Congrats, Class of 2026! I’ve been keeping busy since session ended in May. Soon after we adjourned, I visited EPHS and spoke on a panel about civic engagement with fellow local elected officials, where we encouraged students to take part in our legislative process. Afterward, I took a mini-tour of one of the student service centers with my friend Jenny! To all of the bright recent graduates, I cannot wait to see where life takes you. No matter where you end up, remember you always have a home here in our community in Eden Prairie. Please keep in touch. Once an Eagle, always an Eagle! Join us for a Listening Session – Open Mic StyleI hope you’ll save the date for an upcoming District 49 Open Mic Night on July 14 with Rep. Alex Falconer! We realize that in a traditional Town Hall, we’re the ones doing most of the talking. Open Mic Night will allow for neighbors to share their thoughts, ideas, and expertise in a public forum and as such, we will not be taking questions. This will be a great opportunity for us to hear from you on how to make our community and state a better place! Productive legislative sessions are built during the interim, and we’re looking forward to hearing from you to help lay the foundation for our future legislative work.  You can RSVP for the location information, which we’ll send the day before the event, here. In order to ensure all who want to speak have time to do so, we hope you will register in advance, though we will do the best we can to allow everyone time at the event. PROP Food Shelf News and Retirement CongratulationsSummer can be a challenging time for those experiencing food insecurity, but our local food shelf, People Reaching Out to People, is running a summer food programfor children in Eden Prairie and Chanhassen to get the extra nutrition kids need to grow and learn. This week, I was able to join the Minnesota Grocers Association and Jerry’s Foods to present a $1,000 donation to PROP to aid in all they do to ensure our neighbors don’t go hungry. My legislative predecessor, Jenifer Loon, has been at the helm of PROP for the past 4.5 years and will be retiring in July. Please help me congratulate her on a career of service to our community.  Sign up for Minnesota Model Legislature!Calling all rising juniors & seniors! Want hands-on experience in how government actually works? The Academy for Public Service is recruiting students for the Minnesota Model House of Representatives on July 8–10 at the Minnesota State Capitol. Students will draft and debate bills (use existing legislation, propose amendments, or write your own!), learn the ins and outs of legislative procedure, and build real skills in collaboration, networking, and policy analysis. Sessions are open to the public, so parents, friends, family, and legislators are welcome to stop by and watch democracy in action. Sign up at academyforpublicservice.org. Carlie's Reading CornerAs an elder millennial, I cherish memories of Pizza Hut’s Book It program (which still exists!) Summer is a wonderful time to do more reading – at the beach, under a shade tree, or hiding from the humidity inside. Currently I’m reading The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows. I’m listening to Amazing Grace Adams by Fran Littlewood and finishing up the third audiobook in the Assistant and the Villain series when I have quiet time in the car between serving as an activity taxi to my four children. You can read along with me on The Storygraph! |