Gov. Gregoire addresses the Asian Counseling & Referral Service 35th Anniversary Dinner/Auction

September 13, 2008

AS WRITTEN

Good evening, and thank you Lori for the introduction.

I’m honored to be here tonight to help celebrate an important milestone.

And it’s that A-C-R-S has been in the business of improving the lives of thousands of Asian and Pacific-Islander Americans for 35 years!

Thirty five years! That’s longer than some in this room have been alive!

Just imagine the thousands of lives you have touched for the better…

…all the hungry families you have fed…

…all those with mental health issues and addictions you have helped get back in their feet…

….all the kids you have helped reach and stay on the right path...

A-C-R-S is in the business of strengthening our communities – and it does it using 30 languages on behalf of some of the poorest, most invisible people in Washington.

A-C-R-S is all about compassion…and that’s why I’m honored to be here tonight and that’s why I’m a big fan of this great organization.

It’s also why I worked with your great legislators and supported state appropriations totaling $5 million to help build a wonderful new home for this organization in the Rainier Valley.

That was on top of another $14 million provided by local government and private donations, and that’s what I can a community coming together.

I’ve visited your new headquarters, and I’ve seen your operation up close several times, and I always come away impressed.

I also want to say a little bit about how important this auction tonight is to those in the Asian community who really need our help.

And one of those needs is especially basic…

…Food...

…Food to feed low-income families who have their own struggles with high gas and food prices.

I took part in the A-C-R-S “Walk for Rice” this spring as part of our renewed effort to help our struggling food banks across Washington.

And I know we raised about $100,000 for the A-C-R-S Food Bank.

That’s a good down payment.

This summer, I also released $200,000 from my emergency fund to help food banks – including this one – pay for fuel and other needs.
And a few weeks ago, I donated the $3.300 pay raise given to me this year by our citizen salary commission to our food banks.

But we need to do more.