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May 13, 2009 |
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Since education lays the foundation for opportunity, I strongly believe that students from all walks of life deserve access to a high quality education. That is why I have donated a large portion of my own time and financial resources to public schools and educational programs over the years. As Lieutenant Governor, improving and investing in our schools is going to remain one of my top priorities, and with that in mind, I recently released my education plan and embarked on a four day Education Tour throughout the Commonwealth. One of my first stops on the Education Tour was to Richlands High School in Tazewell County. Richlands HS is one of the schools that my business has partnered with over the years to ensure that they have the resources and technology available to provide their students with the best education possible. While touring the facility, I was able to see firsthand the technology and science materials that my donations helped to secure, but I also noticed many areas that still need to improve in order for our children to truly have access to 21st century classrooms. Later in the week, I toured the Chantilly Academy which is located in the same building as Chantilly High School in Fairfax County. Chantilly Academy features a variety of programs such as auto shop, engineering, and criminal justice. Students who enroll in these classes have a wonderful opportunity to get real training and a strong foundation in skills that will prepare them to enter the workforce right after graduation or a 2yr or 4yr institution. While I was touring the high schools, many teachers commented on how successful high school students often have a strong educational foundation from their younger years. This is exactly why its so critical that we improve and expand access to early childhood education for every Virginia child. On my Education Tour I met with and discussed ways to expand and improve early childhood education with several groups like Girls, Inc in Bristol, the Youth Life Foundation in Richmond, the 4th grade GT classroom at Oak Hill Elementary, and the Head Start/TAP program in Roanoke. These programs are all critically important and as they provide children with the basic skills they will need to succeed in the classroom, in their social environment, and as future members of the workforce. All the skills that were on display in the high schools and early childhood education facilities that I visited were ultimately utilized at the institutions of higher education that I also visited on my Education Tour. Danville Community College, for instance, has a workforce services program that allows students to obtain skills directly needed in the workplace in industries ranging from nursing to the construction trades. For those students wishing to continue their education even further, the RISE Campus at Norfolk State University allows graduate students to work closely with professors on applied research that develops advanced technologies that will ultimately greatly benefit the lives of all Virginians. Finally, the Community Engagement Network at the University of Virginia is an excellent example of the type of collaboration and partnership that harnesses the energy of thousands of students to give back to their community and enhance the educational opportunities of the local surrounding community while providing UVA students with hands on, real-world experience in the field of education, counseling, social work and youth development. I was extremely honored to have the opportunity to tour these facilities over the last week and strongly believe that they illustrate how education can lay a foundation for future opportunity. As the campaign continues, I look forward to continuing to discuss my vision for investing in our public schools and our children’s future. To read my full Education Plan and find out more about my stops on the Education Tour please visit my website at www.jb2009.com. |
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May 11, 2009 |
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I am extremely passionate about giving back to the community and my opportunity to be Virginia’s next Lt. Governor. Of course the long hours and nights on the road take me away from my family. That is why this Sunday was so special, as I got to spend Mother’s Day with my mom, who came over to visit with Deneen, the kids, and me. It’s always nice to have 3 generations of Bowerbanks in the same room. My mother has always been a source of inspiration for me. When I was 11 years old, my parents decided to move the family to America so that we could have a better life. While it wasn’t always easy, my mother worked hard to make sure that my siblings and I had the opportunity to succeed in life. Whether it was putting in long hours to make sure the bills were paid, helping me with my studies, or providing me with encouragement, my mother always put her children first. That is why it meant so much to me this Mother’s Day to have an opportunity to thank her for everything she’s done. |
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April 16, 2009 |
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On Wednesday I attended the 61st Annual Shad Planking in Wakefield, Virginia. I had been really looking forward to taking part in the event which started as a relatively small gathering and has grown into one of the major traditions in the Virginia political community. Even though there was a forecast of rain and the wind made the air a little chilly, the large crowd helped to illustrate why this is a great way for candidates like me to interact with great people from all across the Commonwealth of Virginia. Of course, there’s also the excitement of the friendly competition surrounding the “sign wars” which I believe my team did quite well in. We had an excavator lifting up some Bowerbank signs well into the air above the parking lot and we had thousands of signs lining the streets into the event, including signs some 20 miles out of Wakefield on 460. None of the other candidates, including Bill Bolling, had more than 100 signs. At the actual event I was honored to be able to talk to people from all across the political spectrum about what I will do if elected Lt. Governor. A lot of people spoke to me about how the economy has impacted their family and how they want a leader who will work to increase the number of well paying jobs in the Commonwealth. As a business leader in Southwest Virginia, I started a business in my garage that has now grown to employee hundreds of people. The skills I developed during this process would allow me to help create programs that would spur job creation and people who came out to Wakefield yesterday seemed to be energetic about the possibility of electing a Lt. Governor who could play a strong role in improving our economy. In fact, I got several people who came in as Bill Bolling voters to take off their Bolling stickers and put on one of our stickers. Also, I’d like to simply thank the Wakefield Ruritan Club who hosted the Shad Planking and all of the great people who took time out of their day to attend the event and talk with me about what they’d like their next Lt. Governor to accomplish. Finally, to see some photos of the event you can visit this link. |
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April 06, 2009 |
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Over the last week I have spent a significant amount of time in Southwest, Virginia talking with voters about the issues they’d like the next Lt. Governor to address. After stopping in Harrisonburg to pickup petitions from the JMU Democrats and to thank them for all their hard work collecting them, I traveled along US-11 and took the time to speak with residents of Mount Crawford, Fort Defiance, Mint Spring, and Steeles Tavern. On March 31 I continued heading Southwest as I spent time with the Virginia Tech Young Democrats. It was good be with so many students who are passionate about public service and the political process. I look forward to continuing the discussion with them in the future, particularly about how I will work to make a higher education more accessible for students from all economic backgrounds. On the evening of Friday, April 3, I went to a dinner hosted by the Russell County Fair Association at the Russell County Government Center. The event featured entertainment by Bobby McLamb, a former guest on Hee Haw – for some of you younger folks, Hee Haw was a very popular television show in my day, and Bobby McLamb is a superb performer. It was a great way to start off the weekend. On Saturday evening Deneen and I attended the Second Annual Donkey Dance at the Salem Civic Center which was sponsored by the local Democratic Committees from Roanoke City, Salem City, Radford City, Roanoke County, Montgomery County, and Botetourt County. I am a big fan of events such as the Donkey Dance because it allows the community to come together in a festive atmosphere while still being able to discuss some of the issues that are important to Virginians. With hundreds of people in attendance, that was most definitely the case on Saturday as there was a lot of excitement in the room in regards to the ideas that the Democratic Party of Virginia represents. As a supervisor from Russell County in Southwest Virginia, I was very pleased to see so many active Democrats in the region and was grateful for the opportunity to listen to what they had to say about the economy, educational opportunities, and a variety of other topics. While my campaign has attracted supporters from throughout the Commonwealth, my experience as a businessman and public servant in Southwest Virginia has earned me the support of well respected leaders in the community such as Congressman Rick Boucher and state Senator Phillip Puckett. I look forward to working with these leaders throughout the campaign in producing high voter turnout in the region during the primary in June and the general election in November. In addition to being good for our democratic process in the Commonwealth, I strongly believe the high turnout that we’d help to produce would also prove to be beneficial for some of the Democratic candidates in the region running for the House of Delegates. Over the next few days, I will build on the energy from the Donkey Dance as I talk to voters in Southwest and the Richmond area. Tonight I will be attending my monthly Board of Supervisors meeting, where we will finalize our budget for the year, more on that in the days to come. As always, please feel free to get in touch with my campaign if you have any questions or want to get involved. |
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April 03, 2009 |
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I am outraged and extremely disappointed by the comments Mike Huckabee made this week pitting residents of Southwest Virginia against residents of Northern Virginia. Living in Southwest Virginia - my business is located in Tazewell County, in fact - and traveling all across the state, I know better than most that there is so much more that unites us as Virginians than divides us by our regions. Folks from Tazewell to Arlington are struggling to make ends meet in this economy; people from Danville to Virginia Beach have lost their health care and can't afford to buy a new plan; Virginians from Roanoke to Fairfax need better roads and more transportation options. We will not allow someone to come from out of state and try to divide our Commonwealth and pit one Virginian against another. I call on Mike Huckabee to apologize for his remarks and on Bob McDonnell to condemn them. |
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April 01, 2009 |
On Saturday, March 28 I returned to the road, starting in Annandale at the Democratic Party of Virginia’s kickoff for the “Results Not Roadblocks” Tour. Chairman Dick Cranwell did an excellent job of reminding the crowd that no matter how hard Republicans Bob McDonnell and Bill Bolling try to reinvent themselves they cannot hide from their record of obstruction. Let’s Go Blue!
From Annandale I traveled to Haymarket for an event hosted by my friends Beth and Bruce Roemmelt. We had a wonderful time talking about job creation, specifically the need to use our education system and community colleges to develop our workforce. Haymarket was also the first stop on my Grassroots Petition Thank You Tour, where I am traveling around the Commonwealth to meet and thank those who helped collect our petitions. Beth and Bruce were a tremendous help to our effort in the 10th Congressional District. |
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March 27, 2009 |
On Tuesday, March 24, I drove to Richmond for some meetings with local leaders, and then came up to Northern Virginia to attend the Fairfax County Democratic Committee meeting – there were over 100 people there and there were many lively and productive discussions during the meeting. It’s clear that Ilryong Moon’s loss has not affected Fairfax Democrats’ enthusiasm or passion – in fact they are more motivated than ever to make sure Fairfax is blue in the November 2009 elections.
On Wednesday, March 25, and Thursday, March 26, I was all over Northern Virginia attending meetings, talking to Democratic party leaders, and spreading my message to voters. This weekend will take me to Charlottesville for the Charlottesville Pasta Supper and the VAYD Convention – which will include the very first Lieutenant Governor Candidate Forum of the election – and to Danville for a candidate meet and greet. It is sure to be a busy and fun-filled weekend.
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March 23, 2009 |
After attending the Montgomery County and Roanoke City Democratic committee meetings the previous evening, on Friday, March 20, I woke up in Roanoke and drove to the WFIR radio station headquarters to do an interview with the station’s news reporter, Timothy Martin. I was a great interview and I enjoyed meeting Tim and everyone else at WFIR.
After some meetings in Roanoke I traveled down to Southwest Virginia for the Bristol Races – it’s one of my favorite weekends in the year. On Saturday, March 21, I attended a breakfast in Abingdon with U.S. Congressman Rick Boucher that he hosted in my honor. The restaurant, part of the Barter Theater, was packed and it was a wonderful event – thanks again to Congressman Boucher. I spent the rest of the day campaigning in Russell County; I attended a real estate auction with 50 or 60 other people. As I was talking to voters I watched the price of the land being auctioned go higher and higher – I know that we have not yet seen the end of our economic woes, but it was encouraging to see these prices rise as people make the investment into real assets.
On Sunday, March 22, I got an early start and headed to the Bristol Motor Speedway for Bristol Race Day. I was joined by members of the VA Professional Fire Fighters Association, the AFL-CIO, the United Mine Workers, and the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, and well as some good friends and supporters of my campaign to watch the race. It was an exciting race and everyone had a good time – even if my pool drivers did not win.
On Monday, March 23 I attended the Russell County Board of Supervisors budget public hearing, where we discussed the county’s budget for the year and offered residents the chance to comment on proposed changes to the ’09-’10 county budget. I am happy to report that despite the economic downturn our finances are in great shape, and we might actually be able to increase funding in key areas such as education. A great way to end my stay in Southwest Virginia!
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