Last day of the Convention

Written at 1am Thursday evening ... slightly edited on 9/1

I expect I’ll remember today for a long, long time. As a result of my work as an Obama campaign volunteer, I was able to attend the festivities in Mile High Stadium. And it was simply amazing to have been there.

The stadium seats 75,000 people in the stands, and another 5-10,000 in special seating on the floor, and almost every seat was taken. I was sitting in the next-to-last row in Level 3 (generally known as the “nosebleed section,” from where the people on stage looked about 1/2” tall and were not identifiable to the naked eye. (To see the photos I took today, click here.)

But being there wasn’t about seeing ... it was about the experience of being with over 80,000 people all there for the same reason I was: because we want Barack Obama to be our next president.

We all got there tonight by different paths, both literally and figuratively. Literally, because there were campaign volunteers (like me) from all over the country, as well as from various parts of Colorado, delegates representing all 50 states and Puerto Rico, hundreds of superdelegates and dozens of celebrities. (I came across Rev. Jess Jackson amidst a small entourage of people and the media while I was shopping for campaign buttons on Level 1!)

And we arrived figuratively by different paths, because each of us had been moved by a unique series of personal experiences that made us receptive to Senator Obama’s inspirational message of hope and change.

My own journey to this Convention began with the teacher who taught me twentieth century American history in high school. I remember my dismay at learning about the difficulties so many Americans suffered during the Great Depression, and my pride and awe at how effectively FDR led our government to create jobs that put people to work building highways, schools, libraries, monuments and parks through the Works Progress Administration (WPA) and Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC). Through projects sponsored by these programs, our country got infrastructure it needed as well as many of our national monuments, and people who had lost everything found jobs, and got their dignity back.

That idea of the role of government – one that helps Americans help themselves, and makes it possible for them to pick themselves up and move on - has stayed with me all these years. That’s the kind of government Barack Obama envisions too. Not one that says to its citizens, “You’re on your own,” but one that says, “We’ll give you what you can’t get yourself, but then it’s your responsibility to work hard once given the opportunity.”

I only know of FDR’s leadership from textbooks, and I barely remember JFK (I was only 10 years old when he was elected President), although I’m well aware of his New Frontier and have friends who served in the Peace Corps, having risen to the challenge to “ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your country.”

Senator Obama represents my chance, and the chance for those younger than I, to be inspired by such a leader. He has moved me and millions of others to become involved in a movement to take back our government, and bring the change we need to Washington.

Being in that stadium tonight was incredibly moving for me because it is the culmination of the first part of the journey I’ve been on with Senator Obama for the past year. It’s been a hard-won prize, and I’m so proud to have been part of it.

At the same time, it’s the beginning of what is sure to be an equally difficult journey: the general election campaign. So being in that stadium tonight, taking in and being part of the incredible energy all around, was not only moving, but also energizing. It energized me for the next 67 days. It was an amazing night. And I’m fired up and ready to go.

What did tonight’s speeches mean to you? Are you inspired to take part in this effort over the next 67 days? Do you want to get involved but don’t know how? Are you already involved? Please write a comment and let us know!