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Before the Thanksgiving festivities truly begin, I wanted to take a moment to thank the hardworking people who help make this holiday meal possible and get this food on our table. The dozens of small and family farms throughout Oregon and across the country sit at the backbone of our local economies and communities. It’s their very product that helps to unite families and communities around the dinner table, especially on days like tomorrow. But today, I’m thinking about one former farm worker specifically: My dad. My dad immigrated from Mexico in 1950. He worked in the fields right alongside my grandparents whenever he wasn’t in school, picking tomatoes and cotton. After a few years of high school, my dad signed up to join the U.S. Marine Corps and served two tours in Vietnam. In exchange for his service, received his U.S. citizenship. Through hard work and perseverance, my dad was able to turn the skills from the fields and his service into a good-paying union job that provided a middle-class upbringing for me and my sister. He never had it easy. But with hard-work and determination, my dad paved his way from the fields to the middle class, which opened previously closed doors for my family and me. My dad’s hardwork and determination got me where I am today. I want to spend every day trying to make him proud. So tomorrow, as you sit down to the Thanksgiving meal, I hope you’ll join me in thinking of and thanking the thousands of hardworking farmers who helped make this meal possible. I’ll be thinking of you, Dad. Happy Thanksgiving, Andrea |
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