(As usual, GMD’s policy is to promote 1st person pieces by major candidates for statewide office in Vermont.  Please note: I moved some of the content below the fold, since the piece is fairly long.   – promoted by JulieWaters)

It’s always inspiring to attend a high school or college graduation and watch the future leaders of our nation enter the next phase of their lives. These new grads will enter the workforce and may strive to become the next great agricultural innovator or to start the next Facebook. However, here in Vermont, graduations are bittersweet moments — because we know that a large number of these students will leave our state for jobs elsewhere in the country and may not ever return.

Vermont hasn’t been competing effectively with other states in some key areas. Small company start-ups have been steadily declining. And with Vermont ranked dead last in broadband connectivity, we lack the high tech infrastructure like widespread broadband Internet service and cell phone reception that are necessary for new, innovative companies.

Even existing companies cannot retain our best and brightest. One business leader I spoke with made this point crystal clear. He explained that he tries to hire UVM students to work at his company, but when they realize that the home they could afford doesn’t have high-speed Internet or cell phone reception, they decide to take jobs out in Colorado instead.

But Vermonters have a unique passion for their hometowns. It doesn’t matter how long you’ve been out of the state – Vermonters always feel like Vermonters. And though young people are leaving the state to take jobs elsewhere in the country, they are all saying the same thing: “we want to come home.”

Interestingly, we’ve found that our campaign’s message of innovation, entrepreneurship and 21st century thinking has resonated not only with those Vermonters who live in the state but also with those who live across the country. With the help of Facebook, Twitter and other online tools these Vermonters in the diaspora have reached out to the campaign and offered their support. They have been volunteering from their homes to help with writing projects, raising money, and contributing donations during fundraising drives.

A group of these supporters recently worked to capture this movement of Vermonters around the country who want to come home. The minute-long video created by campaign supporters features a montage of interviews with eight former Vermonters who currently live around the country. From Washington DC to San Francisco, these campaign supporters explain why they are supporting Matt and describe the vision of the future of Vermont that they share. You can view the video here:

While many people would shy away from featuring people from out of state in their campaigns, we’re proud to be sharing the stories of Vermonters who live across the country and want to come home.

We have the opportunity here to build the environment that allows our young people to stay in our state and to help allow Vermont expats to come back home. By bringing high-speed broadband Internet to the last mile of every town, we can foster the innovative, entrepreneurial infrastructure Vermont needs to create the next generation of jobs. By revitalizing our downtowns we can develop exciting, authentic communities that are centers of commerce, entertainment and recreation along with affordable housing where new graduates will be able to live and work. And by reinvesting in our institutes of higher education we will help keep students attending school in state rather than heading across the borders to attend college.

I’d like to thank the grassroots supporters who helped film this video around the country and edit it together. If you have a story to share about someone who wants to come home to Vermont, I encourage you to leave it in the comments below. I look forward to hearing your story and continuing to help Vermonters come home.