Ann M. Kuster

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize a small business in my district that is an important part of the Sugar Hill community: Polly's Pancake Parlor.

Since it was opened in 1938 by Willfred and Pauline ``Polly'' Taylor, Polly's pancakes has served up some of the lightest, fluffiest pancakes in New England, attracting visitors from across the Nation. Beyond serving excellent food, Polly's helped popularize maple syrup as a sweetener, contributing to the success of New Hampshire's world- renowned maple syrup industry.

What truly makes Polly's standout is the generous hospitality. When you visit Polly's, you're treated like a member of the family. That is why I have relished the opportunity to bring my family and friends to Polly's both before and during my time in Congress. Polly's is an important part of the fabric of the White Mountains community, and I am proud to recognize this outstanding business.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today full of gratitude for having had the incredible privilege of representing New Hampshire's Second Congressional District for the past 12 years.

New Hampshire doesn't have a national sports team. I have long said politics is our pastime, and it has been such a joy to advocate for my friends, my family, neighbors, and our State in this arena.

My time in these Halls has been many things: rewarding, inspiring, challenging, and, yes, at times, frustrating. However, more than anything, it has been truly the greatest honor of my life.

When I was first elected, I promised to bring a new approach to Washington, to reach across the aisle, and to build bridges whenever possible. As I look back at the end of my time in Congress, I am immensely proud of that record.

Over the past 12 years, I have seen Congress at its most and least efficient. With the clarity of hindsight, I can say that our government really, truly does work best when Republicans and Democrats come together to solve our Nation's greatest challenges.

I grew up in a Republican household. My father, Malcolm McLane, served as the mayor of Concord and on our State's Executive Council, and my mother, Susan McLane, served for 25 years in the House and Senate in the New Hampshire State Legislature, and she even ran for the seat that I am now retiring from.

I know that they would be proud of my and many of our colleagues' efforts to restore bipartisanship, to reach across the aisle to pursue pragmatic solutions, particularly during times of deep political division.

There will always be new challenges and new opportunities for Congress to address. The work here is never truly finished, but thanks to the support of my colleagues, both Republicans and Democrats, we have made meaningful progress on a number of issues that don't always go viral or generate the most clicks online.

I founded the Bipartisan Mental Health and Substance Use Disorder Task Force with my Republican colleague, Frank Guinta, and continued the work with Brian Fitzpatrick and David Trone, to bring Democrats and Republicans together to tackle the addiction and overdose epidemic that has impacted every community across our country.

Thanks in part to the task force's tireless advocacy in providing resources for communities and making smart policy changes, we are finally beginning to see overdose deaths decline throughout the Nation. I am proud that one of my final votes in this Chamber will be for vital opioid response legislation to increase access to treatment included in this year's government funding package.

I also started the Bipartisan Task Force to End Sexual Violence, which has helped shed light on the pervasive culture of sexual violence that has flourished for too long in our schools, our universities, our military, and even here in Congress.

It was in this very Chamber that I first shared my own story of sexual assault publicly and fought to reform how Congress responds to sexual misconduct among Members and toward staff.

Through respectful conversation and honest dialogue, my Bipartisan Ski and Snowboard Caucus helped bridge the divide between our parties on the need to respond to the environmental and economic threats posed by climate change.

As chair of the New Democrat Coalition, my colleagues and I have repeatedly prioritized country and duty over party and politics, providing the votes to prevent a devastating default on our debt and a costly government shutdown not once, not twice, but three times.

Thanks to our focus and commitment to pragmatic solutions to improve the lives of hardworking families in our country, our New Democrat Coalition will be the largest it has ever been in the 119th Congress and will make it more than half of the Democratic Caucus.

In each of these endeavors, we made progress--incremental at times, but progress nonetheless. We didn't always agree on how to tackle the challenges, but we listened to each other, debated the ideas on the merits, and focused on the mission of delivering for our constituents.

Sadly, my time in these Halls in recent years has been defined more and more by extreme partisanship. As lawmakers, we must reject the cynicism and the notion that Congress and our institutions are destined for dysfunction and disorder. We must not lose sight of our purpose and why we are here--to fight for our communities, to lead by example, and to tackle the biggest challenges facing our country, not create them.

Now, at the end of my tenure, a little older and hopefully a little wiser, I urge my colleagues and the incoming Members of the 119th Congress to lead with courage in the face of division and recommit to building bridges, not tearing them down.

I thank my husband, Brad, and my sons, Zach and Travis.

I remind my colleagues: Be bold, be brave, but most importantly, be kind.

Mr. Speaker, I rise to honor the trailblazing women throughout history who have fought for justice and equal rights. I am proud that many of these women were and are Oregonians.

There is Abigail Scott Duniway from Yamhill County, who became a vocal advocate for women's suffrage and was the first woman to register to vote in Oregon.

There is former Governor Barbara Roberts, who grew up in Sheridan and became the first woman elected to serve as Governor of Oregon.

There is Kathryn Harrison who helped gain Federal recognition for the Grand Ronde Tribe in my district.

These are just a few examples, but there are many more women leaders who are largely left out of history books. Recognizing their legacy is one important step.

But we must continue building on the progress they have already made.

That is why I will keep working to expand access to paid leave and affordable childcare, protect reproductive freedoms across the Nation, and put an end to violence against women and girls.

During Women's History Month and every day of the year in honor of those who came before us, I will keep up the fight.