Remarks Of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.)

Lake Champlain Regional Chamber Of Commerce

Lifetime Achievement Award

November 13, 2007

  

Thank you Ernie and all of you for that wonderful introduction.

 

Ernie, it means a great deal to me and Marcelle that you are the one presenting the award this evening.

 

I take special pride in this award from the Chamber.

 

You have been kind enough to note some of my accomplishments but let me turn the tables a bit on you this evening.

 

When I started serving in the United States Senate in 1975, the Chittenden County economy was beginning to change in large part due to the rapid growth of IBM.  But it was a far different place than we know now.

 

There was no Church Street.  There was little public access to the Burlington waterfront. Employment at then General Electric plant on Pine Street was considered so stable that generations of many families worked there.  And the Burlington airport had more military than commercial flights.

 

Over the past thirty plus years, Burlington and Chittenden County have become the envy of communities across the country.  By now we’re used to making it into the top ranks of surveys about the most livable places in America.  The Chamber and the Greater Burlington Industrial Corporation played crucial roles throughout the transformation and the economic ups and downs over the past 30 years.

 

In fact, these past 30 years have probably brought more change than in the previous 370 years after Samuel de Champlain explored and mapped this great Lake.

 

Our New York neighbors share Lake Champlain with us, but they have not been so fortunate as Burlington and Chittenden County when is comes to jobs and vibrant communities.

 

That is in large part due to the tireless efforts of this Chamber and all of its present and past staff.  The Chamber and GBIC have been fortunate to have great leaders like Wayne Roberts, Norby Lavigne and now Tom Torti.

 

We all know that the Lake Champlain Basin is truly a natural wonder.  It’s also a great place to live, raise a family and have a career.  And thanks to you everyone has also become more aware of how much strain we have imposed on our great Lake.

 

As we continue to move forward together on maintaining our vibrant communities, we must also continue working together on helping and protecting this great Lake.

 

We have only one Lake.  We cannot afford to go the way of some of the other Great Lakes which have been scarred so badly that they may never fully recover.

 

My friends, I pledge to you that I will continue my work with you and together we can ensure that we leave our lake and Vermont a better place for our children and their children.

 

Finally, I want to thank you all for helping establish the Taste of Vermont which we have held in Washington for the past two years.  This event showcasing the Vermont Convention Bureau and food vendors from around the state has been an overwhelming success.  Marcelle and I are proud to showcase our state to other Senators, the Administration and the entire DC Metro area.

 

Thank you all again for this special award.  Now let’s keep up the great work.

 

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