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<br />-11- <br /> <br />Summary of Address by Governor Dan Thornton at the San Luis <br />Valley Irrigation Centennial Celebration <br /> <br />~ <br /> <br /> <br />i <br /> <br />Ladies and Gentlemen: <br /> <br />For me, it is a si~gular honor to be <br />able to speak here at Colorado's centennial <br />.. recognition of irrigation. 1;Ie usually think <br />of water problems as those of the future, ..".' <br />but here in retrospect we pause long enough <br />to look back upon the foresight and judgment <br />of our previous generoltions and see what we <br />have re~ped from their ideas. It is fitting <br />and important that we recogniz.e and compli- <br />ment our forefathers for starting i.rrigation <br />here in the San .Luis Valley and other sections <br />of the Centennial State. Water is our most <br />Jan Thornton im~ortant natural resource, and we should feel <br />grateful to our pioneer ancestors for their vision in recogniz.ing this <br />fact. It is sincerely hoped that our work and our planning of today is as <br />beneficial to our coming generations as this early planning has been to us. <br /> <br />:'.. <br /> <br />1rIhen I learned of the possibility of having this recognition ceremony, <br />I was happy and pleased to appoint the Governor's Committee to make neces- <br />sary plans for an adequate and eventful celebration. Furthermore, I was <br />especially pleased to includS Dr. Lory of Fort Collins because he has had <br />a long and unprecedented career in our State. He and all members of the <br />Committee have worked long and diligently, and I .am certain that this <br />celebration ,fill go down in the record books as one of the most historic, <br />colorful, and' interesting celebrations in Colorado. . <br /> <br />. <br /> <br />.. <br /> <br />I have a deep and abiding faith for people who work with the. soil <br />and Colorado's greatest resource -- water. Irrigation has given the San <br />Luis Valley and other areas of Colorado its prosperity, and we must learn <br />to make use of every drop of water and develop that use for the economic <br />development of the state, We must learn how to better becDme custodians <br />of our resources and that proper care will assure plenty and provide for <br />future generations. A good measure of our citiz.enship is hm-l we stack up <br />as custodians of our natural resources, of which water is one, <br /> <br />I; <br /> <br />One of the greatest challenges and responsibility ahead of us, not <br />only in Colorado but the nation, is to think in terms of production and <br />not in terms of destruction, We can look forward to a greater America and <br />better world when all'people bec~ne affirmative in such thoughts, <br /> <br />We have made use of this great natural resource of water through <br />democratic processes and we need not change our system of government to <br />further develop this resource--we do not need social reforms or any other <br />"ism" for the people to continue to ,wrk our problems to make our way of <br />life better in the future, <br /> <br />We do need to develop our knowledge and technics together, particular- <br />ly in our schools of higher learning, such as Colorado A & M College, where <br />principles of irrigation practice, irrigation laws and similar subjects are <br />taught to our oncoming generations, This is vitally needed because water <br />resources play the greatest role in Colorado prosperity. <br /> <br />. <br /> <br />~ <br /> <br />.';"/'-- <br />