Email sent from Sona Mehring for Congress April 24, 2013 Dear Friends, As I set out on my campaign

for Congress, there was a yearning to serve my country and the people in my community in a new way. This meant stepping away from CaringBridge. My campaign received tremendous support and words of encouragement. The level of enthusiasm and peoples confidence in me was humbling. However, I realize my true passion still was with CaringBridge. That passion was fueled by the many people I met that told me about the impact of CaringBridge in their lives. I came to the tough conclusion that my work with CaringBridge was not done and I needed to end my candidacy for Congress. The culture in Washington still is something that needs to be changed. I will continue to find ways to work towards a better, more productive, more representative Congress. I hope to stay connected to the many new friends Ive met. Thank you for the support you showed me as I struck out on this quest it filled my heart. If you have contributed to me monetarily, I am returning your contribution. If you contributed your time and sweat, please know that I will be forever grateful. With gratitude, Sona Mehring