Senator- are you on vacation?

May has been quite the month and we're only halfway there! Groundbreaking for new affordable housing in Rapid Valley, great meeting and tours with Black Hills Habitat for Humanity, attended Passages graduation for women coming from incarceration and/or homelessness achieving their ultimate potential, and got my nails *did* by my favorite gal Morgan at Perfect 10 Nail and Beauty Bar for my Ellsworth Air Force Base/Box Elder/B21 support manicure, attended a Box Elder Chamber Mixer and an Elevate Rapid City Mixer, had a behind the scenes peek at the new Ascent Innovation building, visited with Americans for Prosperity regarding education reform, celebrated my eldest son Noah graduating from high school, was able to hug my 91 year old grandmother for the first time in 18 months, attended a Spring Market in Box Elder, a church bazaar at First Church of God in north Rapid, the Working Against Violence Spirit of Peace Beach Ball Fundraiser, legislative breakfast with the Rapid City mayor's office, learned more about goals of the Hill City Chamber of Commerce, Walk(ed) for Life with Black Hills Pregnancy Center, honored the efforts of the Red Ribbon Skirt Society on May 5th for Murdered and Missing Indigenous Women and Girls, and even found some time for creative, crazy kitchen creations with the kids (grilled 'smores sandwich anyone?). And to answer my neighbors who've been asking if I'm on vacation because I'm not in Pierre... With a part time citizen legislature, this is when we do the real work- getting involved and hearing the feedback of our communities!