(Continued from page 4)

lists, and helped remind both of our girls what a marriage is truly about. As I watch my daughters grow a little more like Kimberley each year, I am reminded of the grace and love she shares with our family every day.
• Mother's Day is special for all mothers and their children, but it is especially poignant for those mothers who are serving in the military or have their spouse, or sons and daughters who are serving overseas. I ask South Dakotans to keep those mothers and their children in their thoughts and prayers.
• This Mother's Day, let us all be sure to tell the mothers in our lives how much they mean to us. While my own mother has passed on to her heavenly home, she will always be a part of me both through memories and the lessons she taught making me the person I am today. I wish a very happy Mother's Day to my wife Kimberley, my mother-in-law Esther, and to all of the mothers across South Dakota.

• Last week, farmers and ranchers began signing up for disaster assistance programs that were restored by the 2014 Farm Bill. While it took a year to implement disaster relief programs after the last farm bill was passed in 2008, disaster programs were up and running in just 60 days this time around, thanks to hardworking Farm Service Agency (FSA) employees in more than 2,000 offices across the country. These disaster programs will not replace all of the losses farmers and ranchers faced, but it will provide some relief and help ensure that extreme weather won't cause families to lose the farm.
• After just one week, I am pleased to say that we've received more than 10,000 applications for these programs. Approximately 95 percent of the applications were for the Livestock Forage Program (LFP), which provides payments to eligible producers for grazing losses. The high number of applicants is no surprise considering the widespread, ongoing drought that has plagued livestock producers in the West Coast and Midwestern portions of the United States for nearly three consecutive years.

(Continued on page 6)