TOWNSHEND — My parents were part of what Tom Brokaw, the former national television news anchor, called “the greatest generation.” They gave but did not ask for anything in return.
My parents, like others at that time, experienced many challenges, among them the struggles of the Depression and the challenges to our world freedom during World War II.
My mother reminisced about seeing veterans of the Civil War and World War I marching in parades in Brattleboro, where she grew up. It made her and others like her aware that much had been sacrificed to make us the country we are today.
It is interesting to note that before World War II, only 15 percent of high school students went to college. The G.I. Bill helped the veterans of World War II obtain a higher education.
My parents' lives revolved around their families, their communities, and their state. They knew firsthand what local food and food self-sufficiency meant to them and to others.
When I was Vermont Secretary of Agriculture, my mother asked me one week what I would be doing next. I remarked that I had a localvore event.
She asked, “What is that?”
I said that it was about local food, and she remarked, “What is new about that?!”
My parents grew up producing and eating local food, as that was mostly what was available.
They loved their friends and family, they respected their neighbors, and they believed in community service. They saw changes coming to their towns which would alter their way of living.
A few years ago, I asked my mother if she remembered when electricity came to their small town of Brookline in southern Vermont.
“The year was 1938, your dad was farming with his father,” she remarked. “They brought one line into our house, and we had one 15-watt light bulb. I said to your dad, that is terribly bright and we will never need anything more than this!”
They were afraid to put electricity in the barn due to concern over fires.
The telephone was a crank phone, and you would call central, where a person behind a switchboard in Newfane made the connections physically. There was always someone on that party line listening to what was being said, and that was the best way to get news around - wanted or unwanted.
Most people only had one car, and they were all made in the U.S., a Chevy or Ford being the most popular. Maybe if you wanted to capture the moment, you would take a picture with your Kodak Hawkeye camera, then send the film away to be developed.
The mail, with the 3-cent stamp, was the primary way of communicating long distance. When I was away in the Army in Germany in the late 1960s, it took at least three days for a letter from home to get to me. Well, things have changed dramatically since that time! Now you can communicate with a click of the button on your iPhone, iPad, or computer.
My generation was the generation of the '60s. We are called the baby boomers, those born after World War II when the troops came home.
Our generation is that of the Beach Boys and the Beatles. We liked fast cars and we were there at the beginning of the fast-food movement. We questioned the status quo, protested racial injustice, and challenged the political establishment during the Vietnam war. President John F. Kennedy and Martin Luther King Jr. inspired us.
They both had a dream: to overcome racial injustice, to undo the heavy burdens, and to let the oppressed go free; to explore the stars, to eradicate disease, to tap the ocean depths, and to encourage the arts and commerce.
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The millennial generation is said to be the most technologically advanced ever, or what some have termed “the always-connected generation.”
Some have said that they treat a multitasking, handheld gadget like a body part, and they might even sleep with their cell phones. Two-thirds admit to texting while driving.
Millennials believe that the government should do more to solve problems. According to the Pew Research, they will be the most educated generation in American history. They also are said to be the most open to change of any generation.
Yes, we do live in a global economy, and a tech-driven society where social media lets people across the world have instant communication. We use fewer stamps today, and fewer landline telephone calls are made. Just a text or email message is all that is needed.
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We'll expect a lot from this generation. There are many changes taking place today across Vermont, the region, the nation, and the world. There are real opportunities in expanding the frontiers of knowledge by tackling problems related to energy production and efficiency, health care, the environment, food production and food security, housing, transportation, engineering, job growth, and income equality, to mention but a few.
Some graduates will join the workforce, and others will continue their education. We know that 60 percent of all jobs in the U.S. economy require higher-education training, and that of the 30 fastest-growing occupations, about two-thirds require post-secondary education and training.
In Windham County, an early estimate is that there will be a need for at least 2,300 jobs within the next five years for well-trained individuals.
In Vermont, we must secure our talent pipeline, making sure that students possess the skills needed in this rapidly evolving economy.
It is no wonder that in the recent past, National Geographic said that Vermont was the number-five place in the world to visit and the number-one place in the United States. It is due to our working landscapes, our quaint villages, and our healthy environment.
Some will leave our beautiful state. Yes, it is all right to do so, to explore the world in order to learn and see new things that you might bring back to us later on in your professional lives.
However, every day you are here, take a deep breath of fresh air.
Look up on a clear night and see the stars.
Treasure your journey on all of the backroads in our state and take in the beauty around you.