Visiting Appomattox and Bedford
Governor Warner visited Appomattox and Bedford on Thursday and Friday to talk about deploying broadband in rural Virginia and to commemorate the 64th anniversary of D-Day during his latest Hometown Days stop in Central Virginia.
In Appomattox, Governor Warner attended one of the final meetings of the Broadband Roundtable he co-chairs, with participation from many of the industry’s leading representatives on technology and Internet connectivity. Governor Tim Kaine set up the task force last summer to bring high-speed Internet to Virginia’s rural communities and appointed Governor Warner and Secretary of Technology Aneesh Chopra as its chairs.
Broadband deployment is one of the issues Governor Warner believes must be addressed in order to keep America competitive in our global economy. He told WSLS-NBC10:
“This high-speed internet connection is absolutely key in terms of attracting 21st Century jobs. I believe is perhaps the single most important economic development tool we can use.”
While in Appomattox, Governor Warner took a stroll down Main Street, where he met with a crowd of locals and gave his pitch from the porch of the “Country Charm” store.
The next morning, he and two dozen Lynchburg-area bicyclists trekked 35 miles from Lynchburg to Bedford. The Lynchburg News & Advance’s Ray Reed joined the ride.
Riding without any vehicle escort that would indicate this was something more than a typical group of cyclists, Warner followed half a dozen riders who set the pace in front of him.When the riders regrouped at a convenience store on Old Forest Road, a couple of them phoned their offices and found reasons to leave the ride.
“Those guys are peeling off before we get to the hills, right?” Warner asked.
Warner’s agenda for the ride included physical fitness and promoting natural resources, in addition to pushing his campaign against Republican Jim Gilmore for the Senate seat being vacated by Sen. John Warner (no relation).
Turning west onto Coffee Road, the ride’s pace picked up. Heading downhill into a sharp curve, Warner braked noticeably.
After the exhausting ride – most of which was uphill in 95 degree humidity – Governor Warner joined veterans and their families at the National D-Day Memorial in Bedford.
Friday marked the 64th anniversary of D-Day. Governor Warner layed a wreath at the memorial and greeted veterans and their families. Bedford County lost the most men per capita on D-Day. Bedford lost 19 of its 35 soldier sons in the first 15 minutes of the invasion on Normandy’s Omaha Beach – giving Bedford the highest casualty rate for its population of any place in the United States during the D-Day invasion.
Here are pictures from the trip: