I know that volunteer spirit in our society is on the wane, so we knew we had an uphill battle to climb. However, trying to get people to show up for the shifts that they signed up for and do some work has been next to pulling teeth. My bias for candidates is pretty clear, but that aside for a minute, apply this to any campaign or cause. Just because you’re called a volunteer doesn’t make the job you signed up to do any less important. There is so much to be done and only 13 days to do it in. No matter which side you’re on, this is a chance to make history! Get excited.

I can’t begin to understand the ammount of apathy in the young people I talk to. Is it a failing on behalf of the system, education, the parents? I don’t know. I do know, however, that therre are far too many people in this country who think their vote doesn’t count….who think that politics don’t effect them. What? With all the current crisis int he political world having a DIRECT effect on our daily lives, I would think it would extremely evident now, more than ever.

Please, please, please people….its only a few days of your life. Sign up, make phone calls, knock on doors….have an effect, make a difference! Every vote counts. No matter your age group, you have a stake in this election….whether your retired and worrying about the financial market or your young and worried about your financial aid (or possibly being drafted)…..get out there and make a difference.

Yard signs don’t win elections….volunteers do!

Posted in Campaigns | No Comments »

I’ve set up shop at the Obama headquarters here in Washington. We spent the morning going door to door, even the kiddos. We set them up in their little red wagon and drug them for something like 25 blocks. They’re back home with Andy and happy as can be in the backyard. I even heard they were going to take a field trip to Lowe’s. I’ve taken a stationary position at the Obama office. We’re making phone calls and talking to any folks who come into the office. Every person I meet gets me more and excited. The grassroots effort that is going into this campaign is absolutely unparalleled. I’ve spent the last two days walking around trying to help get the message out. Last night was Music in the Streets here in Washington, so several us took up clip boards and patrolled the crowd downtown looking for potential supporters and letting people know about early voting. NC has a fabulous program that allows folks to cast their votes early, so the weather or anything else on election day won’t be an issue. They can even register while they’re there, so it’s really one stop shopping.

The rally on Thursday was absolutely incredible. It was electric. Barack Obama is the most amazing speaker I have ever heard. The crowd was a thing of beauty unto itself, though. It was a pretty even mix of every color, creed and class you can imagine. There were even several female Muslim students. The most amazing part? No one was ugly. There wasn’t a foul word uttered.

I spent the day with the media crew. We set up spaces for all the press, risers for the photographers and spots for the video folks. You can’t even imagine all the work that goes into something that’s over in an hour and a half.

The volunteers got to stick around and be the backdrop for Senator Obama’s interview with Stephen Colbert. So, if you see one of the reruns of that interview……you won’t see me. My friends and I were seated at about crotch level, so we didn’t make it on camera.

Posted in Campaigns | No Comments »

….but, since that’s the bulk of what I’ve been doing lately, it’s going to be pretty hard to do.

I’ve gotten the fantastic opportunity to work at the rally for Sen. Barack Obama today in Greenville. We had a brief training session last night and contrary to most volunteer things I’ve done in the past, there was an abundance of people. 290 folks showed up last night to assist in the set-up and find out where to report today. It was absolutely incredible. The crowd was so incredibly diverse (not something you often see in Eastern NC). Not only was it about an even mix as far as race, but we had every socio-economic class, as well. This was not your normal gathering of political activists.

The floor of the entranceway to the coliseum was completely covered with people hand painting signs. Everywhere I walked you could overhear people talking about how amazing the turn-out was and how incredible this whole campaign is becoming.

For today’s rally and speech, I get to stand on one of the press risers to insure that photographers are happy and all have space to stand. This will place me right next to the stage. It’s going to be absolutely amazing.

Pardon all the “incredibles” and “amazings” but there just aren’t words enough to describe how it feels to be a part of this.

I’ll try to keep the issues off the blog….only talk about what I’m doing.

Posted in Campaigns | No Comments »