For those of you that don’t know, my name is Andrew Sneathern and I’m running for Congress in Virginia. I grew up in a small, rural farming community in the bootheel of southeast Missouri. As the title says, my mother is my hero. Now, before you get too upset over why she doesn’t want to be called a feminist, please let me tell you about why she’s my hero. I think it will help you understand who I am.
This most recent Thanksgiving holiday, my wife Larissa and I took our boys back to the town where I grew up. My mother and step-father still live there, where they grow soybeans, corn, wheat, and milo.
Whenever we go back home, my sisters and I like to go through old pictures. On this visit, we ran across a book of photos of my mom from the 1960’s, back when she was in high school. They were of her suiting up to go scuba diving and it got me thinking about just what a badass my mom is. She’s only five foot one inch tall (I put that one inch so if she sees this I don’t get in trouble). And yet, in the mid 1960’s, she was not only scuba diving, but was doing so in one of the most dangerous situations I can imagine. She was a part of a crew that surveyed the Big Spring water source. Big Spring is the largest spring in the United States, producing up to 2,000 cubic feet of extremely cold (58 degrees) water per second! In order to access that cave, there is only one way—dive directly the mouth of the river. That’s exactly what my mom did.
Fast forward to more recent days. My mother, along with my step-dad John Ponder, farm around 2,500 acres. They do this with one full-time farm hand. Three people farm all of that land, which has been in my family for many generations. In fact, my mother is on the combine right this minute. They are finishing the last day of harvest today, which is a BIG deal for our family. That means that she can finally get on with putting up Christmas decorations and start getting ready for everybody to visit.
But back to the “not feminist.” I recently heard a story relayed by my step-dad about my mom which will further explain her strength and provide understanding. The two of them had travelled several hours to look at and potentially purchase a used combine. Combines are the equipment used to harvest corn, soybeans, and the like. These machines are not only massive, but extremely expensive. Even a used one can run well into hundreds of thousands of dollars. While sitting with the salesman, my mother asked how close the ladder came to the ground. These machines are so large that there is a pneumatic ladder that comes down to allow access. My mother needed to know because being, ahem, 5’1” tall, she has a hard time reaching some of the first steps. If that were the case, she would have to weld on an extra step, which of course she could do, but wanted to know. In any event, the salesman responded (and I’m only relaying the story) “Why do you need to know little lady? It’s not like you’ll be driving it.” My mother’s response was to simply return to the truck. I guess that subtle hint was lost on the poor fellow, because he asked my step-dad if he’d like to go see the combine. My step-dad then educated him that not only would my mother be the one driving the combine, but she was also the one who would have signed the check.
When my mother reads this story, and I’m really hoping that she doesn’t, a couple things will happen. I will be in trouble for using the word “badass.” She will probably also be embarrassed by me calling her my hero. But it’s hard not to. She is a strong, motivated individual. There are so many stories that I could tell you about her to make that point, and I’m sure I’ll share quite a few more over the next 11 months. But she would much rather simply be judged by what she does, and be given the same opportunity as anyone else. She sees nothing unusual, nothing deserving of a label. It should be assumed that people want to be treated as equals, allowed to pursue their dreams. No man I know can drive that combine any better than my mom, but she has no interest in proving it. She just wants to do what she loves as long as she can. If that sounds like a feminist to you, for my sake, please don’t tell her!
In order to truly understand a person and their values, I believe it is crucial to know where they come from and who they admire. People like my mother motivate me every day, and I intend to take the values she instilled in me all the way to Congress. I can’t do it alone. I need you to contribute to my campaign so I can defeat Rep. Tom Garrett. I am going to take this seat back from this Tea-Partier and give the people of the 5th District a representative that shares their values. I’m going to give them a representative they can be proud of.