Great Northwest Day Draws Large Crowd
Feb 11, 2019 | Headline News
Great Northwest Day at the Capitol 2019 on Feb. 5-6 drew more than 250 area constituents together to showcase the region in Jefferson City.
Submitted Photo
12th District State Sen. Dan Hegeman hosted Grundy County residents who were in Jefferson City last week as part of Great Northwest Missouri Day at the Capitol activities. Grundy County was among counties and communities represented at the event, which was focused on raising awareness of northwest Missouri by meeting with legislators, state officials and staff members and discussing concerns and needs of the area. The event took place on Tuesday, Feb. 5 and Wednesday, Feb. 6. Grundy County representatives attending included, from left, front row, Brent Stephens, Tad Griffin, Jeanie Griffin, Rosetta Marsh, Barbara Spencer, Sen. Hegeman, Cathie Smith, Alicia Endicott, Tricia Key, Marie Dolan, Terry Dolan; back row, Betty Spickard, Rick Hull, Jordan Ferguson, Joe Brinser and Phil Ray.
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Nineteen counties, multiple communities and representatives from business, education, healthcare and government came together to discuss issues that are critical to the region. This year’s priorities focused on caring for our youngest citizens, aligning to educate and advance workforce, rural high-speed broadband access and affordability, safer roads and bridges and wind energy and water projects.
A luncheon kicked off the event on Tuesday, Feb. 5 with Lt. Gov. Mike Kehoe. After a quick group picture, educational roundtable presentations were held. Priorities Chairman Christel Golnick kicked off the discussion with an overview of the priority selection process and a more in-depth conversation on the priorities that were chosen. The second topic was “Missouri’s Bicentennial and You,” presented by Kathleen Seale, senior archivist with the State Historical Society of Missouri. The roundtable presentations wrapped up with Becky Cleveland of Brookfield Industrial Development Authority giving a report on the Communities of Excellence program.
The evening event, designed to educate attendees about northwest Missouri, consisted of a luau-themed regional expo that showcased community/county booths emphasizing the identified regional priorities and promoting local attributes. Over 250 participants from northwest Missouri, 13 senators and 67 representatives from across Missouri attended the event, along with staffers and state office staff from many different departments.
The event concluded on Wednesday, Feb. 6 with a breakfast and presentation from Director of Agriculture Chris Chinn.
“Great Northwest Days has become known as one of the legislator’s favorite events,” event chairman Micah Landes said. “Once again, the steering committee put on a wonderful evening of entertainment and education, highlighting our great communities, explaining our challenges, and showcasing our goods and flairs to all members of the legislature.”
Volunteers from across the region began planning for the event in August 2018. Community and corporate sponsors provide financial support for this annual project and included Touchstone Energy Cooperatives, Mosaic Life Care, AllState Consultants, KCP&L, Spencer Fane, Cameron Regional Medical Center, Snyder and Associates, North Central Missouri College, Northwest Missouri State University and Missouri Western State University.
