A Thank You from a Next-Generation Dem

Subject: Thank You Again For Your Help
From: Ryan Neibauer
Date: Thu, 28 Jun

I wanted to thank you again for your generous donation to allow me to attend the 2007 Model U.S. House of Representatives. It really turned out to be an amazing week. I wanted to give you a little recap of what I all experienced during my time in Washington.

There were many highlights of the week. One being that because I was representing the 5th District of WI which is of course Congressman Sensenbrenner's district and due to the Congressman's seniority in Congress, I was the ranking Minority Member of both of my committee's which were the Foreign Relations Committee and the Financial Services Committee. Both hearings were held in actual committee rooms on the hill. The Foreign Relations Committee met in the Energy and Commerce Committee room and the Financial Services Committee met in the Financial Services Committee room.

We held two days of floor proceedings once we were all finished in committee. Our two days of floor proceedings were held on the first day in the Cannon House Office Buildings Caucus Room and our second day of floor proceedings were held on the floor of the Ways and Means Committee room, which at one time was used as the floor for the U.S. House of Representatives. While on the floor our acting Speaker of the House, Congressional Research Service's Judith Schneider, kept very strict House rules and sternly admonished anyone for any deviations from those rules. It really was an amazing learning experience. We even had a page Franklin Mason, who was a 13 year old eighth-grader at Washington D.C.'s Stuart Hobson Middle School to run errands and deliver messages.

I mean we were pushing the same buttons, talking in the same microphones, and sitting in the same chairs that actual members of Congress push, talk, and sit in. We were given Member style lapel pins to wear on our lapel the entire week. Our committee's were chaired by former members of Congress who volunteered their time to work with us in committee and guide us through the proper ways to handle ourselves and our time in committee. We also were brought onto the actual floor of the U.S. House of Representatives by a former member of Congress and were allowed to have a seat. The rules are that the only way to get onto the floor is to have a current member of Congress walk you on or have a former member of Congress walk you on. When I walked onto the floor it took me a second to realize where I actually was, but once I sat in one of the chairs on the floor it sunk in. The room is much smaller then it looks on T.V.

We had the opportunity to hear a Congressional history lecture from Dr. Fred Beuttler who is the Deputy House Historian that was shown Live on C-SPAN. We took a tour of the National Archives and saw the Charters of Freedom, the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, and the Magna Carta. I also went and saw the Washington Monument, the Lincoln Memorial, the WWII Memorial, the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, and the Korean War Veterans Memorial. We also visited the State Department and were given a speech from Brian Gunderson, who is Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice's Chief of Staff and also heard a speech from the U.S. Treasurer Anna Escobedo.

When it came to fund-raising, I was able to fund-raise all the money that I needed to pay for the registration costs of the trip. I was also able to cover my plane ticket out there as well. The donations ranged from $25 to $200 and every little bit did help. The total amount that I raised was $1194. You came through with very short notice and you were very generous in your donation. It really was a humbling experience.

All in all it was a very exciting week and an amazing learning experience. And because of your generous donation, I was able to have this opportunity and for that I am so grateful. Who knows maybe someday I may run for Congress.

Sincerely,

Ryan L. Neibauer