Governor Florence Shapiro
Inaugural Speech

Governor Florence Shapiro
Inaugural Speech
April 9, 2005

I am overwhelmed / Thank you so much for this amazing honor and your participation with me today.

The Noble Prize winning author John Steinbeck once joked that Texans are a passionate people who are proud of their history, which is based on, but not entirely limited to, the facts.

The fact is, Texas has been, is, and will forever remain, the greatest state in the union. / Our story is a proud one, written by many hands, / across many years. / It began nearly 200 years ago. And it continues in the 21st century. / As Governor for a day, I am proud to represent Texas and the things that make Texas great: / Our People; / Our Values; / and our FUTURE.

First and foremost, being Governor means standing up and speaking out for the people of Texas. / And what an amazing breed the Texas people are!

In 1827, a young Tennessean named Noah Smthwick arrived in Moses Austin's colony for the first time. He was one of the first Americans to put down roots in the colony and lay his eyes on this new land. / And here is how he described Texas: "Newcomers were welcomed and entertained with all the hospitality at the command of the colonists." / How revealing that his very first impression of Texas was of its people and their basic kindness, decency, and character.

Nearly two hundred years after those words were written, they remain true. / Texas is a great place because Texans are a great people / . . . caring and compassionate, / driven and devoted.

And what a difference Texans can make in the world. / To read the story of our state is to read the story of progress. / From the Wildcatters of the twenties and thirties, / to the creation of NASA in the sixties, / to the Silicon Prairie of today, / Texas is always changing, yet it always remains the same. / We adjust to the times, but we never compromise our values.

And so being Governor for a day also means giving voice to the values that make our state great.

Perhaps the most eloquent expression of the values that make Texas great is found not in the words of any poet or songwriter, but in the actions of Texans who defended the values of this state throughout the globe and throughout the years.

As your Governor today, I want to pay tribute to the brave Texans such as Major Scott Barnett and Captain Michael Ogden, who are helping to bring the light of freedom to the darkest corners of the world. / Won't you join me in saluting Texas' brave men and women in uniform who are fighting for freedom all over the world today? /

Texans do things right, / more important, we try to do the right thing. / Fellow public servants, we owe it to our constituents to provide a government as good as the people we serve. / We must give voice to their values . . . and shape our policies around their principles. / And that's why I look forward to working with each of you to create public schools, health care, and economic growth worthy of the people of Texas. /

We hear much today about the challenges of different people, different cultures, and different religions co-existing together. / In Texas, we already do it everyday! /

The reason it works is because what unites Texans is greater than what divides us! / We can disagree without being disagreeable / and we have learned to attach problems and not people. / Simply put, in Texas, the leaves are many but the root is one! /

To outsiders looking in, today's ceremony may seem like a good deal of pomp and circumstance. / And maybe it is!

But to those of us who serve in this body, the Texas Senate, we know that this event transcends party, / transcends ideology, / transcends geographic regions and transcends backgrounds.

This is not just a legislative body, / / it is a family, / / a family of public servants who know, care about and even love those sitting around us.

Thank you to each of my friends here on the dias who have spoken today. / You are each very special to me and you honor me and our friendship by your participation. / This day will be indelible on my mind because of your kind words. /

My journey, like all journeys, has taken many years and many friends to bring me to this moment. /

I am a first generation American, the daughter of Holocaust survivors and the first in my family to attend college.

Today's ceremony is the embodiment of the American Dream, / and for that, I am ever so grateful.

From the streets of Berlin, Germany, where my parents grew up during an evil and devastating time where they were not even given the full acknowledgement of their citizenship, / to Plano, Texas, where a young wife and mother could aspire and attain a dream to become the ultimate citizen, The Mayor of the great City of Plano and a member of the Texas Senate / it has been quite a journey!

My parents mean everything to me, along with my brother Mark. We have journeyed through 2 different worlds, and I am so proud to have them here with me today to share this wonderous day!

I have always believed that God put me on this earth to be the bridge between my parents past and my children's future. / I am so blessed today to have 3 incredible children: Lisa, Todd, and Staci, who have lovely, wonderful spouses not to mention my pride and joy, my four grandbabies - Joshua, Noa, Ari and Ella / and baby ? in the oven. / Howard and I are so proud of each of them. /

Encouragement is so important in my line of work and without Howard's encouragement, I wouldn't be here today! / His father Harry, would have been at the Capitol this morning before dawn to prepare, and I know since his untimely death 25 years ago - he has been like an angel on my shoulder watching all I do and smiling with delight. /

To all my staff members, current and former, you should share in this day too! / For you have worked so hard to bring me to today, this is your honor as well!

How lucky am I to have such great friends back home! / So many have come here today and you are my support system and I love you for being here, and coming all this way to support me!

And now let me take just a moment and talk about the single most important issue facing us today / and that is the future. / Years from now, what kind of state will we see? / What kind of people will we be?

My fellow Texans, we have a great opportunity...and an even greater responsibility.

We must be true to our past...and ready for our future. /

A hundred years from now, Texans who are not even born today will look back at us. / They won't remember what was said...but they will know what was done. / They won't remember who was governor...but they will know how we governed. /

They will know if we were serious about public school improvements...provided better healthcare...and spurred great economic growth. /

They will know this because they will have lived with the consequences of our actions in this chamber this year. /

So what do we owe them? What can we do for our children and the future generations of children? /

On January 12th, when I was sworn in as President Pro-Tem of the Senate, I dedicated this session to our most precious resource in Texas / our children. / I would like to reiterate that today as Governor.

We owe the children our greatest hopes...and our best efforts.

We owe them hard work...and the honest truth.

Their interests should become our interests.

And their cause must be our cause.

My fellow Texans, we can agree to disagree on taxes or transportation, / on the budget or on the border. / But we must never disagree when it comes to our children. / Let's work together to give our children the kind of Texas we all desire and that they all deserve.

Texas is a great state...and we can make it greater. / We have a proud past, and an even more promising future. / How can we make Texas a more perfect state? / Simple / one child at a time.

Every time a child in Texas attends a better school, our state gets stronger.

Every time a child in Texas gets good health care, our state gets better.

And every time a child in Texas dreams big dreams, our state gets greater.

That is our goal--building a Texas worthy of our children.

And there will be many more great Texans who will step forward and change our state and nation through their leadership in science, business, music, and even politics. / I am so honored to play a small part in the great story called Texas.

My fellow Texans, what an honor to serve as your Governor, if only for a day. / This day and every day, may we always work together for the common good of Texas.

Ladies and gentlemen, we are the greatest state because we have the greatest people...good values...and a glorious future. / May it ever be so.

Thank you. God bless you. And God bless Texas.