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Ryan
and Lyn
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Living the Dream
The Dream is
Alive and well!
By Lyn Bliss
Bob Robinson tends to give me great titles in his comments to me. When
he received the picture of Paul Ryan and me, he sent back, “The dream
is alive and well!” That seemed to be an appropriate title for this
last installment of the most exciting year I have ever lived!
As this is being written, the polls are 18+ hours away from
opening. It has been a demanding campaign. As I said to a friend,
“This old broad is exhausted!”
At the same time, this campaign has offered opportunities and
experiences that have never been in my life -- as any of you who have
read my previous reports know -- they are things that have only been
dreams.
You have read about the convention and the first Romney motorcade.
Since that first driving experience, it has been a whirlwind where my
days have run together and my suitcase has not been unpacked!
After the most recent tour with Paul Ryan, I sent the following comment
to Cindy Pike, “It is a demanding time..........but, Cindy, I am so
VERY glad you were finally able to go and have the experience! No
amount of talking about it really prepares you for what it is like!”
Cindy Pike is our Darke County Republican Executive Committee Chair and
has repeatedly wanted to drive in one of the numerous campaign
motorcades for which I was tasked with finding drivers. However, Cindy
also serves the residents of Darke County as our County Clerk of
Courts. She was not willing to take off time from her job in order to
do this. So, when the chance to drive in the Paul Ryan motorcade came
up (that would be Friday evening and Saturday), she was the first
person I called. She finally was able to go.
“It was an honor, a privilege and an awesome experience to have driven
in the Ryan motorcade. It was the most exciting drive I’ve ever had
through the streets of Cincinnati! Meeting our future Vice President
and his wife was an experience all its own. They are very warm genuine
people. I feel privileged to have met them. If I could, I’d go again in
a heartbeat!” said Pike of the experience.
For me, the task of finding drivers all began with getting two drivers
for Mia Love when she came to Ohio to speak to the Ohio Federation of
Republican Women. Since then, frankly, I have lost count of how many
different events and motorcades I have found drivers for. Our Darke
County residents have stepped up to the plate, as have Ohio Federation
of Republican Women (OFRW) members and Jo Ann Davidson Ohio Leadership
Institute (JADOLI) graduates.
Darke County Residents who have driven are: Cindy Pike, Dori
Howdieshell, Ed Ault, Jeannie Miller, Wendell Miller, Sue Leisey, Jana
Kolling and me.
“Driving in the Romney motorcade was an exciting eye opening experience
to see the support, enthusiasm and energy of the people’s voice
in Ohio and what they want for America. The positive reaction of
people standing along the motorcade everywhere we went across Ohio for
350 miles with signs for Romney/Ryan and waving said it all. Seeing the
press and cameramen working so hard to accurately report to the people
what was happening at the campaign events and the sheer number of
people attending was so impressive. The attendance of 12,000 at
the event in Defiance was just amazing and being part of it gave me
Goosebumps. And last but not least was meeting Mitt Romney
and shaking his hand. That was a thrill of a lifetime and when he
thanked me individually for my efforts in helping with his campaign by
serving as a driver in the motorcade, I truly understood what a great
and caring leader he is.” said Jeannie Miller of her experiences.
“On Oct. 24, 25, 26 I was given an opportunity to drive in Presidential
Candidate Mitt Romney’s motorcade. The motorcade traveled from
Cincinnati, to Columbus, to Defiance and then to the Toledo area. From
the night before Governor Romney boarded his plane, through the next
morning to continue his rally into Iowa, the experience was a real
education in how a political campaign operates, and all of the security
that is involved. The Secret Service was very friendly and
helpful. The campaign staff appreciated our help. Over the three
day period, we drove in excess of 350 miles. The most memorable part of
the trip was driving from Interstate 75 to Defiance on county
roads. The people along the road were displaying flags and
banners supporting Governor Romney.” explained Wendell Miller.
"Besides playing in my son's band for the 7th grade talent show, this
was by far the coolest thing I've ever done!" said Kolling.
Two of our drivers were lined up at the last minute. They were putting
their suitcases in the car to go to the Dayton Fixed Base Operator (as
in private airport), when they were cancelled because the plane had
arrived early. It was a shame, as they had packed and prepared at the
very last minute. A special thank you to Sue Leisey and Frankie Neuman
for their efforts!
Ed Ault and Dori Howdieshell were the stars – they were ready to go at
a moment’s notice and did the most tours. The two of them, along with
Sue Leisey were tapped to drive the VIPs who came in for the West
Chester event. They were given the job of picking the dignitaries up at
the various airports in the Cincinnati area and driving them to their
hotels on Friday before the event -- then, reversing the process on
Saturday.
Howdieshell was coming off of a trip with the Ann Romney motorcade that
ended in Cleveland. She drove the big black Suburban back through
Greenville Thursday night, where she did manage to get a couple hours
sleep. She picked up Ault and Leisey on Friday morning and they were
off to Cincinnati.
All of the shuttle drivers had the experience of mingling with and
meeting many of the dignitaries that were in attendance at the West
Chester event.
Ault transported Mississippi Governor Phil Bryant, his aide Pierce
Moore and his security officer Lamond Bridges. He also drove Minnesota
Senator Norman Coleman, Alabama Representative Martha Roby, Sarah Haley
(works with Bill O’Reilly) and numerous Romney staffers.
“What a wonderful experience. I also met the next President of
the United States of America, Mitt Romney. From October 24th through
November 3rd I had the extreme privilege of serving as a driver with
the Romney/Ryan Campaign. I drove in excess of 1,200 miles,
providing transportation for Romney staffers and numerous U.S. Senators
and the Governor of the state of Mississippi. I am honored to
have served a small part in the election of the next President of this
great country.” Explained Ault.
Leisey transported Governor Sam Brownback and two aides. On Saturday,
she transported Bettina Inclan (RFB staffer), Hector Barreto (Latino
Coalition), and Rosario Marin (U.S. Treasurer for George Bush).
“What an honor to be able to help with this. The experience was more
than I had expected. I had an opportunity to meet many that were a part
of the campaign as well as others not involved directly. I was
most impressed and honored to meet and have a conversation with the
Commander of Marine One, that I will share with you at a later time.”
Remarked Leisey.
Howdieshell drove untold miles with various motorcades and also with
the shuttle service on Friday and Saturday in Cincinnati. She was one
of several who were willing to go time and again, and on short notice.
Among those she met and/or transported in Cincinnati were: Senator
Lindsey Graham (S.C.), Senator Jim Talent (Mo.), Lt. Gov. Kerry Healey
(Mass.), Senator Kelly Ayotte (N.H.), Gov. John Sununu (N.H.), Gov. Bob
McDonnell (Va.), Senator Rick Santorum (Pa.), Senator John and Cindy
McCain (Az), Senator Pat Toomey (Pa.), Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison
(Tex.), Senator Marco Rubio (Fla.), Republican National Chairman Reince
Priebus, Tagg Romney and Josh Romney.
“This was an experience of a lifetime, having the honor to drive for
our future President and his wife; and all the Governors, Senators and
other dignitaries. I'd do it again in a minute!” exclaimed Howdieshell.
One of the JADOLI and OFRW volunteers, Lynda Bowers, from Medina, even
drove down to my house and stayed overnight so she would be ready to
pick up passengers at the Dayton airport the next morning.
Having dealt with many of the Romney for President staffers and many of
the Secret Service personnel involved in keeping the candidate and his
traveling entourage safe – all I can say about them is that they are
truly a dedicated and professional group of people who have given up
their home lives, often being away from spouses and children, to devote
a great portion of this year to the campaign. They are all to be
respected and commended for the job they have done!
I would like to put in a shameless plug here for the Darke County
Residents, OFRW Members and JADOLI graduates who gave of their time
when asked: without their stepping up to the plate and volunteering
their time, this job would have been impossible. They were willing to
go on a moment’s notice and performed admirably.
And, a final thank you to Michelle Clark, the Ohio Event Coordinator
for the Romney Campaign. No matter what time of day (or night) she was
contacted, she was sweet, kind and understanding……..and ALWAYS got the
problem solved. Thank you, Michelle!
Personally, all I can say is: doing this scheduling of drivers (though
hectic at times) and the actual driving in various motorcades (allowing
me to meet Mitt Romney, Paul Ryan and Jana Ryan) -- was just the
cherry on top of the sundae that has been the living of a dream! I hope
that when I finally meet Ann Romney in person it will be when she is a
resident of the White House!
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Jeannie
Miller, Wendell Miller, Ed Ault and Dori Howdieshell
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