Inspiration
At my first convention, I was inspired by JSA to do things I never thought I was capable of and to care for an organization more than I ever thought possible. JSA completely redefined my perception of what it means to be a citizen of our great nation. I was inspired to become politically active – to educate myself on the issues, to take a stand for what I believed in, to make my voice heard, and to take advantage of the incredible opportunities offered to us as citizens of a democratic nation.
JSA has had a truly life-changing impact on me, so throughout the past years, I have been devoted to bringing the incredible JSA experiences that I have had to students in my school and in schools throughout the ORV.
In fact, last winter, I became the Chapter President of Dobyns-Bennett after our chapter gone through some internal political issues. With our financial account completely drained, I worked tirelessly on fund-raising, and, with all the hard work of my wonderful Vice President, Pieter Valk, and my incredible chapter, we managed to raise over $5,000 within three months. That year we also hosted several events, including one where our Congressman David Davis and our TN Lieutenant Governor Ron Ramsey attended as guest speakers.
This year, since over two-thirds of our chapter from the previous year had graduated, we started the year by embarking on a major recruitment effort, and we ended up bringing the largest delegation to Fall State. We also attended the PNC, and we brought an amazing delegation of 29 to Winter Congress.
Due to all the setbacks that our chapter has had, when I became an ECCAD agent this year, one of my major focuses was to help build new chapters and to work with their Chapter Presidents, many of whom were facing obstacles similar to the ones that we had encountered.
Through working in my chapter and in ECCAD, I learned a lot – some of it purely practical: how to fundraise quickly and efficiently, how to run events with significant politicians, how to advertise and recruit, how to maintain a communications network; but more importantly, I learned about the hard work that goes into a student-run organization, and the immense joy that comes out of doing something that you truly believe in.
I realize that I have already mentioned being inspired by JSA when I went to my first convention, but let me make clear that that inspiration did not end there. Every day I am inspired by the hard-working, dedicated JSAers I have had the pleasure to work with, by the beginner debater at his first convention who gets up to make a speech, by the chapters that have devoted themselves to raising funds so that kids in Tanzania get a chance to receive an education.
But most of all, I am inspired by the power of that fundamental ideal upon which our nation was created – democracy: rule of the people, by the people, for the people.
Thus, I hope that next year, as your Lieutenant Governor, I will be able to further the JSA mission of making democracy work through creating an informed and involved public. I will continue to work to give more students the opportunity to have the JSA experiences that many of us here have been so fortunate to enjoy by creating new chapters, reducing convention fees, and finding more affordable transportation options. I will work to continue the legacy of Rita Rochford and Sruti Ramadugu of creating amazing conventions and regional events.
Finally, I will work to bring inspiration as well as perspiration to the office of the LTG to make next year the best year ever in ORV history!