Having experienced his share of successes and failures in life, Sen. Tom Wiens, R-Castle Rock, knows how fragile the American dream can be.

As a businessman, family man and rancher, Wiens prides himself on knowing and serving the needs of business and agriculture within Senate District 4.

“I’m always looking for ways to help people,” Wiens says,” People in trouble often find themselves in a fog, and I try to guide them out of those difficulties.”

Recently, Wiens received an e-mail message from ranchers still in need of relief after the big holiday storms at the end of the year. He wasted no time contacting the

governor’s office to inform them of the oversight.

“I see myself as a mediator between the counties in my district and the state,” said the senator.

In 2002, Wiens was elected to the Colorado State House of Representatives, and he went on to serve in the state Senate in 2004. He serves on the Business Affairs, Labor and Technology, and Local Government committees, and his agenda includes responsible use of natural resources, tort reform, right to work and pro-life legislation.

Wiens also understands the ways in which small businesses positively contribute to the state’s economy.

“Small business is the goose that lays the golden egg for Colorado,” explained Wiens, who is always conscience of ways to promote the economy.

The senator demonstrated his passion for business by playing a big role in the Republican attempt to filibuster House Bill 1072, a pro-union measure. He introduced numerous amendments in a GOP effort to stall the measure, which would allow for closed, forced-dues shop at Colorado workplaces.

As a student of divinity at Yale University, Wiens never imagined how much his study of scripture would help him during his career as a legislator. He learned how to study words and their involved meanings, which in turn has made him a better lawmaker.

One of Wiens’ biggest passions is supporting our troops. He does his best to reach out to the families of those serving in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Wiens’ son, Travis, has friends in the armed forces and in many ways he sees those boys as his own.

“I worry about those boys every single day.  I can barely talk about it,” Wiens said.

According to Wiens, the best part of being a senator is serving as an advocate for the things he cares about, in addition to spending time with kids at the state Capitol. The hardest task seems to be making time to complete everything on his to-do list.

For fun, Wiens enjoys skiing and riding horses at his family’s ranch. He is a husband and proud father of four children.

“It’s one of the few places you can expect to see people with spurs on,” he said.