A Great Convention!

What a weekend!

It has been an exhausting but exhilarating few days here at the Baldacci campaign. Our staff and our amazing corps of volunteers worked tirelessly all weekend to make the 2006 Maine Democratic Convention a rousing success!

First and foremost, a huge thank-you is owed to Julius Erdo, the man responsible for the best booth at the convention. Julius constructed a replica of an Italian Restaurant, called "Baldacci's," complete with wooden counters, pillars, romantic lighting, hanging plans, and the appearance of a brick oven. Nothing in Augusta this weekend looked quite like this booth. And nothing represents the values of John Baldacci better than a warm, inviting, family restaurant. This booth was truly the talk of the convention.

We could not have done it without our dedicated volunteers. Such as Diane Denk, who not only staffed the booth and helped put up signs on Friday morning, but also made trips to get us food! Also helping take care of volunteers was State Representative Linda Valentino from Saco, who brought us breakfast on Saturday. Tom Rodriques from Bowdoin College did an excellent job working with me for three days straight getting our signs up outside and inside the Augusta Civic Center. My good friend Kate Byrne also worked three days straight for us, from signs to working the booth. I do not know what I would have done without them.

For me, and I suspect most others involved, the highlight of the convention was Governor Baldacci's excellent speech on Saturday and the energetic floor demonstration that came before and after it. Marching out to the sounds of Fleetwood Mac's "Don't Stop"--a highly appropriate choice if you ask me--with a huge crowd of people behind him, the Governor stressed his record of accomplishments for Maine in contrast with the Bush Administration's record of failure in Washington.

The speech pumped up the crowd, pumped up our staff, and pumped up the Governor. We're ready to keep working as hard as we can to make the future even brighter for this great state.