Boulder County’s Truman Dinner
Saturday, October 6th, 2007 11:02 AM by Pat WaakLast night over 300 guests came to the Radisson Conference Center in Longmont for the Boulder County Truman Dinner. Carolyn Boller, Secretary of the Colorado Democratic Party, and I sat with former Congressman David Skaggs, now head of the Colorado Commission on Higher Education; Boulder Chair Deb Gardner; Boulder activist Susan Boucher; former state senator Dorothy Rupert; and the guest speaker, Colorado State Treasurer Cary Kennedy and her husband and parents.
I believe that CDP First Vice Chair Dan Slater was in the room, but I did not see him. All of the CD2 Congressional candidates were present: Senator Joan Fitz-Gerald; Jared Polis; and Will Shafroth. Also Betsy Markey, currently the only remaining candidate in CD4, was in attendance. State Senators Brandon Schaffer and Ron Tupa, along with State Reps. Jack Pommer, Claire Levy and Dianne Primavera were at the dinner with dozens of local officials and candidates. It took Deb quite a while to introduce everyone.
Well-deserved awards went to a number of folks, but you can check out Boulder Democrats’ website to get a full listing. There was a moving tribute to Tom Mayer, Boulder city councilman who passed away recently.
The highlight of the evening was Cong. Mark Udall’s introduction of Cary Kennedy, in which he joked about the Udall and Kennedy names and their legacy. However, I was really impressed with Cary’s speech. She talked about the responsibility we have to provide for the people of Colorado. Projected population growth in the state over the next 15 years will call on us to be accountable to current generations’ needs, as well as future generations. It was one of the finest speeches I have heard her give during the past year and a half.
My schedule is becoming increasingly complicated, but I love the time I can spend with local candidates and volunteers. I will be in El Paso County and Huerfano County this week. Hope to see some of you there.
Pat Waak