Representative Colón Honored And Praised As A Leader In The State Assembly

By H. Nelson Goodson
October 2, 2009

Milwaukee- On Thursday, October 1st, Assembly Speaker Mike Sheridan praised and recognized State Representative Pedro Colón (Dem.-Milw.) during a reception at the Great Lakes Distillery, 616 W. Virginia St. in Milwaukee. Colón has been one of the great leaders in the state assembly and has been very instrumental in helping to pass legislation to allow distilleries like Great Lakes Distillery to open in Wisconsin, especially in the South side of Milwaukee, according to Rep. Sheridan. Sheridan added he doesn't often visit the South side, but when he does he enjoys the diverse business economic growth it has to offer Wisconsin.
Guy Rehorst, owner and operator of Great Lakes Distillery says he also gives credit to Colón for opening his company in the South side. Great Lakes Distillery is a small-batch distillery located in Milwaukee Wisconsin. We hand-craft award winning distilled spirits in limited quantities using old world methods and traditions which we believe result in a superior product.

Rehorst says, as Wisconsin's first distillery since prohibition we are anxious to share our unique products and look forward to meeting people who appreciate high quality craft distilled spirits.
Our products include the award winning Rehorst Premium Milwaukee Vodka and Rehorst Premium Milwaukee Gin and Rehorst Citrus & Honey flavored Vodka, Rehorst added.
Colón has been credited for helping to pass Instate Tuition for undocumented students in Wisconsin, and supports Immigration Reform.
Pedro was born in Ponce, Puerto Rico on April 7, 1968 and grew up on the south side of Milwaukee. He is a graduate of St. Matthew’s School and Thomas More High School. Pedro Colón received his B.A. in Political Science from Marquette University in 1990 and his Juris Doctorate in 1994 from the University of Wisconsin-Madison where he worked on the Law Review.

Pedro Colón made history in 1998 as the first Latino elected to the Wisconsin State Legislature. He has been re-elected every two years since then and is currently serving his fifth term as the 8th Assembly District Representative. In the legislature he serves on the powerful budget writing Joint Committee on Finance. He also chairs the Governor’s Council on Migrant Labor.
In addition to his duties as a State Representative Pedro Colón is a Commissioner and past Chairman of the Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewer District Commission. He is also a member of the State Bar of Wisconsin, the Wisconsin Hispanic Lawyers Association and the National Association of Latino Elected Officials where he serves on the Board of Directors. He was named one of the Top 40 under 40 by the Milwaukee Business Journal in 1998 and in April 2005 received the Spirit of Marquette Award for Achievement Before 40 from Marquette University, according to Colón's blog.