Thank You

I’ve had better evenings. If I need to face bad news, it sure helps to be in company of friends and family. Your support made this campaign possible. To all of you who walked in our parades, who went door-to-door, licked the envelopes and made the phone calls, and all those endless tasks: I will always be grateful for your gifts of time and energy. Thank you.

But it was not just you who sustained me. Campaigning is such a wearing, time-draining activity. How do we dare do anything this big, this long without faith in our God who makes all things possible in Christ Jesus? Without that faith, all else would just be empty noise.

Now is also a time to congratulate Justin Amash. As hard as we worked, he worked just as hard, and finally a little bit better. He competed everywhere. Like us, he believed that every part of the district needs representation. He will bring a boldness to Lansing that will shake things up. I look forward to supporting him, John McCain and the Republican ticket this fall.

Finally, there’s Caledonia. What a humbling, awesome experience it was to stand before you, in this place I grew up. The encouragement of colleagues on the school board, of “go-get-ems” from neighbors at the store — they helped me again to see how blessed I was to come from such a great community. Thank you.

With a heart of gratitude,