ladies association. it did not just happen to stay this way. and now i am sad to say it is under threat. the ladies association mount vernon does not regularly try to create a crisis environment. we do not hold a lot of press conferences. we are a deliberate educational institution. we like to educate the millions of visitors a year who come here and the millions more online. that view behind us is an essential part of that education and preservation mission. it connects all of our visitors to george washington in a direct visceral way. his love of this extraordinary place, and the view that he contemplated when setting out on his revolutionary journey to secure independence and create a more perfect union. but now, this tremendous resource saved for our country by the ladies association, and our partners for the last 60 years is under threat by a development project by dominion energy. the compressor station that they want to build as part of their pipeline, directly across the river. we believe it is unnecessary to be in that location. it is a location that does not make sense and the mount vernon's ladies association op

and last, and ultimately most importantly, to my fellow mount vernon ladies association's here with usay.