Columbus woman shares Democratic convention experience

Michele Uzendoski is a Columbus resident who participated in the Democratic National Convention as an alternate delegate from the 3rd District committed to Sen. Barack Obama.

The last two days of the convention, Wednesday and Thursday, were extremely busy. As emotionally draining as the days were, the excitement and wonder of being part of this level of the democratic process is an honor that I never expected.

Here is a recap of the highlights I experienced the final two days of the convention:

Wednesday: In the morning we started the day off with a Nebraska Delegation meeting/breakfast sponsored by eBay and PayPal. Sen. Ben Nelson, honorary delegation chairman, spoke as did Minnesota Congressman Tim Waltz, formally from West Point. We also heard from Jack Darin, an Illinois environmental lLeader. Matt Connealy, the Nebraska state party’s executive director informed us of the day’s activities and transportation plans, which were always a challenge.

Our luncheon was sponsored by the American Physical Therapy Association and Level 3 Communications. We ate at a famous restaurant in Denver called the Denver Chophouse. The food was outstanding, and I was fortunate enough to be seated at the same table as renowned author and clinical psychologist Mary Pipher. You may have heard of her book, “Reviving Ophelia: Saving the Selves of Adolescent Girls,” which was on the New York Times best seller list for over three years.

She has authored two other New York Times best sellers as well as having appeared on many nationally recognized news and talk shows. Pipher currently lives in Lincoln and teaches at University of Nebraska-Lincoln. She was an interesting and fun person to spend time with. This was definitely a highpoint in my week

The convention itself proved to be surprising. The roll call of states started in the late afternoon. I sat in the balcony directly facing the podium and above the Nebraska delegation. I sat with two other Nebraska alternate delegates and a guest from the New York delegation who was running for mayor of Syracuse, New York. I must admit that I was not prepared for the emotional thrill that the roll call provided. Many of us were tearing up at times because it was such a powerful experience to witness in person. The historical significance of nominating the first African-American to lead the Democratic Party ticket was a thrill I will never forget.

One of the many highpoints and dramas occurred when Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton came out onto the floor and moved to suspend the roll call of states formalizing Obama’s nomination by proclamation. The New York special guests sitting beside me whooped and hollered as did we all.

The Pepsi Convention Center erupted at this dramatic event, and once again we were witnessing a moment for the history books.

One of the African-American gentlemen sitting beside me from New York grabbed and hugged me so hard I thought I would break in two. The song “Love Train” started playing and many of us grabbed hands, raised them in the air, singing at the top of our lungs and swaying back and forth. Finally we were a unified party!

The final special moment came when Joe Biden gave his acceptance speech and then Barack Obama surprised us by joining Biden on stage. It was a great ending to the evening -- rivaled only by getting to speak with a true American hero -- Major Tammy Duckworth, the co-pilot of a UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter that was shot down over Iraq in 2004.

Her combat wounds cost her both of her legs and injured her right arm.

She also ran for Congress and lost a close election in Illinois in 2006. She currently serves as the director of the Illinois Veteran’s Affairs Department.

Thursday: The Nebraka Delegation had its usual morning breakfast meeting and heard from Steve Achelpohl, our state chairman. We then attended a brunch sponsored by the Union Pacific Railroad at Denver Union Station. We were actually entertained on the train cars, which were decorated with historical accuracy from decades ago. It was like walking back in time as well as being beautiful and romantic.

Myself and another delegate spent time walking around the city — and watched an MSNBC live broadcast with anchor Chuck Todd.

We then walked over to Invesco Field and stood in a long line already at 2 p.m. before we reached a front gate and then were weeded out to go through a special tunnel designated for delegates. The three other alternates and myself were allowed floor passes for the last day’s events and were excited to sit on the floor (stadium field) with the rest of the delegation.

The Nebraska delgation was seated near many of the major press/broadcasters. Hundreds of video/film and still cameras were on the floor. We were there from 2 p.m.-9:30 p.m. During that time too many crazy, wonderful, and surreal events occurred to write about so I will list a few:

-- stood a few yards away as ABC News interviewed Michelle Obama;

-- passed a few feet from Anderson Cooper as he stood in line for a restroom;

-- waved to and got a smile from Gwen Ifill (The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer);

-- waved to and got a wave back from Jesse Jackson as he walked by (surrounded by security);

-- visited with Biff Henderson from the David Letterman show;

-- visited with Ben Jealous, new president of the NAACP as we waited for 30 minutes to be let back onto the floor by a fire marshal — after an ill-fated food run to concessions;

-- saw Mo Rocca and cast of the Daily Show with Jon Stewart repeatedly through out the convention;

-- watched all the major news anchors doing their jobs -- Andrea Mitchell sat with the Nebraska Delegation the last 20 minutes of Obama’s speech;

-- watched the fire works display -- everyone in awe -- even the press had dazed and happy faces -- what a thrill to be on the field of Mile High Stadium surrounded by more than 84,000 cheering people;

I felt energized and thrilled by Obama’s speech . We left Friday morning to return home and received lots of feedback from people everywhere we stopped (we wearing Obama shirts). One African American man walked up to me at a convenience store on South Locust in Grand Island -- after he shouted Obama in the House! I said to him that we were going to win this election, and he responded with a shoulder bump to my left shoulder and a smile saying, “we already won, sister.