Like A Song

Yesterday a message appeared on the McAdams Facebook page. It read, “With over 18 awesome women joining Ben on "Women's Wednesday" it has become clear we need to expand the Ben for Mayor HQ.”

If you’re a casual subscriber to McAdams status updates it’s hard to give this note perspective. Therefore, let me try.

I’ve been an active Democrat in five states, and I first volunteered for John Kennedy in 1959. I’ve served as a campaign manager, a county chair for a presidential campaign, and I once chaired a county Democratic Party.

A more complete list would bore you, and I think I’ve made my point.

With that said, let me assure you that this candidate, and this campaign are truly special.

I walked into our headquarters last Tuesday at 1:00 PM. The office isn’t small, modest perhaps, but not small for a race of this kind. Including offices, cubicles and desks there are about twenty-five places to sit.

When I sat down I took the last vacant chair. Around me were people working in a well organized way on a variety of projects.

Now remember, a weekday afternoon four months before the election is not when a campaign reaches its zenith.

This is truly exceptional.

Who deserves the credit? Obviously, first and foremost, it’s Ben McAdams. He’s lightening in a bottle, and that kind of magic in a candidate is rare. But great credit also goes to a twosome of genuine talent and terrific effect.

Martha Camarillo and Joel Freston

Joel Freston and Martha Camarillo are important to the campaign because they are, respectively, the Field Director and the Volunteer Coordinator.

They are even more important to one another because on the 28th of this month they will be married. There is no better metaphor for the hope and heart of this campaign than these two wonderful people, and the love they share for one another.

Right now they don’t dwell on it, but one day they’ll be my age. My guess is, like me, they’ll look back over a lifetime of political involvement, except they'll be able to offer a summary much better than my own.

At that future time they’ll realize what a golden moment this campaign was, and how it became their personal standard for later political experience.

It will be like a song reminding them of a special summer. Through their commitment and devotion they’ve made this race, in behalf of this candidate, a moment to be proud of.