"I Could Get Used to This"

More than 75 people signed in for the Advancing Change Kickoff. 

When I signed up to attend the Advancing Change/Vote 2010 kick-off at the Democratic Party of Evanston headquarters, I had every intention of helping out with the phone bank. I did some canvassing in Iowa during the Obama campaign, but that was my first active political experience in over 30 years of voting Democratic for presidential elections. When we won in ‘08, I was overjoyed, of course, but secretly relieved that I would no longer have to bother people in their homes....

So, on Saturday, June 5, I showed up fashionably late, thinking that all the gung-ho canvassing types would be long gone. I could slip into a chair and quietly phone through a list of names, thus avoiding the uncomfortable moments in doorways when people size you up and try to act civil even though they just want you to go away.

But when I arrived in Evanston, the weather was bad, and a very large, motivated crowd was still there. I was squished into a room full of confident, calm people ready to hit the neighborhoods. An impressive array of neatly labeled clipboards waited for us, and my eyes strayed to the corner where the phone bank people were congregating. Then I saw a clipboard labeled “Glenview” on the canvassing table and it was all over. That’s my community. It might as well have been a neon sign with my name on it. I stepped forward to help the woman who was claiming it.

My partner Carol seemed to have ice in her veins for knocking on doors. As we split up to cover our first street in Glenview, I acted like an old pro, too, but I knew I wasn’t ready. My mind was a jumble, I didn’t even know the candidates who were running in November; what was I thinking? At the first house, a large dog lunged at me from behind the window and I heard a woman yelling at him. ‘Oh boy, here we go,’ I thought, putting on my most apologetic smile.

“Yes?” She was trying to be nice but she looked harried. She glanced at my button and I could see the reservation in her eyes.

“Hi, I’m a volunteer with the Democratic Party.” I asked if the man on my list was home. Nope. She wanted to close the door, calm the dog, get on with her life. “Would you mind giving this to him, then? We need your help in November to make sure we don’t lose any of the changes we’ve started to make for our country.”

She saw President Obama’s face on the brochure and gave me a long look. “I’ll be happy to,” she said, opening the door to take the brochure. And she thanked me.

Carol and I were energized by the responses we were getting, and we came back with some signed cards and lots of commitments to vote in November. Many of the people who answered the door were surprised and encouraged that we were getting started so soon. A few wanted to talk about issues, and we had some spirited and thoughtful discussions. I think it spoke volumes to them that we were willing to stand in the sweltering heat to work for something we believe in.

By the time I got back to the Evanston office to hand in our lists, I was tired but enthusiastic. I could get used to this. I’m looking forward to volunteering again, and often, between now and November.