Gilbert Gutknecht: “I rise today to recognize a high school senior in my district in Minnesota for simply telling the truth, even when it…”

“I rise today to recognize a high school senior in my district in Minnesota for simply telling the truth, even when it hurt. Recently the Elgin-Millville Watchmen provided the Dover-Eyota Eagles in a sectional tournament baseball game. In the fifth inning, Watchmen left fielder Jason Livingston missed a fly ball and saw it barely clear the fence for a home run. The umpire, however, ruled the hit a ground-rule double, thinking it had bounced over the fence. Jason was the only one in position to know exactly what had happened. Without hesitating, he indicated to the umpire that the ball had cleared the fence for a home run. The umpire reversed his call, the Watchmen ended up losing the game, and Jason's baseball career ended that afternoon. Mark Twain once said, 'When in doubt, tell the truth.' Well, Jason Livingston never had a doubt. He said it was no big deal, he just did what was right. A week after the game, Jason graduated from high school without a baseball trophy. But some things are just more important.”