Throughout this first week working on the Rubio campaign I have made hundreds of calls. While I have enjoyed it, it is disheartening getting numerous answering machines, plenty of angry hang-ups, and only a few positive interactions scattered throughout the days. Though office managers constantly reassure the team that the work we are doing is crucial, it is always hard to believe. However, at the Derry Boys and Girls Club Friday morning, it suddenly clicked. Every single call was worth it.
When I walked into the Boys and Girls Club it was only 7:30am but country music was blasting, crowds were shuffling in from the cold, and excitement was in the air. Everyone was there to see Senator Rubio.
The event was a rally, so Rubio gave a quick speech, and then spent about an hour meeting people in the crowd, shaking hands, and taking pictures. Once the crowd died down the interns were given the opportunity to meet the Senator and get a picture. He was very friendly and grateful for the work we had done.
At each of his three events that day I was in awe at the size of the crowds. People were really showing up. At the final event, in Claremont, I had the job of greeting people at the door. Even though this task required me to stand outside in the cold for two hours it was still my favorite part of the day. I got the opportunity to talk to everyone who was coming to support Rubio, my fellow interns, and a retired schoolteacher selling campaign gear. Then, right before the event was set to begin, the campaign bus pulled up to the door and I got the got the chance to personally greet Senator Rubio.
When I finally got back to my hotel room that night around 10:00 I was expecting to be drained, however I was actually energetic. I was proud of the work I had done to get people to the events, and I was excited to get to work on Saturday to make hundreds of more calls.
--Lily Ansel is a St. Olaf senior from Edina majoring in Economics with an emphasis in Management. She is in New Hampshire as part of a St. Olaf political science class studying the presidential election.
