Great Northwest Days Attracts Over 400

Constituents from across northwest Missouri convened for the 23rd Annual Great Northwest Day at the Capitol in Jefferson City on February 4th & 5th. Representing a diverse array of sectors including business and organizations, education, healthcare, and government, over 200 individuals from the nineteen-county region came together to enlighten lawmakers on the challenges and opportunities facing Northwest Missouri.

This year's agenda was centered on key priorities including community revitalization, increasing childcare availability, increasing workforce, and workforce housing. Additional priorities discussed included roads and bridges, higher education, K-12 education, and broadband.

The event began with the Priorities Panel: Best Practices session where participants heard from panelists from Northwest Missouri, followed by discussions that focused on regional priorities. Many then headed to the Capitol building for visits with legislators, with some visiting various department offices.

Evening festivities began with the Northwest Missouri Reception featuring area legislators who addressed attendees followed by the presentation of the Citizen of the Year Award, which was awarded to Clarence Green, Dean/Director of the Savannah Campus for North Central Missouri College. The main event with the theme of ‘Discover Northwest Missouri’, then unfolded which consisted of a regional expo that showcased each county's unique attributes and opportunities. Drawing a crowd of over 400, including Governor Kehoe, Lt. Governor Wasinger, numerous State Senators, State Representatives, and representatives from state offices and departments, the expo served as a platform to spotlight the essence of northwest Missouri.

The event concluded on Wednesday with a regional breakfast featuring Jon Doolittle, President and CEO, Missouri Hospital Association. The delegation then journeyed to the Capitol building to be introduced on the House and Senate floors.

Planning for this significant event commenced in August of 2024, with volunteers from across the region dedicating their efforts. "Great Northwest Day 2025 is a powerful demonstration of what can be accomplished when our region comes together with a shared vision and a united voice. By working collectively, we elevate the issues that matter most to our communities and drive meaningful change for Northwest Missouri. We are grateful to everyone who contributed to this year’s event, including attendees & sponsors, and to the many legislators and department officials who prioritized being here to engage with us. Together, we are shaping a stronger future for our rural corner of Missouri." says Crystal Narr, Executive Director, Chillicothe Area Chamber & Chair, Great Northwest Day 2025.

Generous support from community and corporate sponsors, including Touchstone Energy, Evergy, Allstate Consultants, Cameron Regional Medical Center, Hedrick Medical Center & Memorial Wright Hospital, Mosaic Life Care, Snyder & Associates, Olsson, Missouri American Water, Missouri Western State University, North Central Missouri College, and Northwest Missouri State University, helped bring the event to fruition.  

 

Great Northwest Days Sets Legislative Agenda

As legislators are gearing up for a new season in Jefferson City, so too are the citizens of Northwest Missouri. Over the past few months, the Great Northwest Day at the Capitol Steering Committee gathered and prioritized legislative issues for the region’s annual visit to the state capitol city on January 31-February 1, 2012.

At this event, approximately 350 people from the 18-county region will visit Jefferson City to make their regional voice heard in a single, cohesive message. Great Northwest Day’s legislative platform for the upcoming event includes the following priorities:

· Transportation and Infrastructure Funding: Maintain adequate funding to service and maintain our highways and lettered routes as well as support efforts to reconstruct levees in the areas affected by recent Missouri River flooding.

Consider tools to enhance the efforts of the Missouri Department of Transportation and continue support of county transportation efforts such as Bridge Replacement Off-System (BRO) and County Aid Road Trust (CART) programs. Additionally, support resolutions to encourage the Federal Government, United States Corps of Engineers to dedicate additional resources to rebuilding flood protection levees along the Missouri River.

· Statewide 9-1-1 Wireless Emergency Services: Design a complete, detailed, and integrated plan that includes a user fee on wireless devices for upgrading statewide 9-1-1 emergency services.

· Unfunded or underfunded mandates on local entities: Local governments and educational institutions are a mainstay of our society. As such we encourage State leadership to resist efforts to erode fiscal support of local city and county governments as well as our institutions of primary and higher education.

The criteria for reviewing regional issues included legislative impact, overarching regional impact, non-partisan perspective and timeliness of concern. Local issues were collected by County Coordinators and then compiled by a volunteer committee. Those issues were then regionally defined and sent back to County Coordinators and the steering committee for additional input before being established as Legislative Priorities for the event. The three priorities will be monitored as Great Northwest Day nears, and the message to legislators will be further refined during that time.

Great Northwest Day at the Capitol is an annual legislative event that includes introduction on the Missouri House and Senate floors, time with legislators, an educational luncheon, and an evening event inviting all of Missouri’s legislators and department heads to meet with citizens from the Northwest Missouri region.

Great Northwest Delegation from Worth County Visits Senator Lager in Jefferson City

After a last minute rescheduling due to the blizzard of 2011, Sen. Brad Lager entertained the Great Northwest Delegation for the fifth time as the 12^th District State Senator. Delegates from throughout Northwest Missouri and the counties that comprise the 12^th Senate District visited with Sen. Lager throughout the day on Monday and later in the evening at the Great Northwest Days Reception held at the Capitol Plaza Hotel in Jefferson City. Over 300 businesses, municipal, and county officials made the trip down to speak with legislators and department officials in an effort to advance the priorities of Northwest Missouri.

“The Annual Great Northwest Days has certainly become one of the most unique and highly anticipated events in Jefferson City. Though there were some challenges this year due to the record snowfall earlier this month, I have been impressed by the efforts of our leaders in northwest Missouri to remain committed to having the event despite the challenges. When over 300 people come to the Capitol at the same time and lobby for the same issues, it opens the eyes of a lot of legislators,” Sen. Lager said. “Having the delegation reach out to the representatives of the urban and suburban areas has certainly let the folks in Jefferson City know the challenges we face and how hard we are willing to work to get things done. The event was another great success and I am already looking forward to having the delegation back next year.”

Brad Lager's Capitol Report: Great Northwest Days

Last week was one of the most enjoyable weeks of the Legislative Session: Great Northwest Days. Although this year’s event was delayed a couple of weeks due to the snowfall, approximately 300 committed campaigners came together to make this year’s Great Northwest Days an overwhelming success. These leaders of our local communities seized the opportunity to meet face-to-face with legislators and state agency leaders in Jefferson City to highlight the opportunities and address the challenges we face in our region of the state.

Although Great Northwest Days is important every year, this year it takes on even greater significance as roughly one-third of Missouri’s General Assembly is comprised of first-term lawmakers. Normally, freshman legislators tour the entire state thereby getting a glimpse of each region. Due to budget shortfalls, this year’s new lawmakers were not afforded the same opportunity. As a result, many of these newly-elected officials have come to Jefferson City with little or no knowledge of our region of the state and their first interaction was delivered by the dedicated local leaders who were willing to bring the spirit of northwest Missouri to our State Capitol.

From my first day in office I have fought hard for our local communities. While Missourians throughout the state struggle with many of the same problems, there is rarely a one-size-fits-all solution. The support we need to create jobs, strengthen our local economies, enhance educational opportunities for our students, and improve healthcare delivery across a vast, rural area is much different than what is needed by our counterparts large cities and suburban areas. The personal interaction and legislator education that is achieved through Great Northwest Days makes a noticeable impact on my colleagues in the Capitol.

The effectiveness of our government relies on citizens who are actively involved in our political and legislative processes. Great Northwest Days is a remarkable effort by representatives from all parts of the region working together to advance our shared priorities. I believe our event is the largest and most effective of its kind, and I am very proud and extremely grateful for the hard work and commitment of those who make this event so special. Your involvement throughout the year makes my job easier and more enjoyable. I truly appreciate your support in this effort and I am proud to work on your behalf and represent our district in Jefferson City.

As always, please feel free to call, email, or write with your ideas or concerns. The Capitol number is (573) 751-1415, my email is brad.lager@senate.mo.gov and my mailing address is Room 422, State Capitol Building, Jefferson City, MO 65101.