HOME >> ABOUT US >> TESTIMONIALS

testimonials

We talked about some deep stuff. There was a lot of learning outside what you usually get.  We learned how to debate with people when you disagree.  ...I loved that class.  It was deep and broad and outside the box.   It did change me.  It put things into perspective, and it helped me think about stuff a lot more.  It was fun to learn.  I had a fear of things I didn’t know about, but this class helped me learn how to approach those things.  
-Toby Woolson, high school participant

I would like to thank Heartland Democracy for choosing our community to provide this critical dialogue, which was so empowering for our students, and for their support of lifelong learning and student self-efficacy. 
-Claude C. Maddox, Director, Skills for Tomorrow High School

Well organized presentations led the class to in-depth conversations about our political culture.  The format allowed diverse perspectives and built consensus about the values we hold as a faith community….  Again, thank you for this outstanding series. 
-Rev. David Maghakian, Pastor, North Como Presbyterian Church

In my opinion, this was the best adult education module we have had in years.
-North Como Presbyterian Church member (anonymous)

I strongly support Heartland Democracy's call for a 21st Century innovation in voter registration.  I am happy to see Heartland Democracy emerge to engage everyday people across our region in a conversation about innovative election practices.   This is the kind of public engagement we need to do to realize the full potential of our democracy.
-Joan Growe, former Minnesota Secretary of State, 1975 to 1999

In Minnesota and our larger region, one of the missing pieces of the “infrastructure” yet to be filled is a thinking and communicating entity or set of entities that generates ideas, arguments and new public policy from a progressive perspective and then works to persuade and rally citizens around those ideas.  Tom Vellenga’s vision of an entity, if it can be sustained, is just what the movement needs in Minnesota and the region.
-Jeff Blodgett, Executive Director, Wellstone Action!

Here in Washington there are some organizations devoted to policies that will turn this nation around, but they are not reaching the rest of the nation.  Now, thank God, from the heartland come voices of reason.  Tom Vellenga and his group have taken on a big job.  If anyone can do it, Tom can.  I say, "Hallelujah."
-Rachelle Horowitz, aide to civil rights leader Bayard Rustin and AFT political director

Nowhere is this work more important than in the heart of the nation.  We have got to get back to generating ideas of and for the decent citizens who care about their communities.  A progressive group in the heartland – capable of integrating and articulating progressive thinking across sectors – would fill one large void in the struggle to restore our nation’s progress.  Tom Vellenga was one of my trusted policy aides in the Congress and the White House.  He served the nation above and beyond the call of duty then, and he will do the same in this cause. 
-Leon E. Panetta, in comments made before he joined the Obama administration
Former White House Chief of Staff and Congressman

As a Coloradan, I strongly support the effort to build a progressive center for the heartland.  We need a principled, integrative group that identifies the progressive philosophy and communicates directly with heartlanders.  As Secretary of Energy, I asked Tom Vellenga to advise and represent me on the policies, politics, and management of the world’s largest environmental, health, and safety program.  I have every confidence that he will build the team, the vision, and the reality of the new center with the same integrity, competence, and commitment he contributed on my senior staff. 
-Federico Peña, Managing Director, Vestar Capital
Former Secretary of Energy, Secretary of Transportation, and Mayor of Denver