The Green Party of Minnesota would like to sincerely thank Green Minneapolis Park Board Commissioner Annie Young for her many years of service. She has announced that she will retire from the Park Board after her current term ends this year.

Annie has always been a pioneering and visionary activist in all the fields she endeavored to enter. Politics has certainly been no exception. Annie was one of the very first Green Party elected officials in the state of Minnesota. She will retire as one of the longest-serving Green Party elected officials in the entire country.

Consistently re-elected by wide margins, Annie has shown not only that Greens can win at the local level, but that they can thrive. Her dedication to the people of Minneapolis, and her ability to work with colleagues regardless of political party affiliation, has served her and the Green Party well.

In addition to serving as an elected official, Annie has served the Green Party in countless other ways over the years. A self-professed "political junkie," she has advised and mentored candidates for office at all levels, and has even run for statewide office herself, helping Greens maintain party status in 2010.

As we’re sure she will attest, it is not always easy being Green. Often times Annie is the lone Green voice in the room. Her patience and dedication, however, is starting to pay off. The Green Party is making breakthroughs every day around the world. The recent election in British Columbia, where Greens hold the balance of power, is but one example.

In the years to come, Greens in the United States will continue to organize for our breakthrough on the statewide and national level. When it happens, we will look to the wisdom and experience of our pioneering leaders like Annie Young to lead the way.

The Green Party of Minnesota Coordinating Committee and our members would like to sincerely congratulate Annie on her retirement from elected office. We look forward to the next chapter together.

In solidarity,

The Green Party of Minnesota Coordinating Committee