Digger magazine

Serving the Northwest Nursery Industry for Over 50 Years

  • Farwest-50th-banner-DM.com-728x90-1.jpg
  • NGW-728x90-v2.png
  • Digger-Employment_banner-2020-728x90px.jpg
  • NG-Survey-banner-728x90-1.jpg
  • Home
  • Articles
    • Nursery News
    • Features
    • Plants
    • Growing Knowledge
    • Operations
    • Nursery Country
  • Issues
  • Events
  • Farwest
  • Columns
    • Director’s Desk
    • Mike Darcy
    • Pivot Points
    • President’s Message
  • Employment Classifieds
  • Advertise
  • Subscribe to Digger
You are here: Home / Columns / President's Message / Our nation’s capital

Our nation’s capital

By Leigh Geschwill — Posted July 1, 2016

Each year the association treks back east to meet with our elected and unelected officials in government. As I was reflecting on our trip this year, a few things stuck out to me.

First, despite all the naysayers and doomsdayers, our nation is still the leader of the free world. A tour around the National Mall, the war memorials and the U.S. Capitol remind us that for 240 years, we have been fighting for our freedom and discussing how to preserve it.

I have pride in our Founding Fathers who knew that there could be a more “perfect union” of governance, and the rag-tag rabble-rousers that decided to put it all on the line for those ideals. The original troublemakers weren’t criminals (despite what the British thought) — they were farmers, small-business owners, laborers, doctors and a myriad of professions high and low.

Not only did our nation make sacrifices then, but those continue through to now. We have faced attack and struggles from external and internal enemies alike. Our nation is like that old married couple you know. We didn’t make it through life because everything was rosy. We made it because we have grit and determination and love for our fellow man.

My second big lesson from visiting D.C. is that our relationships with our elected officials are critical. If you had a “best friend” that you didn’t talk to or see for years at a time and they called you up out of the blue asking for $1,000 just to fund a pet project, with no “payback,” you might be taken aback. Well multiply that by millions of people, and you have our nation’s capital.

As we walked amongst the various House and Senate office buildings, we saw the many constituent groups coming in and out of offices. One office had powerful groups from the Teamsters Union and health care companies. Another welcomed a young family and their children. All walks of life, all manner of issues, all vying for a small slice of time from their congressional representative or senator.

An important factor in any relationship is balance. It is important that we present our struggles and opportunities, but it is also necessary to ask our legislators what issues they are facing. We often think of advocacy as a one-way street. In reality there are spheres of influence that both sides have. By working together, we can get the ball moving in a forward direction — even if it is incremental and slow.

The same holds true for our government officials. In our meetings with various USDA groups it became clear they face concerns from around the nation and abroad. Horticulture, and more broadly, agriculture are evolving at a rapid pace as technology enters our field. We saw how Oregon is viewed as a leader in these fields, from policy to emerging technologies such as the “Intelligent Sprayer.”

It is easy to lump our politicians and government employees that are miles away together under “Washington” or “Congress” or “Department of Ag.” For us, the people they represent, these folks are often unseen for long stretches of time. But when you meet with them as individuals you get to see their passions and interests. While they may not be on your side of every issue, they are on someone’s side. It is on us, as half of the relationship, to reach out to our officials. We need to put faces and names to ideas and policies, just as they need to put faces and names to crops and industries. When you do that, you learn that the high-powered lobbyist is really just a country boy from the South, that the congressional staffer grew up in a small coastal town, or that the USDA director is a farm girl from the Midwest.

Lastly, remember to have fun! After slogging through full days of meetings, we enjoyed the beauty of our capital, and even watched a good ole American ball game. The headaches and stress we face daily should be worth a few minutes to enjoy the world around us, share a few laughs with friends, and remember that life is to be lived.

Download a PDF of this article

Filed Under: President's Message Tagged With: Digger, Digger magazine, People, Politics

NURSERY NEWS

Darcy added to OSU agricultural Diamond Pioneer Registry

Nursery industry tops list of Oregon ag commodities

Fall Creek promotes Amelie Aust to executive board chair

Hall of Famers give gift towards horticultural industry advocacy

Verl Holden retires from Oregon Garden Foundation Board

More Nursery News

FARWEST SHOW UPDATES

Secure your 2023 Farwest hotel room and save

Farwest Show to celebrate 50th anniversary in 2023

Nursery professionals connect at Farwest

These 12 products had buyers buzzing at Farwest

Nightfall Snowbell sweeps top honors in Farwest New Varieties Showcase

More Updates from Farwest

From the pages of Digger

June 2023: The Shrubs Issue

May 2023: The Sustainability Issue

April 2023: The Trees Issue

March 2023: Water Outlook 2023

February 2023: Greenhouse Issue ’23

More issues of Digger

The Value of Membership

Member Profile: Mahonia Nursery

Meet the Leader: Angela Bailey

OAN Member Profile: Oregon Flowers Inc. 

More member stories

CORONAVIRUS COVERAGE

Virtual is the new reality – for now

Trade shows in the time of COVID

A demand ‘renaissance’ for nurseries

Western Nursery & Landscape Association falls victim to pandemic

MANTS 2021 to move online due to COVID-19

More articles

Nursery Guide LIVE

Nursery Guide LIVE clicks into place

Booth spaces still available for Nursery Guide LIVE March 17–18

Nursery Guide LIVE virtual marketplace postponed due to winter storm damage

Keynote presentations at Nursery Guide LIVE virtual marketplace provide insight on green industry trends in 2021 and beyond

More Posts from this Category

​

Updates to exisiting subscriptions can be sent to info@oan.org

News

  • Nursery News
  • Growing Knowledge
  • Nursery Operations

Features

  • Plant Features
  • OAN Members
  • Oregon Nursery Country

Columns

  • Director’s Desk
  • Mike Darcy
  • Pivot Points
  • President’s Message

Resources

  • OAN Home Page
  • Job Listings
  • Subscribe to Digger
  • Advertise in Digger
  • Online Plant Search

© Copyright 2022 Oregon Association of Nurseries · Admin