Ashley's interest in community leadership began with a race for middle school treasurer and has only grown from there. She's now a staffer in newly-minted Congressman Don Cazayoux's office. "It was second nature," she said. "My family's always been involved and abreast of what's going on in the country and with politics." As a community leader, one of Ashley's biggest priorities is service, which she typically performs in conjunction with her church and her sorority. She is a regular worker in the local soup kitchen and also serves the community in various other capacities. Her experience working in the community helped her identify with Barack:
I would listen to him talk about how the only way the election and campaign could work is from the bottom up. I agreed with him and thought that was truly the only was it could work. I asked myself what I could do, how I could help in my state and really contribute.
Ashley typed in her zip code on My.BarackObama.com and was instantly connected to other local supporters. From there it was easy.
I joined the grassroots organizations and started meeting people who had the same interests. During the primary, we would do voter registration, pass out flyers, and phone bank. After the primary was over, I was still trying to figure out how I could contribute more, so I went to the DNC website to see how I could become a delegate.
Ashley discovered that she would have to apply and then appear before a committee, with the committee making the final selections. Although many delegates waited until the day of interviews, Ashley took proactive steps.
I wrote a letter about why I wanted to be a delegate and why I supported Senator Obama, and I e-mailed and snail-mailed that to all the people on the committee. There were about 200 of them. Because people received my info before the meeting and already knew my name, they could just put a face to my name. The meeting lasted forever. It started at about 11:00 that morning and didn't end until 6:00 that evening. I talked to all the committee members at least three times or more, just telling them about myself and how I've been involved. And because of the that, they chose me as an at large delegate.
Ashley hopes to use her position as a delegate to advance the issues that are important to her -- education and health care.
Education is a main issue for me... I'm in graduate school and paying back loans and having that financial stress is a big concern. Also health care is a big deal because I'm 24, and with my mom's insurance you get kicked off at 23. So that's a major issue -- making sure you're covered. I don't have time as a student to get a full-time job with those benefits to be able to cover myself, so that's a top issue.
With six days to go until the start of the Democratic National Convention, excitement is building in Denver and across America. Soon, delegates from all fifty states will convene in the Mile High City to cast their ballots for Barack Obama and witness his acceptance of the Democratic Party's nomination for president of the United States. Thursday, August 28th will be the biggest night of the campaign so far. Even if you can’t be in Denver, you can be a part of this historic convention by attending a Convention Watch Party in your area.
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