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“Don’t get discouraged when you are starting something people don’t understand”


I can relate to that, several times over.

But we’ll skip the details of that quote stated by the White House Project’s Marie Wilson and cut right to the chase, which Chris Jindra covered very nicely in this Plain Dealer piece.

Disclosure: I sat next to Chris at the luncheon and got to meet some other very nice PD folks. The tables were full – about 24 with eight or so at each.

Wilson presents like someone who thinks there simply isn’t enough time left to get everything done and damn if she isn’t going to make sure that everything gets done now. And she gets it done. I joined her and four other women after the luncheon to plan the Go Run training that will take place most likely in Columbus in May or June 2008. They’ll be recruiting 100 women, of any political stripe, to learn the skills and strategies with which we can get more women into and through the political/elected office pipeline.

Perhaps but the best testimony to the power of this group and Wilson is Faith Winter, national field director for WHP. Winter helps plan and run many of the programs for WHP. And she decided that, seeing so many women come in at the beginning of trainings not sure what they were doing there and leaving saying that not only would they run but they would win (and then go and win), she decided to run. This past year. For city council.

She outraised her opponents by thousands of dollars and outdid the previous high for such a position by more than $20,000. For a city council position.

And she won.

If you want to be inspired, period – please, keep an eye out for applications to the Ohio Go Run training. They will open on 1/1/08.

And thanks again to Marie and Faith for coming here (they’re in Columbus tomorrow and Faith heads to Cincy after that), to Chris for writing about it, to all the attendees today and to the Women’s Community Foundation.

If you’re not used to being among people who feel and sound and act the way you do very often, then you know how incredibly calming it is to find people of the same mind. That’s how I felt today. It was wonderful.

Oh! And I got to drive them back to their hotel – took them along an unplanned, ahem, detour. All planned, all planned, I swear. ;)

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By Jill Miller Zimon at 11:38 pm December 3rd, 2007 in Campaigning, Cleveland+, Elections, Government, Media, Ohio, Politics, Statehouse, Women 

Comments

3 Responses to ““Don’t get discouraged when you are starting something people don’t understand””

  1. 1 Jeff Hess on December 4th, 2007 10:38 am

    Shalom Jill,

    One of my personal heroes, Admiral Hyman Rickover once wrote:

    Good ideas are never accepted automatically. They must be driven into practice with courageous impatience.

    B’shalom,

    Jeff

  2. 2 Wendy Hoke on December 4th, 2007 11:11 am

    That’s a great quote, Jeff! I may have to use that at some point. Thanks for sharing.
    Wendy

  3. 3 Jill Miller Zimon on December 4th, 2007 11:34 am

    That is a great quote, Jeff – I think you’ve reminded me of it before – I need to make a sidebar of good quotes -again, a list to keep looking at to remind myself.

    Thanks.

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