Poughkeepsie’s history-making Mayor Yvonne Flowers will be back in Washington D.C. Thursday, as a guest for the State of the Union. 

“I'm excited to go down to the State of the Union," she said. "I was honored that Congressman Pat Ryan invited me to go. So I get a chance to sit in a room with other lawmakers and hear what our president has in store for us moving on in the future.”

Flowers is back in D.C. after being there for the U.S. Conference of Mayors in January. While watching the State of the Union in person is a once-in-a-lifetime experience for her, she was there early on Wednesday to spark collaboration on the highest level of government by meeting with federal officials. She hopes developing those relations could help Poughkeepsie. 

“When they see an application for the city, they feel like, ‘hey, I met the mayor. She explained some of the challenges ahead,'" she said. "You don't get to know everything about the city just from on paper.”

What You Need To Know

  •  Poughkeepsie Mayor Yvonne Flowers is attending Thursday's State of the Union

  •  She is the guest of NY-18 Rep. Pat Ryan

  • Flowers got to D.C. early, in order to meet with federal officials with the hope of being able to get Poughkeepsie more federal funding for lead pipe removal and gun violence prevention

Flowers said one of her top priorities is working with officials to try and secure federal funding for lead pipe removal. Poughkeepsie’s lead-water level is among the highest in New York. According to a recent U.S. Environmental Protection Agency projection, the state as a whole has the sixth-most lead service lines in the nation.

“We’re also being a little bit more aggressive in our grant seeking opportunities," Flowers said. "So we're actually getting a grant coordinator together. And we're also enrolled into the infrastructure hub, so that way we'll get more training on that and also get more support.” 

Confronting gun violence will also be a discussion point for Flowers. She wants to find more ways to fund prevention programs that can keep young people from going down the wrong path. 

“Partners that are focusing on that, to be able to get more resources so we can work with more kids," she said. "There's plenty of opportunities down there, so it's time to start connecting with those resources.”