Huge thanks to the many many people who got on board, raised funds and generally showed up for this event. I think that we can expect some serious Obamania in WNC over the coming year. Stay tuned for Obamapalooza!
This is a post I am reposting from our local WNCobama.com website. I find it inspiring and thought I would share it...
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Hello everyone. This is Sam, and I just wanted to give a brief hi, and a little bit about why I support Barack.
I’m 18, live in Fairview, and am a composer. I’ll be going to Furman University in the fall to study music, and tend to suck the marrow out of life.
But, beyond the bio, I’m a person who believes that it’s the responsibility of a citizen to know what’s going on in the world. Living in our country, which allows us rights and freedoms that we take for granted but exist very few places in the world, requires that we take our responsibilities as citizens seriously. Being aware of what’s going on in our government and in the world is as much a responsibility as voting.
But, when I see that only 122 million out of the 300-some million people in our country voted for one of the most contested elections in recent history, I see a problem. Voters in this country have tuned out, picking apathy over the frustration of seeing candidates promise and never deliver.
On the same vein, much of the voter apathy in our country gets blamed on the youth. And, I’m inclined to agree. When I have friends who told me they were “too tired” to vote in 2006 (or more importantly, 2004, and both have happened), I know there’s a problem. It is worth saying, though, that apathy reaches across all age boundaries.
Still, often accompanying the decrying of an apathetic youth is the conclusion that this apathy is a foregone conclusion, which I wholeheartedly disagree with. The movement against the Vietnam War was partly organised, and had its strongest base of support, within the youth of our country. Our voices have changed the country, and can do so again.
Barack Obama is a candidate that can channel these voices, a man who represents a change from the foregone political process, where elections are a choice between the lesser of two evils. Obama is a herald of a new generation, a man who embraces our differences instead of creating a dichotomy out of them. But, he cannot win this election alone.
It will be our job until November to wake up those who have tuned out of the political process. It will be our job to move people from cynicism to hope in their ability to enact change, not in some distant future, but in 2008.
This is one politically active teen who will do everything in his power to fulfill his responsibilities.
peace.
You are Invited to Attend WNC’s First Fundraising Party for Barack Obama!
Facts Roundup:
March 28th6:00 – 9:00 PMHomewood Estate19 Zilicoa St. (in Montford)Asheville, NC 28801
(Click here for directions)
Donations:$25 in advance$35 at the door$10 studentsWine and hors douvres will be served.
Register Now:Link
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If you prefer to register by phone, contact Ian Bryan at 828-242-1868 and I will complete your form.
Asheville
Sunday, March 4th at 10:00 AMBarnes & Noble on Tunnel RoadAsheville, NC 28803
Davidson College
C. Shaw Smith 900 Room (Davidson, NC)Davidson CollegeAlvarez Student UnionDavidson, NC 28035
Charlotte:
Saturday, March 17 at 10:00 AMPura Vida Wordly Arts (Charlotte, NC)1521 Central Ave Charlotte, NC 28205
Asheville Wine & Hors D'ouvres$25 advance / $35 door
Wednesday, March 28th 6 - 9 PMHomewood Estate on ZillicoaAsheville, NC 28801
Coming Soon!
Weekly community video screenings of Barack Obama's Speeches in WNC region.
Greetings Western North Carolina.
Had a great gang come out on Sunday and we left with a lot of great ideas and a few good projects. Ronnie, our web guru, is on the job to create the best Obama Grassroots Campagin website in the nation - one that will be so complete that we can zip it off and send it to other regions that lack websites.
I need your help, though. We need a weekly meeting space that can handle 30 people or more. The goal is to rent or use space where we can play video of Obama's speeches and then followup with an open dialogue. Its a great opportunity for those of us who want to introduce a relative or friend to Obama's character.
But we need space. Any ideas, suggestions, donations, etc are greatly appreciated. Please comment directly to this post so that we can all see what each other is saying and be able to build a list.
If you have no ideas, please comment anyway because I want to know how many people are actually reading this blog in WNC.
Thanks!
Ian
On Monday night, over 25 people raised their hand to volunteer to bus down to South Carolina to support the Obama Campaign's efforts there.
We want to put the call out to everybody in North Carolina - South Carolina will be HUGE. In your meetings and fundraisers, talk about South Carolina and plan full-day trips to support Obama rallies there. Reach out to S. Carolina grassroots campaigns and find out what they need in terms of support. Call your relatives in South Carolina and educate them about the campaign.
Expect Hillary to pull out all stops in South Carolina.
HUGE THANKS TO EVERYONE who came out on President's day for our Western North Carolina Obama 2008 Grassroots Campaign Kickoff.
Here's what we accomplished:
Our next event is in 4-5 weeks and next time, we'll hire a professional videographer!
It only takes a moment to watch. Click Here.
Click Here.
We finally gave up searching for Obama graphics and created imitation graphics of our own for use at our event tomorrow. We have a recreated logo, poster and 2 x 5 ft banner. They are zipped up and stored at wncobama.com/obama2x5v2.zip
Link
Time: Monday, February 19 at 5:30 PM
Duration: 90 minutes
Host: Ian Bryan
ContactPhone: 828-242-1868
Location:
Homewood Piano Room (Asheville, NC)
19 Zillicoa StreetAsheville, NC 28801
From 240:
-take the Montford Ave exit
- go 9/10 mile down Montford Ave
- take right onto Zillicoa
- Homewood is the big stone building on the Left
- parking behind Homewood, turn just after Homewood
My wife and I just got a box of Obama stuff in the mail and we feel like early revolutionaries running around with Obama 2008 bumper stickers, posters and shirts.
People are honking and waving (so far all of their fingers) for Obama!
If you haven't already, get your Obama stuff at Link
Please join Senator Barack Obama Friday, February 16, 4:30 PM at the the Columbia Metropolitan Convention Center in Columbia, South Carolina.
MY CAR SEATS 4 and so far I am alone on this little 2 hour road trip. Call me at 828-242-1868 to join in.
Richland County Rally Location: The Columbia Metropolitan Convention Center 1101 Lincoln Street Columbia, SC 29201
Time: Doors open at 4:30 PM
Tickets: The event is free and open to the public. Tickets are available for pick-up at the following locations:
University of South Carolina Student Government Office 227 Russell House Columbia, SC 29208 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
This community has really turned me around in the last 48 hours.
This morning I had to create a filtering system in my email to handle all of the incoming email and event RSVPs. We are looking for a larger space to host our Asheville Roll Call event and based on the fact that people are driving 1-2.5 hours just to attend, I have decided to organize the events and gather literature so that nobody's time is wasted.
Please email me if you have a lot of time on your hands and brains in your head to help manage the incoming requests for information and support. I have a growing family with small children and a small business to run - it would be unwise of me to try to lead this thing.
A man emailed me to say that he doesnt want to join a group, he wants to join a community. I agree completely. He went on to say that groups tend to "break down" and get caught up in ego-driving activities. I agree somewhat. But whatever the case, he is right... we need to create a bolstering community here in WNC with one thing in common: Barack Obama winning the 2008 Presidential Election. I feel like we do that by communicating and by looking for ways to serve one another during the next 18 months.
But we still need voices of hope, information organizers, event hosts and messengers. We still need groups of people to sit down in living rooms all over this region and hold meaningful conversations. We need to write letters and put stickers on our cars and posters in our windows. EG - we do need to work together and work as much as we can.
Feel free to keep sending those emails, but forgive me if I take a full day to get a reply out to you. And thanks everyone for stepping up.
