Hi, John, it's Trudy. I know most people think you have to be out of your mind to run for office – and maybe they're not wrong to think that.

The campaign trail is all-consuming. I can't count the hours I've logged on the road this week alone – not to mention all the nights I've spent away from home these past few months. Campaigning quickly becomes your entire life. It reminds me all too much of my early days in nursing school. But there's one thing that has always kept me energized – both on the campaign trail and in school – and that's listening.

Being a good listener might not be the flashiest skill – but I believe it's one of the most valuable. The ability to truly listen to my patients is what made me an empathetic nurse. It made me a caring and helpful advocate for the vulnerable children I advocated for. It made me a nurturing mother. It strengthened my marriages. And now, it's what will make me the effective, compassionate Senator that Missourians deserve.

Today, far too many politicians in Washington are wildly out of touch with their constituents – and it's because they've forgotten how to listen (or in some cases, they never learned). Families back home need leaders who know when it's time to stop lecturing and start listening. They need senators who will work together as a team and meaningfully show up to hear what their constituents have to say.

While I have been running for office, I have done all that I can to visit every corner of my state and hear what is on people's minds. I've listened to thousands of stories about what's going wrong in our country and across our state and what it'll take to get things back on track. Now, it's time to head to Washington so that we can do something about it.

So please, I need your help to win in November. Our public end-of-quarter deadline is tomorrow, and we're still short of our goal. Will you rush a $5 donation to power our campaign through these final weeks and flip Missouri blue?

Thank you so much for standing with me today and every day.

– Trudy