Senator Obama's planned visit draws a crowdby John Paul (jpaul@wsbt.com)
A line of people stretching more than two city blocks waited for hours Monday outside Sen. Barack Obama's campaign office in downtown Elkhart to get free tickets to see the Democratic presidential hopeful's appearance at Concord High School on Wednesday, August 6, 2008. (WSBT photo) ELKHART — Sen. Barack Obama will visit Elkhart Wednesday, but people waited in line for hours Monday to get their hand on a ticket. Multimedia Related ContentFor each person standing in line, the reasons were just as unique as they were. "This is important to me," Marissa Hunter said. "This is going to be my first presidential election." It's also the line where differences end and similarities begin. "Instead of getting us deeper," Rebeca Benavides said, "I believe Barack Obama is the one that's going to help people get out of where we are right now." "This is the first time we've had a black candidate running for president," William Hackworth said. "I want to be a part of the history making process." The lines outside the campaign office in downtown Elkhart extended for two blocks for much of the afternoon, until tickets ran out around 5:50 p.m. People able to get tickets to the town hall meeting arrived as early as 6 a.m. and waited nearly 10 hours. "Some would like to say it's more like rhetoric," said Nancy Baker. "I believe it goes deeper than that." Baker believes that's a reason Obama has struck a chord with so many voters, adding, "My mother always voted Republican, until now." It's not just Obama's popularity or potential to make history that brought people out. Some believe he'll actually change the nation's woes. "I've been laid off for two years," said Stephanie Hanson. "I do believe that he is the man that's going to make the change for this country." Hanson, Benavides and Hunter were able to get tickets. So did several hundred more waiting in line. Now, they'll be able to see a man, face to face, who has them holding on to hope. More Good Stuff |
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