Ladies and gentlemen, please, speaker of the house of representatives, Kevin Mccarthy, senator fischer, governor of nebraska. James pilling, house democratic. Hakeem jeffries, representative adrian smith and Lora Lunzmann black Lora Lunzmann black. Please be seated. Ladies and gentlemen, the honorable Kevin Mccarthy speaker of, the United States house of representatives. I know your but im more excited because this the first statue i get to do as being speaker. And if you followed took me a while to get there. Okay so this is special so good morning and you for joining us for this special in statuary hall. You know, every state since two statues of, extraordinary citizens, the u. S. Capitol represent them in washington. By law, the statues have to made of bronze or marble. But make no mistake the men and women we honor here are living symbols who represent our national memory, patriotism and our american creed. E pluribus unum. Out of many one, as one of americas greatest novelist willa cather is a fitting addition to this gallery of Great Americans. As we welcome castor to the capitol i also want to welcome several special who are in the audience. First, we are honored to be joined by members of the kathryn family. I also want to welcome nebraska governor jim pillen governor, secretary of state bob keenan and representative who represent the that all nebraskans have for the katherines legacy. Finally, i want to recognize the talented littleton foster the who created katherine statue. Not only is he the africanamerican artist to have a sculpture in the he grew up just a few blocks from the capitol well. We grateful that all of you here to join us to unveil this new and celebrate it in the peoples house. So lets begin. Ladies and gentlemen, please stand for the presentation of the colors by the United States police ceremonial unit, the singing of our National Anthem by vocalists from the United States army chorus and the retiring of the colors. For. Or. Ladies and gentlemen, please remain for the invocation delivered by dr. Margaret kimmitt, chaplain of, the United States house of representatives. Would you pray with me. Oh, my god. The author of lives. We pause to you. Thanks for imbuing your creative on the celebrated nebraskan author willa seibert. Accept our profound gratitude for endowing ms. Cather with the ability to tell story of nebraska for giving context and color to both the frontier and pioneer in writings she brought to life your creative. She gave names to faces of unsung american heroes and celebrated the rich legacy of the prairies and plains that spanned United States. Even now, as this Pulitzer Prize winners statues thousands proud among our most notable luminaries, we ask you would draw the eyes of each visitor, not just to willa cather, supreme example of literary excellence, but also to her strength and courage. Her commitment to civil rights and her careful telling of the complex history of our republic in this may, we each be inspired to serve this with the best of who you have made us to be. With the gifts you have graced us to do use, with the passion and compassion to which you have called us like willa cather to share. It is in your generous name. We pray as we ask your blessing on this ceremony. Amen. Please be seated. Ladies and. Gentlemen, the honorable Kevin Mccarthy. Speaker of the United States house of representatives. Ladies and gentlemen, the honorable Kevin Mccarthy, speaker of the United StatesUnited States house of representative. My first time to i turn to hakeem and i said, who did they say so far . All right. So. Now it is my privilege. I need to invite up the nebraska delegation. The governor, and all the special guests to join us for the unveiling. We changed this part so you can see it by we talk about it. Come on up. You come to hug me. Its go for. One. Ladies and gentlemen, the honorable james, governor of nebraska nebraska. Well, good morning. Extraordinary. Extraordinary privilege to be before you as the 41st governor of nebraska. Is it a great day to be in nebraska. Speaker mccarthy and leader jeffries as governor, i have a couple of privileges. I declare you nebraskans today. Enjoy our day. You know i want to share a couple of experiences that i think might be really relevant for today. Therell be a lot of extraordinary remarks about willa cather and her writings are represented in nebraska. Yesterday, i had the privilege to be on the university of nebraska campus in willa cather speaking to 300 young ladies and girls state. And it was rather remarkable. Almost felt like willa cather was part of our conversation. The first thing we talked about was what an extraordinary day yesterday was to make sure that every generation remembers the sacrifices and the bloodshed. So we have this group be a part of the greatest nation that civilization has ever known. With the 79th anniversary of dday. And we tried like willa cather wood to bring it alive. We talked about can you imagine can you imagine that, brother . Thats your age. Your brother got off a higgins boat. That, by the way, was made columbus, nebraska, my hometown. And young men served 18, 19 years of age, gave lives. So that wed save the planet from evil. It was extraordinary to watch the eyes and the faces of the young ladies and we talked about something that was really, really cool. We talked about whats your why . Why why are you here . Why are we here . And i think that that would be something that willa cather would be really, really proud of because it is a great message for all of us, whatever role as public servants, what is our why . What is our why . I think its important for all of us to do some selfish examination. Our country depends on every single one of us to have the right. Why and to examine it. The other thing i would like to share, because of the extraordinary chief standing bear, i have a bret walker in the office, the governor of nebraska. A couple of weeks ago, the United StatesPostal Service had a stamp commemorating standing and got to listen to the great grand son of chiefs standing by to speak. It was extraordinary what kind of man and the his his life and his legacy. And maybe the thing i want to leave you with that as your governor. I was south sioux city, 60, 90 days ago. And with the four tribal leaders and, i hope everybody will really really think about this. One tribal leader said, mr. Governor, i want you to know that when i was young, grandfather said my grandfather said, when we sit around the room, make things better, its really, really important and its really serious. And every minute matters because what we do has an impact for seven generations. Seven generations. And ive thought about that a lot. And let me tell you, its so true. Willa cather almost 150 years ago, born and just think of the impact. Seven generations plus you ever think. Ill guarantee you i got to talk to some young ladies yesterday that all of us from nebraska would the farm on for the and how many willa cather will be there and the impacts have for generations and just just of the impact these two folks have had on the great state of nebraska. You know on the incredible nation that we live in. And i just want to finish with a couple willa cather quotes from her writings. One is there are some things learn best in calm and some in storm, some things you learn best in calm and some things you learn best. And storm the next one, i think Mother Teresa taken from where there is great love. There are always miracles where there is great love, theres always miracles. And the last one i is really she said, i want impartial things. The others dont in their interest me. Kudos. Our artist little tim ashton, thank you for representing. Your work inspires us and hopefully this experience can inspire all of us in this room to home and do a little bit more than we ever thought we could our generations seven times from now depend on it. Godspeed. Thank you for having me here. Ladies, gentlemen, the honorable adrian smith United States representative from the Third District of nebraska nebraska. Thank you, mr. Speaker. Governor palin, senator fisher, willa cather committee. And certainly, mr. Speaker, this is a great place for both of nebraskas statutes. Im so grateful to be here. Willa cather is formative years and red cloud, nebraska introduced her to plains and those who made them their home. A number of her works feature featured honest and, rich retellings of the challenges faced by and our intimate relationship to the land. Well, and praised by many of her acclaimed contemporaries, cather herself was trailblazer in the literary, even after moving from nebraska. Her experiences stayed her and testified to the unique spirit of nebraska in many of her timeless works of literature. Through her depth and brilliance, catherine earned a lasting place. The Great American writers. It is fitting she will now be enshrined here in our nations capital, giving its of annual visitors the opportunity to reflect on her. Its an honor to be with you to recognize willa cather contributions and the way she brought the character of our state to life through her writing. Thank you again to all of those who worked so hard. Littleton. Allston. Fantastic work. Thank you for sharing your talents. Not just with nebraska not just america but the world. Thank you. So grateful be here. And that you would all participate. Thank you. Ladies and gentlemen, the honorable deb fischer, United States senator from nebraska nebraska. Littleton she is beautiful. Willa is stepping, just like you told she would. Thank you. When we here in statuary hall, i like to remind people that were not. If you look above the door, that leads into the rotunda rotunda, youll a figure. It is clear. And she is the muse of history. For generations. She served as a constant reminder that our words and actions, the good and the bad, would be judged by time. And leave a lasting mark on this nation today. Cleo welcomes one of nebraskas fine literary artists, willa cather. Let your fiction out of the land, your feet. This quote attributed to cather is an apt summation of the authors life and cathers vivid, reflective writing has become synonymous. The pioneer spirit of nebraska perfect and epitomized the great plains novel o pioneers, the of the lark and antonia. Truly feels like it grew from the soil of nebraska. Cather herself grew from that land. Her family settled red cloud while she was a child, and her imaginative mind put, its roots down there. Webster county for decades until her death. In 1947, cather was unable to shake her creative spirit away from its home on the open plains of the. The unveiling of cather statue is especially poignant for me. Cathers fiction is not the only art to grow out of the land beneath her feet. In 2006, my sister law nathan mcandrews art was select rated as part of the annual willa cather weather conference thats organized by the cather foundation. I am a nebraska painter, and my feet stand on the same prairie grasses that cather stood. Nadine wrote, of her Painting Exhibition maidens and pessimistic paintings. They are a blend. They blend and imaginative representation of cathers prose with own personal experience on our familys ranch in the sandhills. Four of the paintings longing isolation pioneer three in the way and way ahead, draw new vigor out of cathers century works. Each created as an expression of different quote by the artist nadines art illustrates the profound resonance of cathers writing for of us who call nebraska home. That resonance talent, that imagination immortalized in cathers indelible novels is what endows with the significance to be placed here in the United States capitol as a representation of nebraskas best. Ill end with the words from cathers song of the lark. Words that strike a of understanding into heart of any nebraskan who has read her work. What was any art but a mold to imprison for a moment the shining elusive element which is life itself. Thank you. Ladies and gentlemen, laura black, reader. Selection from my antonia. I first heard of antonia on what to me and interminable journey across the great midland plain of north america. I was ten years old then. I lost both my father and mother within a year and my virginia relatives were sending me out to my grandparents who lived in nebraska. I traveled in the care of a mountain boy, jake, one of the hands on my fathers old farm under the blue ridge, who was now going west to work for my grandfather. We went all the way day coaches becoming more sticky and grimy with each stage of the journey. Beyond chicago, we were under the protection of a friendly passenger conductor who knew about the country to which we were going and gave us a great deal of advice in exchange for our confidence. Once he sat down to chat, he told us that in the immigrant car ahead there was a family across the water whose destination was the same as. I do not remember crossing the Missouri River or anything about the long journey through nebraska. Probably by that time had crossed so many rivers that i was dull to them. The only thing very noticeable about nebraska was that it was still all day long. I had sleeping, curled up in a red plush for a long while when reached black hawk, we stumbled from the train to a wooden siding where men were running about with lanterns. I couldnt see any town or even distant lights. We were surrounded by utter darkness in, the red glow from the firebox group of people stood huddled together on the platform, encumbered by bundles and boxes. I knew this must be the immigrant family conductor had told us about the the woman wore a fringe shawl over her head and she carried little tin trunk in her arms, hugging it as if it were a baby. There was an old man, tall and stooped to have grown boys and. A little girl clung to her mothers skirts. Presently, a man with lantern approached him and began to talk, shouting and exclaiming. I picked up my ears, for it was positively the first time i had ever heard a foreign tongue. Another lantern came along. A bantering voice called out, hello, are you mr. Burdens folks . If you are, its me. Youre looking for. Im otto. I am. Mr. Burdens hired and im here to drive you. He led us to a hitching where . Two farm wagons were tied. And i saw the foreign family crowding into one of them. The other was for us. Jake got on the front seat with otto, and i rode on the straw. The bottom of the wagon box covered up with a buffalo hide. The immigrants rumbled off the empty darkness and. We followed them. I tried to go to sleep, but the jolting made me bite my tongue. And i soon began to ache all over. Cautiously, i slipped under the buffalo. Hide got up on my knees and peered over the wagon. There seemed to be nothing to see no fences, no creeks, no trees, hills or fields. If there was a road i could not make out in the faint starlight. There was nothing but land. Not a country at all. But the material out of which countries are made. I had the feeling that the world was left behind, that we had got over the edge of it and were outside mans jurisdiction. I had never before looked up at the sky when there was not a familiar Mountain Ridge against it. But this was the complete dome of heaven. All there was of it. The wagon jolted on, carrying. I knew not whether i dont think i was homesick. And if we never arrived anywhere, it did not matter between earth and that sky. I felt erased. Blotted out. I did not see my prayers at night. Here i felt what would be would be. I do not remember. Our arrival at my grandfathers farm time. Before daybreak. After drive of nearly 20 miles. With the heavy workhorse as the road from the post office came directly by our door crossed the farmyard and curved around this little pond beyond which it began to climb the swell of unbroken prairie. The west. There, along the western skyline. It skirted great cornfield, much larger than any field i had ever seen. Id almost forgotten that i had a and when she came out, her bonnet on her head, a grain sac in her hand, and asked me if i not want to dig the potatoes in the garden for dinner. The garden was a quarter of a mile. The house and the way to it led, by a shallow drop, passed the cattle, the cattle corral. I can remember exactly how the country to me as i walked beside my grandmother along the faint wagon tracks on that early saturday morning. Perhaps the glide of long railway was still with me for more than anything else. I felt motion in the landscape in the fresh, easy blowing morning wind and in the earth itself, as if the shaggy were a sort of loose, and underneath it herds wild buffalo were galloping galloping alone. I should never have found the garden, and i felt very little interest in it when i got there, i wanted to walk straight on through the red grass and over the of the world, which could not be far away. Grandmother the pitchfork we found standing in one of the rows and doug and i picked them up and out of the soft brown earth and put them in the bag. When grandmother was ready to go, i said, i would like to stay there a. I sat down in the middle of the garden where snakes could scarcely approach unseen, and i my back against a warm yellow pumpkin. The was warm under me and warm. I crumbled it through my fingers. I kept as still as i could. Nothing happened. I did not. Anything to happen. I was something that lay under the sun and felt it like. The pumpkins. And i did not want be anything more. I was entirely happy. Perhaps we feel like that when we die and become part of something entire whether it is sun and air or goodness and knowledge. At any rate that is happiness to be dissolved into something complete and great when it comes to one. It as naturally as sleep. Ladies and gentlemen, the omaha conservatory of music string. No. And. No. And. Then i i. And. And. And. And. Ladies and gentlemen, the Hakeem Jeffries democratic leader of the United States house of representatives. Speaker mccarthy, speaker emerita pelosi, senator fisher, governor palin, distinguished members of, the nebraska delegation, all those assembled. Governor, im from br