Making a difference…that is what we came here to do! Today the real work started, and was as rewarding as it was exhausting.
We started the day with breakfast at the hotel, followed by a team meeting to get more instruction before going to work. Ohio has early voting, so we knew that some of the people we would talk to might have voted already. Of course it is not that way in Alabama, so we had to begin to think a little differently.
We boarded buses again. The bus we were on headed for the nearby town of Beavercreek to work. Once we arrived at the local victory center we were sent out in twos to knock on doors and encourage voting for the Romney-Ryan ticket.
I was teamed up with Jacob, and Olen and Bailey were another team. They gave us a list of addresses and put us in cars. Our drivers dropped us in the neighborhood we were assigned to. Our job was to knock on doors, talk to people and leave literature. When we finished our assignment we were instructed to call our driver and he would pick us up and take us back to the victory center.
Jacob and I spent the morning in a nice area, and enjoyed the warm weather, and walking through the colorful leaves which are now carpeting the ground.
After knocking on about 40-50 doors and walking several miles, we were met by our driver and were driven back to the victory center where we enjoyed a delicious boxed lunch from Chick-fil-A, which was provided through the generosity of the Huntsville Republican Women. (Thank you, ladies!)
During our lunch break, several of us assembled packets of campaign literature to be passed out during the afternoon canvassing.
Jacob and Bailey gathered their materials and prepared to go out in the neighborhood for the afternoon.
We all received new assignments for the afternoon and headed out to talk to more people. The breeze had strengthened in the afternoon but it was still warm and sunny…a perfect day for knocking on doors. While we were out, we noticed one beautiful flag in the front yard of a house we visited. It reminded us of exactly why we were walking the streets and talking to people in Ohio.
It was a memorable day. We met so many people we will never forget…like the little lady who told us that she had just returned from voting and barely arrived home before we arrived. She was voting today because she was scheduled for surgery tomorrow and wanted to make sure Romney got her vote before she faced surgery.
Then there was the delightful older gentleman who was wheelchair-bound. He was in his garage when we arrived. Yes, he was going to vote for Romney. No, he was not going to vote early. He planned to go to the polls on election day and “stand” in the line like everyone else to cast his vote. No, he did not need any assistance in getting to the polls. He had already arranged for a ride. Jacob and I spent several minutes talking to him, and wished we could have talked to him longer. He obviously needed someone to talk to because he followed us to the street in his wheelchair, all the way telling us which of his neighbors needed to be convinced to vote for Romney.
Then there was the man who chased us down on the road and stopped us to tell us which neighbors were supporting Obama and needed some “convincing”.
Probably our most interesting stop was at the house that was right next door to the Obama headquarters in Beavercreek. He had signs all over his yard for various Republican candidates. Yes, we could definitely count on him to vote for Romney. No, he wasn’t going to vote early. He planned to take his children out of school on election day and take them with him to watch him vote.
I could go on and on with stories about people we met. One thing we did learn about people in Ohio is that they love dogs, and the bigger the better. Nearly every house we visited had a dog…or two…or three… inside. Olen and Bailey went to a house where there was a dog that they described as the size of a small horse viciously barking at them from just inside the front window. They decided, somewhat arbitrarily, that no one was at home there.
Our embedded reporter, Nick B. (I spelled his last name in an earlier post, so just look it up there!) worked hard all day on his reports. Here he is trying to upload his afternoon report from a not-so-quiet spot in the victory center.
Making a difference…we are trying to do that to Ohio, and yet, Ohio is making a difference in us.
We started the day with breakfast at the hotel, followed by a team meeting to get more instruction before going to work. Ohio has early voting, so we knew that some of the people we would talk to might have voted already. Of course it is not that way in Alabama, so we had to begin to think a little differently.
We boarded buses again. The bus we were on headed for the nearby town of Beavercreek to work. Once we arrived at the local victory center we were sent out in twos to knock on doors and encourage voting for the Romney-Ryan ticket.
I was teamed up with Jacob, and Olen and Bailey were another team. They gave us a list of addresses and put us in cars. Our drivers dropped us in the neighborhood we were assigned to. Our job was to knock on doors, talk to people and leave literature. When we finished our assignment we were instructed to call our driver and he would pick us up and take us back to the victory center.
Jacob and I spent the morning in a nice area, and enjoyed the warm weather, and walking through the colorful leaves which are now carpeting the ground.
After knocking on about 40-50 doors and walking several miles, we were met by our driver and were driven back to the victory center where we enjoyed a delicious boxed lunch from Chick-fil-A, which was provided through the generosity of the Huntsville Republican Women. (Thank you, ladies!)
During our lunch break, several of us assembled packets of campaign literature to be passed out during the afternoon canvassing.
Jacob and Bailey gathered their materials and prepared to go out in the neighborhood for the afternoon.
We all received new assignments for the afternoon and headed out to talk to more people. The breeze had strengthened in the afternoon but it was still warm and sunny…a perfect day for knocking on doors. While we were out, we noticed one beautiful flag in the front yard of a house we visited. It reminded us of exactly why we were walking the streets and talking to people in Ohio.
It was a memorable day. We met so many people we will never forget…like the little lady who told us that she had just returned from voting and barely arrived home before we arrived. She was voting today because she was scheduled for surgery tomorrow and wanted to make sure Romney got her vote before she faced surgery.
Then there was the delightful older gentleman who was wheelchair-bound. He was in his garage when we arrived. Yes, he was going to vote for Romney. No, he was not going to vote early. He planned to go to the polls on election day and “stand” in the line like everyone else to cast his vote. No, he did not need any assistance in getting to the polls. He had already arranged for a ride. Jacob and I spent several minutes talking to him, and wished we could have talked to him longer. He obviously needed someone to talk to because he followed us to the street in his wheelchair, all the way telling us which of his neighbors needed to be convinced to vote for Romney.
Then there was the man who chased us down on the road and stopped us to tell us which neighbors were supporting Obama and needed some “convincing”.
Probably our most interesting stop was at the house that was right next door to the Obama headquarters in Beavercreek. He had signs all over his yard for various Republican candidates. Yes, we could definitely count on him to vote for Romney. No, he wasn’t going to vote early. He planned to take his children out of school on election day and take them with him to watch him vote.
I could go on and on with stories about people we met. One thing we did learn about people in Ohio is that they love dogs, and the bigger the better. Nearly every house we visited had a dog…or two…or three… inside. Olen and Bailey went to a house where there was a dog that they described as the size of a small horse viciously barking at them from just inside the front window. They decided, somewhat arbitrarily, that no one was at home there.
Our embedded reporter, Nick B. (I spelled his last name in an earlier post, so just look it up there!) worked hard all day on his reports. Here he is trying to upload his afternoon report from a not-so-quiet spot in the victory center.
We were treated to “Dayton’s best pizza” at a place called Marion’s Pizza. We agreed that it was delicious pizza, and all ate our fill. Some ladies sitting beside me kept asking to make sure our boys got enough to eat. Everyone has been so thoughtful of our teenage campaigners! Zack Upton, one of Beavercreek’s councilmen, met us at Marion's and thanked us for our efforts. He said that his office had received several calls today about the “nice people from Alabama” that knocked on their doors. One lady even told him that she was going to vote for Romney after today.
Making a difference…we are trying to do that to Ohio, and yet, Ohio is making a difference in us.
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