The below entry is crossposted from the Change for America blog
Over the past year, hundreds of thousands of ordinary Americans felt hope again, got excited again, and started to believe again that they could make a difference and change the way government works. People who had never been involved in politics and those who had given up on the process entirely came together in small groups across the country. We invited our families, friends and neighbors to join us in building something extraordinary, and we grew into a movement that made a difference.
For the last week, though, we have found ourselves at a loss while trying to figure out what comes next. Even though we knew the end of our presidential campaign was coming, that didn't make it any easier when it happened. Some of us have been looking at how to re-work our existing groups, others are thinking about starting new groups, and still others have taken a step back, but we have all been hoping for some way to carry this movement forward.
When we heard late last week that a group of staffers would be visiting Joe and Kathy's farm to talk about what comes next, we went out on a limb and asked Joe if we could join them -- and he said "C'mon down." We took him up on his offer. Once we arrived, we found old friends we'd never met before and new ones we know we'll meet again.
After settling in, we spent some time outside on the grass and everyone participated in discussions about what we need to do to continue our movement. The conversation lasted throughout the weekend and we found ourselves feeling hope again, getting excited again, and believing again that we can continue to make a difference. We all agreed that as we move forward in this process, it will be just as open and inclusive.
This weekend we realized that what we have been building is really about us, and over the next weeks and months we can't wait for the rest of the grassroots to get involved as we all shape this thing we're calling Change for America.
Mark wrote earlier about the moment when Joe asked us to raise our hands if we were committed to going forward together. We are three grassroots organizers and our hands are raised.
Jennifer Powers
Janine Gottlieb
Mike Carvalho
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