Entrepreneurs inspire at chamber awards; McCaskill disappoints on abortion vote

It was November 1978 and the legendary broadcaster Paul Harvey spoke in front of the Future Farmers of America in Kansas City, Missouri.

His remarks became content for one of the more touching Super Bowl commercials years later with his speech �So God Made a Farmer.�

Harvey, with a cadence and vocal tone distinctive to his style, shared the following:

�God said, �I need somebody willing to get up before dawn, milk cows, work all day in the fields, milk cows again, eat supper, then go to town and stay past midnight at a meeting of the school board.� So God made a Farmer.�

I encourage you to read the rest of the remarks and listen to Harvey�s delivery.

Words like Harveys also can be said, in many cases, about entrepreneurs.

Last month, the Cape Girardeau Area Chamber of Commerce held its annual dinner and awards program. Held for the first time at the new Drury Plaza Convention Center, this year�s program attracted more than 800 members.

Past chairman Jon K. Rust, the publisher of the Southeast Missourian and co-president of Rust Communications, served as the master of ceremonies and announced Small Business of the Year award winner Marco Construction Products, a locally owned and operated organization by Todd and Megan Marchi.

Rust talked about how the Marchis seek to serve their customers. How they�ve grown nearly double in the last five years. And how the couple gives back to the community.

�One way they live this mission is by opening their store at 6:30 a.m. to provide contractors service before they start their day,� Rust said.

He continued with a quote from one of their reference letters.

��He combines the wealth of knowledge he has gained over the past two decades in the industry with the integrity of his upbringing and family name with which those not new to our area are quite familiar,�� Rust quoted from the letter.

Dennis and Kathy Marchi, seated near the stage, were beaming with pride for their son and daughter-in-law.

Todd and Megan Marchi exemplify what so many entrepreneurs go through.

Accepting the award, Todd shared how the couple went to Jim Limbaugh at Montgomery Bank with little more than a business plan. But clearly with the hard work and dedication, it�s a success story.

After recognizing a relatively young business in Marco Construction, Chuck Drury of Drury Hotels took the podium to talk about the newly established Drury Family Spirit of Entrepreneurship Award.

More than the award, which is significant, the story from Drury captured what so many business owners experience.

�Between the farm and plastering, they worked sun up to sun down,� Drury said of his family�s early beginnings. �Grandpa Drury�s daily example shaped their strong will to succeed and overcoming challenges honed their spirit of grit and determination. As Uncle Bob and my dad used to say, �We all worked half-time � 12 hours a day.��

Being an entrepreneur takes a lot of work. Whether you own a construction firm, hotel or farm, winning at business takes a ton of work. And even then, hours upon hours of work does not guarantee success. But still, the drive to serve and put in an honest day�s work and be involved in community is something to be admired.

Bob Neff, general manager of Ford Groves, was recognized at the dinner with the Rush H. Limbaugh Award, a prestigious honor to some of the area�s top business leaders and community champions.

Brandy McIntire was presented the Ambassador of the Year Award for her efforts to encourage chamber membership and involvement.

To all the award winners, congratulations. And to all the entrepreneurs who do so much to drive our economy, thank you.

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Missouri�s Democratic U.S. Sen. Claire McCaskill sided with the far left in her party last week to block a vote on the �Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act,� a bill that would ban abortions after 20 weeks of pregnancy.

The legislation received 51 votes in favor, nine short of the 60 needed to bring the issue up for a majority vote.

The bill did include provisions that, despite the ban, would allow abortions if the mother�s life was in danger.

Sens. Joe Manchin of West Virginia, Joe Donnelly of Indiana and Bob Casey of Pennsylvania are all moderate Democrats in states won by President Donald Trump who voted with the majority of Republicans in favor. Two Republican senators, Susan Collins of Maine and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, joined Democrats in opposition.

Sen. McCaskill has tried to position herself as a midwest, moderate Democrat. She has even worked across the aisle with Republicans on other issues. The issue of life could have been one of those issues � which is why this is all the more frustrating.

Consider this: The United States is one of only seven countries where an abortion can legally take place after 20 weeks. The other six countries are Canada, China, the Netherlands, North Korea, Singapore and Vietnam. Even Democrats who support abortion should be able to get behind this issue.

To block a vote was more than a political miss. It was a sad statement on the value of human life for the most vulnerable among us.

Lucas Presson is the assistant publisher of the Southeast Missourian.