Hi friend,

Ahead of Labor Day tomorrow, I want to share an old photo with you. This is my grandma, Helen Finkenauer, with my dad, Jerry, who was just a baby then. The year was 1958, and seeing this photo – my grandma, always so classy, the way she's looking at her young son – brings a smile to my face. But the more I look at this photo, the more I'm reminded of a big issue that's at the forefront of my mind.

You see, back in 1958, my grandfather was able to come home from the war and find a job – and not just any job. A very good-paying union job. Grandpa worked at Dubuque Packing company, "on the line," as they called it. He was able to make a good living for his family of four, with money left over to get a chance to enjoy life. Not only that, he and Grandma had a sense of security knowing a pension and retirement would be there for them in the future.

It's nice to get nostalgic about old photos, but with that nostalgia comes an important realization: This picture wouldn't exist if my grandpa didn't have the means, provided by his union job, to purchase a camera.

I'm running for Iowa's Senate seat to defeat Sen. Chuck Grassley because our state and country have gone through too many years of seeing middle and working class jobs decimated. Income inequality has kept increasing for far too long, and there's no way I'm going to sit on the sidelines while billionaires increase their wealth as unions get weaker. Working families are my family. That little kid you see in the photo above went on to become a union pipefitter-welder, and it was that good job that allowed our family to have a solid quality of life when I was growing up.

This is what's on my mind ahead of Labor Day tomorrow, friend. Our government must do better for working families – our Senate must be made up of those who will fight for and pass legislation that bolsters the middle class. Sen. Chuck Grassley isn't that guy. But my public service has always – always – been about the fight for working families like mine.

I hope you and your family are already enjoying a safe, restful and fun weekend. Tomorrow, I also hope you'll carry my story with you. Even though it was decades ago, for me, it's inspiration for what we need to get back to. 

Abby