Susan from Riverside, Connecticut is more excited about this election then any of the other nine elections that she had voted in. It started as a desire to get a Democrat into the White House, but since then, her excitement has moved her to take action. She says she hasn’t been inspired like this before.
Part of Obama’s appeal is that he doesn’t just think about himself as so many politicians do, but he includes all of us in every single step. This has enabled people like me, who always felt anonymous in the political process and perhaps on the outside, to feel and be part of the process, part of the campaign, part of the future…and it’s been really exciting! My husband and I love the fact that as the campaign began, each time Obama spoke our 20-year-old son rose out of political apathy and had the audacity of hope in his heart; my parents, ages 78 and 84, became passionate campaigners communicating about Obama to people they knew and didn’t know through emails, on the phone and on NYC buses and street corners. My 16-year-old daughter has watched every debate and even my 22-year-old autistic son who has not recognized past presidents, recognizes Obama and when asked who will be the next President of the United States he enthusiastically shouts “Barack Obama.” Together we became a family of “Obamamaniacs” – and we’re proud of it!
Susan visits the website daily to catch up on news, has written op-ed articles to her local editors and and has made get out the vote phone calls. She recently read a blog post about doing a voter registration drive at a high school graduation rehearsal and decided to do one in her town.She was persistent when she got resistance, but it her efforts payed off when she got permission to be at the rehearsal. Her daughter made posters for the table, and a friend, Annie, she met during the Primary Season offered to help. They registered over 50 students and handed out over 75 absentee ballot instructions. Students can request absentee ballots once they know their housing address if they are going to college in a different county. Susan recommends calling your town clerk’s office for instructions on getting absentee ballots since every state is different.After the success of her voter registration drive, she received an email about hosting Unite for Change events on June 28. Susan and her friend decided to host a party together and Annie posted the event on my.barackobama.com.
We are so excited about what we have planned. We are so appreciative to have gotten the use of a very nice, cozy coffee house in our neighborhood to use for our event and we’re calling our event: BA-ROCK THE VOTE! My son, a junior in college, has a band of his old high school friends, which is quite popular in our town, and they are going to do a concert following the meeting. We’ve got bumper stickers, buttons and an amazing new t-shirt for the event. We are having the young generation spread the word through Facebook, while we spread the word through the Obama site, local newspapers, flyers, emails and good old word of mouth! This is so much fun and so exciting.Obama has really inspired my family and I to step up and take action with him to change this country. I really hope that one day I can meet him face to face to thank him and give him a huge hug to let him know how much we appreciate him and his family for what they are offering our country....
Unite for Change events will be going on across the country next weekend. You can join people like Susan who are getting involved to make a difference. Sign up to host an event and or click here to learn more about Unite for Change house parties.
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