As part of a continuing series, we're following Obama Organizing Fellows as they share their stories and their experiences. They discuss the people they meet, the hardships of organizing, what the campaign means to them, and how this summer is changing their perspective.
Andy is an organizing fellow in Ohio. His stories appear each Wednesday.
We wrapped up the "Declare Your Independence" voter registration this Sunday, and it was a blast. The Obama campaign had events all across the country. In the few spare moments I had during a voter registration event in Columbus, Ohio, I reflected on why I am here. I realized that although I came to this campaign for Barack Obama, I stay with this campaign because of volunteers like Gloria and Louise.I met Gloria at the "Red, White, and Boom" July 4th celebration in Columbus. She got involved with the campaign because of Barack's uniquely American story. When Gloria isn't volunteering for the campaign, she works with a local group to help the homeless. Gloria says that we have a housing crisis in this city. She has met countless Americans who worked traditional jobs only to get laid off due to companies' shipping jobs overseas. Being unemployed with the rising cost of food, oil, and housing forces these Americans into homeless shelters. In the face of these hard times, Gloria says she stays strong because this race is the most exciting she has seen in a long time. "It gives me hope for the future," she said.Gloria introduced me to Louise, who is another one of our amazing grassroots volunteers. Louise has always been interested in politics. She feels that the biggest challenge that this country faces is how divided we have become. In her small amounts of free time, she helps the campaign recruit new people to be involved in the democratic process. I asked her if the rain had bothered her during the day, and she said, "Any time you do an event for Obama, the response is so great that it is worthwhile."As the fireworks celebrating the birth of this nation faded into the night sky, Gloria and Louise remained. They wanted to make sure that they registered every last voter at the event. Seeing volunteers like these two getting involved in their local community is what will keep me and the rest of this campaign going strong to November and beyond. Volunteers like Gloria and Louise have shown me that every amount of effort counts.
We wrapped up the "Declare Your Independence" voter registration this Sunday, and it was a blast. The Obama campaign had events all across the country. In the few spare moments I had during a voter registration event in Columbus, Ohio, I reflected on why I am here. I realized that although I came to this campaign for Barack Obama, I stay with this campaign because of volunteers like Gloria and Louise.I met Gloria at the "Red, White, and Boom" July 4th celebration in Columbus. She got involved with the campaign because of Barack's uniquely American story.
When Gloria isn't volunteering for the campaign, she works with a local group to help the homeless. Gloria says that we have a housing crisis in this city. She has met countless Americans who worked traditional jobs only to get laid off due to companies' shipping jobs overseas. Being unemployed with the rising cost of food, oil, and housing forces these Americans into homeless shelters. In the face of these hard times, Gloria says she stays strong because this race is the most exciting she has seen in a long time. "It gives me hope for the future," she said.Gloria introduced me to Louise, who is another one of our amazing grassroots volunteers.
Louise has always been interested in politics. She feels that the biggest challenge that this country faces is how divided we have become. In her small amounts of free time, she helps the campaign recruit new people to be involved in the democratic process. I asked her if the rain had bothered her during the day, and she said, "Any time you do an event for Obama, the response is so great that it is worthwhile."As the fireworks celebrating the birth of this nation faded into the night sky, Gloria and Louise remained. They wanted to make sure that they registered every last voter at the event. Seeing volunteers like these two getting involved in their local community is what will keep me and the rest of this campaign going strong to November and beyond. Volunteers like Gloria and Louise have shown me that every amount of effort counts.
Check back next week for more from Andy in Ohio, and visit our Flickr page for more of his photos.
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