Dear Friend,

On Saturday, August 2, we said goodbye to a Colorado giant, John Stulp.

Across six decades, John defined what it means to be a leader and public servant in Colorado. While managing the demands of his family farm, he served as a county commissioner in Prowers County, the state’s agriculture commissioner, and as the Governor’s water policy advisor.

He was also a mentor, teacher, and friend to me. John took me under his wing, teaching me the right and wrong ways to manage our precious and scarce water resources.

For our next Governor, water management must be a top priority. We are in the midst of a drought — one of the many painful impacts of climate change — and managing this vital resource will test us as a state. As we face these challenges, we must keep John’s wisdom in our hearts and minds.

I am honored that John endorsed our campaign for Governor. And I’m humbled by the generosity he and his family have shown me. At his service, when I greeted his wife, Jane, she told me that John had looked forward to providing me with his guidance as our next Governor, a remarkable kindness for her to share at her time of sorrow.

When I ran for my first elected office to be your Attorney General, I visited with John in southeastern Colorado. He took me to several once-thriving agricultural communities and showed me firsthand the consequences of poor water management. In Crowley County, the sale of its water rights to the Front Range in a “buy and dry” transaction demonstrated exactly what we must avoid in Colorado.

Here’s a picture of John and me from that visit.

[link removed]? [[link removed]?]Reflecting on John’s legacy, another former agriculture commissioner, Don Brown, highlighted John’s pivotal work in developing the Colorado Water Plan. This plan rejects harmful “buy and dry” scheme and embodies John’s thoughtful approach to water management:

Addressing those vast and complex issues, bringing agriculture and urban users to the same table, developing a viable state wide water plan, and most importantly of all addressing these issues with a minimum amount of discord would require a unique leader. One who possessed the skills of a diplomat, the patience of Job, and enough common sense to recognize when a situation, in a constant state of flux, would require either the use of the carrot or the stick.

When I ran for re-election as Attorney General, John made the case for me as a steady hand who understands how to manage Colorado’s precious water. In an op-ed, he offered this endorsement: [[link removed]] “Our votes in rural Colorado should be earned, and never taken for granted. That’s especially true when we have reservoirs running dry and yet front range-area financiers continue to push schemes to pipe more and more water from rural Colorado. That’s the reason this fall, I’ll be voting for Phil Weiser for Attorney General.”

I remain committed to managing water in Colorado the right way — the John Stulp way — a way that works for all of us. John’s teachings will continue to guide me, and Colorado is better for having had him among us. His memory will live on as a blessing.

Phil

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Phil Weiser for Colorado
PO Box 13644
Denver, CO 80201
United States