Political Quotes

“Today, in recognition of Women's History Month, I rise to honor three incredible women from central Washington. Shannon Polson of the Methow Valley became one of the first women combat pilots in the U.S. military. After graduating from the University of Alaska ROTC, she was commissioned as an Army aviator and was one of the first women to fly the Apache attack helicopter. She served two tours as an Apache platoon leader, and one as a company commander, deploying to three continents. Kathy Bryson of Richland is the Pacific Northwest disaster response coordinator for the United Methodist Church. Kathy has provided the overall leadership for recovery from fire disasters in Okanogan and Whitman Counties over the last 2 years, as well as for the wildfire disasters in Oregon and northern California. Kayla Barron of Richland was not only a member of the first class of women commissioned into the submarine community for the U.S. Navy as a submarine warfare officer, but is currently serving as mission specialist of the NASA SpaceX Crew-3 mission to the International Space Station. In fact, just yesterday morning, she successfully completed a spacewalk. She has accomplished much since graduating from Richland High, and you can bet that we are all rooting for her every step of the way. These women exemplify the very best of central Washington: Service to community, determination, integrity, and grit.…”