One of our Inauguration Day volunteers from Pittsburgh was kind enough to send us the following email about her experience. We were so happy to receive this and she really captured that day well:
—
I attended the Save Darfur bus trip to DC on Inauguration day and would like to share my story.
The frigid January weather did not deter us from being involved in such a good cause, and bearing witness to the historic events of the day. Due to lack of a map, and directions, we did not get to see any of the inauguration ceremonies, but instead concentrated on collecting signatures for Save Darfur. I collected over 120 signatures while my son and his friend collected a few. The cold finally got to us and we ventured to Union Station, where it was much easier to collect signatures. As the ceremonies started, thousands gathered in the courtyard of Union station to try to catch a glimpse of Obama on a TV screen in a restaraunt on the second floor. People were not at all bothered by the cramped space and were amazingly polite. Determined to hear his address, I, my son and his girlfriend wandered into a gift shop that was broadcasting the speech on a speaker. The shop owners were gracious enough to let hundreds of people gather in the store and just stand there, listening to the speech, without purchasing anything. It was as if for a moment the world stood still, united in a common cause.
I was surprised at how many people were aware of the situation in Darfur and were more than willing to sign the petition. At one point, I actually had a line of people who couldn’t wait to sign it! I was thrilled to be a part of such a historic event and look forward to working with Save Darfur in the future.
Sincerely
Joanne Mule
The opinions expressed here are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the position of the Save Darfur Coalition.
