March 19, 2024

Pontiers visit Sen. Grassley during D.C. trip

Sen. Chuck Grassley got a surprise visit last week from Jamie Pontier and her two children, Audrey and Cole Pontier, of Osceola.

“After the election happened, [the children] were really interested in the public education debate and Betsy DeVos,” said Pontier. “They really wanted a chance to express their feelings about rural public educations and wanted to keep it well funded. They wanted to talk to their senator about it.”

Over a period of four days, the family walked the city, saw the sights and eventually stopped off at Capitol Hill to meet with their legislators.

“There were a lot of votes going on in the Senate, so our time was short,” said Pontier.

The children met with Grassley and, among other things, explained how influential their teachers — Mr. Mack and Mayor Kedley — have been in getting students interested in government this year.