Rachael and Emma Larsen traveled to Olympia and served as pages in the state House of Representatives. They were sponsored by their 7th district Representatives Shelly Short, R-Addy, and Joel Kretz, R-Wauconda.

“It was a pleasure to host Rachel and Emma as they paged for us in the House,” said Kretz. “I hope they found their stay worthwhile and will stay involved with state government.” Short agreed, “Many pages later become public officials or run for office, and the lifelong friendships formed here connect our future leaders. I appreciate the work Emma and Rachael did.”

The daughters of Lori and Paul Larsen of Chewelah, Emma and Rachel both attend Jenkins Senior High School. They love to dance and play the violin. Emma also enjoys the theatre, painting, and singing while Rachael is preparing for a future as a lawyer. Both girls were excited to realize their goal of becoming pages, and enjoyed being around others who cared about the state.

As part of their page duties, the Larsen sisters learned to navigate the many buildings on the Capitol campus and delivered documents and other important papers to legislators and staff. As a page, Rachael and Emma attended page school every day to understand the operations and actions of the Legislature. Their time at the Capitol culminated with the presentation of a mock bill about a group of fellow pages. Emma wrote legislation to require those seeking an abortion to undergo a counseling session before the operation, while Rachel focused her bill on reducing juvenile sentencing by banning Washington courts from trying anyone under the age of eighteen in adult courts.

Each year, students from around the state apply to participate in the legislative page program. Students spend a week attending page school, learning the inner workings of state government and assisting legislators on the House floor. Pages earn $35 per day while serving in the program.

To become a page, applicants must have a legislative sponsor, be between the ages of 14 and 16, and obtain written permission from their parents and school. For more information about the House page program, visit: https://www.leg.wa.gov/House/Pages/HousePageProgram.aspx.

For more information about Representatives Short and Kretz visit: https://houserepublicans.wa.gov/our-members/

 
Washington State House Republican Communications
www.houserepublicans.wa.gov
461 John L. O’Brien Building
P.O. Box 40600
Olympia, WA 98504-0600