[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 102 (Tuesday, June 18, 2019)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3637-S3638]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                       Tribute to Alana Petersen

  Ms. SMITH. Mr. President, I rise today to pay tribute and express my 
gratitude to Alana Petersen, my deputy chief of staff and long time 
staff leader for the Minnesota congressional delegation. Alana is 
retiring from her official role after serving the Minnesota delegation 
since 1993.
  During her public service, Alana worked for Congressman Dave Minge, 
from Minnesota's First Congressional District; Congressman John 
Oberstar, from Minnesota's Eighth Congressional District; Senator Al 
Franken; and now for me. In all of those roles, she has served the 
people of Minnesota first and especially those who most needed an ally 
and a voice in the halls of power here in Washington: farmers and rural 
families, new immigrants, Minnesota's Tribal communities, and 
Minnesota's diverse communities of color.
  For those of you who don't know Alana, let me tell you a little bit 
about her. Alana was born in Minnesota and, like me, spent part of her 
childhood in New Mexico. In fact, she and I went to the same elementary 
school, although Alana is younger than me and had the benefit of a new 
building.
  Alana headed Al Franken's Minnesota Senate office beginning when he 
was sworn in 2009. Before joining Franken's staff, she worked in the 
office of Congressman Jim Oberstar for 5 years as deputy district 
director, and she worked for Congressman Dave Minge for 6 years in 
several capacities.
  Alana also served as executive director of Target Market, a statewide 
nonprofit organization that promoted an anti-tobacco message to teens, 
and she held a position at Grassroots Solutions, a political consulting 
firm where she worked with national labor unions, congressional 
candidates, and pro-choice organizations.
  As if her official work weren't enough, Alana has long been a go-to 
volunteer for her community, where she has served as chair of the East 
Central Regional Arts Council and board chair for Women Winning, a 
bipartisan group dedicated to electing more women to public office.
  Alana is married to Thom Petersen, who is the Minnesota commissioner 
of agriculture for Governor Tim Walz, and she is mom to Waylon and 
Dylan. Alana and her family live on a working farm in Pine County, MN, 
an hour north of the Twin Cities. The Petersens raise and show 
miniature horses at county fairs all across Minnesota and at the 
Minnesota State Fair, earning blue ribbons, not only because of the 
amazing minis but also thanks to the amazing costumes sewn by Alana.
  To Thom, Waylon, and Dylan, thank you for sharing your mom and wife 
with us and with Minnesota all of these years.
  So I can't tell you when I first met Alana, but we have been good 
friends and allies for decades. As in all great friendships born from 
working together, we are connected by a sense of shared purpose, a 
sense of humor, and a complete trust that, when in doubt, we can call 
the other one. Each of us, in turn, has been a shoulder to lean on, a 
strategic adviser, a gut check, and a great excuse for a good laugh 
when either of us needs it.
  This has been true for both of us for years, but never more so than 
in this last year when I became an accidental Senator and called on my 
old friend to jump in one more time to help me become a Senator and win 
a Senate seat, all in 10 months. Alana helped me to see that I could do 
this job and also win an election in such a short time. It is no 
exaggeration to say that I couldn't have done any of this without her.
  Alana has the heart of an organizer. In fact, she tells the story 
that she first canvassed her neighborhood as a fifth-grader, knocking 
on doors for the father of a friend of hers who was running for office. 
She has been organizing and engaging people in the democratic process 
ever since.
  As an organizer Alana knows that the best ideas come from the ground 
up, not the top down. She understands that the best work happens when 
you build relationships with people at the grassroots. She has mentored 
and taught generations of campaign and congressional office staffers 
that teamwork based on mutual respect, high expectations, and clear 
goals makes progress for people possible, and that it can be joyful 
work.
  For years Alana has been the go-to person for young candidates just 
starting out--and a lot of us seasoned politicians too. The political 
offices, campaigns, and nonprofits of Minnesota are powered by the 
people Alana has taught and mentored.
  As an organizer, she is rooted in the value that Paul Wellstone best 
expressed when he said that politics shouldn't be about money and 
power; it should be about improving people's lives.
  It means more to me than I can express that Minnesotans elected me to 
serve in this seat once held by Hubert Humphrey, Walter Mondale, and 
Paul Wellstone.
  On October 25, 2002, we lost Paul in a terrible plane crash, along 
with Paul's wife Sheila, his daughter Marsha, and staffers Will, Tom, 
and Mary Mac, Alana's mentor. In the fall of 2002, Alana had quit her 
regular job in Duluth to join the campaign for Paul's reelection 
because she knew she wanted to contribute to the grassroots movement 
that Paul was building. The plane crash and the loss of our friends was 
heartbreaking to all of us.
  Last year, on October 25, Alana shared a letter her father wrote to 
the Wellstone campaign team in the days after the crash. It is 
particularly touching because her father, Thomas Christiansen, passed 
away on October 25, 2009, 7 years after we lost Paul.
  Here is part of what Alana's father said: ``For some, public service 
is the dedication of one's life to the community. I have come to 
realize that my daughter Alana is one of those elite few.''

[[Page S3638]]

  Alana, you are indeed one of those elite few. Thank you for your 
service to Minnesota, and thank you for what you will continue to do 
for many years ahead to move forward the hard but precious work of 
improving people's lives.
  I yield the floor.