Governor Tim Pawlenty

Optimism During Times of Challenge

Tim Pawlenty was the 39th Governor of Minnesota from 2003-2011.  As his state’s CEO, he was responsible for a $50 billion biennial budget, 30,000 employees, and over 20 agencies and departments. His education, health care, and energy initiatives were viewed by many as among the most innovative in the nation.  He served as Chair of the National Governors Association, Chair of the Education Commission of the States and Chair of the Midwest Governors Association.

Tim's other career experience includes: serving in the MN House of Representatives where he was elected Majority Leader by his colleagues; leading the Financial Services Roundtable as its CEO; serving as a board member for numerous publicly traded and privately held companies; working as a VP at an early stage technology company; and practicing law - both as a criminal prosecutor and as an attorney in private practice.

Jana Shortal

Nineteen. That’s how many years Jana has worked as a journalist for KARE 11 news here in Minneapolis.

In all of those years Jana has gone from a general assignment reporter to hosting Breaking The News, weeknights at 6:30.

Jana’s reason for journalism?

Because the truth, still, has to matter.

She graduated with a Bachelor’s in Journalism from the University of Missouri – Columbia and is a seven time Emmy winner.

Patty Wetterling

The Power of Hope

Patty Wetterling was a stay-at-home mother of four children when her world was rocked by the abduction of her 11 year old son Jacob, on October 22, 1989. With a shattered heart, Patty began studying child abduction and sexual exploitation.  Who abducts children, how are they located, what can we do to prevent these horrible crimes? Her advocacy led her to passing Federal legislation requiring sex offender to register their addresses with law enforcement.  She served on the Board of Directors for the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children for 22 years and was Chair of the board from 2012-2015.

As a consultant with the US Department of Justice’s Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention and an Associate with the National Criminal Justice Training Center of Fox Valley Technical College, Patty has presented countless victim impact sessions to law enforcement about AMBER Alert and long-term missing programs across the country. She has been a keynote speaker at conferences addressing crimes against children and child sexual abuse and continues to fight for a world where children have the right to grow up safe and follow their dreams.