Welcome

It is a real pleasure to have this opportunity to visit Bluebird Nurseries and talk with everyone gathered here, and I join John Trumbull in welcoming you this morning. I am looking forward to learning more about the Nebraska nursery industry today, and I look forward to visiting and working with you now, and in the days ahead. Getting to know Nebraska and its residents is one of the real pleasures of my new job, and has been since I started in January. My wife Virginia and I literally slid into the state one snowy day last December - almost hard to remember that icy, snowy winter, given the past few months - and ever since our arrival we have been impressed and delighted by the friendliness and warmth of Nebraska's residents. This is a great state, and we are very happy to be here. As I welcome you I also want to offer Chancellor Harvey Perlman's regrets that he could not accept the invitation to be here, too; he is unable to join us because of conflicts in schedule.