Throughout this 250th Anniversary year, we challenge everyone to consider those who founded this country. Take a deep look; not just at the famous founders, but at the everyday men and women who made this country. There were folks working at every level of government to bring about this new understanding and new form of government.
These folks were independent and strong, deciding their future and making it happen. They literally carved new communities out of forest and wilderness. They started new businesses and discovered new resources. They aided each other and supported community.
Even those in States that were not of the original thirteen have their stories of the original settlors. Stories of self-reliance and resilience as they carved out large permanent communities in the rugged wilderness. Stories of heroes of self-governance and of the journey to Statehood.
We challenge you to look for these stories (they should be easy to find this year) and to take courage and inspiration from their journeys. We challenge you to look openly and honestly at our history and to learn from past mistakes. And above all, we challenge you to look at the things that made us a beacon of Liberty and Freedom and that created the phenomenon of the American Dream.