of people attended this forum as did the “Taste of Northfield,” none-the-less the attendees here were all families of children with special needs, such as autism, handicapped, Cerebral Palsy, blindness, to name a few.

During this event, a young girl by the name of Erin, who happens to be a huge girls’ basketball fan, read a letter written by our own Brianna Zable, current record holder of career points scored at Northfield High School, given to her a year ago. Erin cherishes this letter like you or I would an autograph signature by Babe Ruth. Erin talked about her experiences as the manager of the girls’ basketball team and her adoration of Bri. Few people will go through life and be fortunate enough to have the positive impact on an individual’s life that Bri has had on Erin’s.

Many other parents attending talked about the challenges their children face every day. They discussed problems they encountered with certain programs and evaluations they are required to complete for their children. They expressed concerns about a “no accountability” policy at the county level. Incidentally and according to Rep. Madore, Dakota County has a very well designed and more adequate funded procedure in place for special needs families. Parents talked about the “lack of funding” response they receive when they try to discuss their concerns regarding their children’s education. Although I understand that lack of funding will always be a roadblock, we must adopt a more positive attitude to address these concerns and how we can make consistent small strides rather than none at all.

In upcoming blogs I intend to discuss more and more the challenges some of these individual families face and why we must address their needs. Each and every one of these mentally challenged individuals is different. Many of you know one or more families that have a son or daughter with disabilities. My hope through this forum will be to make members of this community more aware of the challenges they face.

Instead of having these forums in a secluded room at the Library, we should reconsider and have them in Bridge Square. Making this a social event will provide the community the opportunity to meet the families and the children. I am convinced that when you meet them you will understand their frustrations and their joys.

A society is judged on how it treats its most vulnerable. It is important we show that everyone matters and that we care about creating opportunities for all to participate in our community and contribute in ways they can.

People from all over come to these events for the fun and the excitement. But seeing the effortless smiles on the children lining the parade route is all the evidence you need as proof of why we participate in these local events - for the parade is mostly for them. Hundreds if not thousands of young faces lined the parade route gathering candy and stickers. Ray Coudret, a member of my re-election committee, brought a young dog named Sofie and, heard all along the parade route, was the children’s gleeful cry “Can we pet your dog?”. Sofie was rather timid at the start of the parade but by the end she really seemed to enjoy all the attention. Ray’s young son Trey has to be nominated as one of the cutest children who ever carried a “David Bly” campaign sign. Pretty adept on a scooter, young Dallas Miller raced feverishly along the streets during the parade while his mother Cindy handed out stickers.

Visiting from California, my mom, Mary Bly joined in the parade too. For being 81 years old, and using a cane, she nearly walked the whole parade route waving frequently to the crowd. Two blocks from the end though, with the renewed energy of a 2 year-old toddler, she bolted from the parade when she spotted the “Cheese Curd” booth, thereby satisfying a long suppressed craving for good-old Minnesota Fair food.

The committee for organizing the Heritage Days festival deserves our thanks. It was truly a memorable time and we as participants appreciate the opportunity to join in celebrating the history of Faribault. Let me offer special thanks to the members of the Re-elect David Bly campaign committee, particularly to Mike Fitzgerald and family and Judy Kutulas for participating in this event. Your help and dedication is always appreciated.

June 21st Sen. Dahl and I joined hundreds of others in Belle Plaine for the dedication of the King’s Way addition to the Lutheran Home and the Belle Plaine community. Unfortunately we missed the celebration for Dr. Hallgren, but were able to greet him at the King’s Way event and thank him for his many years of service.

Next stop on our tour was Fountain Park where Cary Coop talked about the changes in growth and topography in the City of Belle Plaine. Then on to the Bird Sanctuary where private land was donated and set aside as a permanent bird sanctuary in the city of Belle Plaine, as Cary explained, this is where you can see what this stretch of Minnesota looked like before it was settled. Finally, we made our way to the Hooper-Bowler-Hillstrom House, which was constructed in 1871 by S.A. Hooper, an early resident. This is the dwelling famous for its two story outhouse and is managed by the Belle Plaine Historical Society.

The Park Board has additional tours planned for July and August hopefully I will be able to make it to them as well.

Eligible organizations include:

Owners of MN facilities producing bioenergy;

Organizations that provide for on-station, on-farm field-scale research and outreach to develop and test the agronomic and economic requirements of diverse stands of prairie plants and other perennials for bioenergy systems; or

Certain non-governmental entities for development of business plans and structures related to community ownership.

The MN Dept of Ag will issue the grants, in consultation with the NextGen Energy Board. Proposals must be received no later than 4:00 PM, July 31, 2008. Proposals will not be accepted by e-mail or fax. For more information, contact:

Andrew Carter, MN Dept of Ag

625 Robert St. N, St. Paul, MN 55155-2538

Tele: 651-201-5699

email: Andrew.Carter@state.mn.us

You may go to the MN Dept of Agriculture website for more information on grant money.

Come join me as we march in the Heritage Days Parade scheduled for Saturday, June 21. The parade begins at 6:30 p.m. and our slot will be #94. Marchers and participants should be expected to arrive before 5:30 p.m. We will begin the parade on the corner of 8th avenue and Highway 60, next to Lamperts building supply store and Wholesale Tire.

According to the latest extended weather forecast, it is expected to be partly cloudy and around 80 degrees. If it holds we should have a fun and memorable time meeting and greeting people along the parade route and get a little exercise in the process. As a family, take this opportunity to bring your children, your friends, and your relatives and participate, with me, in this wonderful celebration of Faribault.

For more information and to sign up for participation please contact Therese Barnett at 507-332-8287 or 612-232-6864