March 14, 2008
B7
North Padre Island Moon Photo by Mary Craft
“Bubba” Bill Clinton lets the crowd know he’s really one of them by showing off his fancy boots to the crowd while standing in the back of a pickup truck at the local rally. We’re not certain but we suspect he’s all boot and no cattle.
by Mary Craft
My Primary Primary Experience
I experienced my first political rally but it was not because of the candidate that I attended it was all about the candidate’s spouse. I got up at 5:15am and my first stop was Super Stripes for coffee. Terry was surprised to see me since she knows my usual routine, which is to get to work at 10:30. She figured I had a plane to catch but I told her that I was going to see Bill Clinton and I mean REALLY see him since, as a Moon Monkey I am associated with the media – sort of. Calls for me to get connected while at the rally were made the day before. I met up with Haley and we head off to the Ortiz Center near Whataburger Field. This particular morning a front had blown in causing sustained winds of 30-40 mph with overcast skies. So we expected cold air from the North and hot air from the podium. We walk up to the center at 6:45a.m. to find that it is set up for Clinton to speak, not inside the Center, but standing in the bed of a pick-up truck outside. I called the organizer (who I had never met,) who was to be my hook up. While I am talking to her Haley taps me on the shoulder and points her out, 8 feet away since she can hear both ends of the conversation. Bad news, President Clinton is not meeting with the media after his speech. My hopes of getting a picture of the President holding the Moon were squashed. At this point there is more media than Hillary backers so we pick our spot. We decide on standing dead-center and behind a row of people in wheel chairs and a row of folks just behind them. The Mariachi band parked directly behind us and started playing and would continue to do so for the next two hours. Seven a.m. and mariachi horns by the way are not a good mix. The crowd started growing around us and they were a little rough around the edges, even for 7 a.m. standing next to the ship channel in fortymile-per hour winds. We stood out (me literally)
in this group. Haley said, “It feels like we are in a crowded elevator that’s stuck.” The media people kept looking over at us, we were sure they figured out we were Bill groupies. Haley’s black spike boots may have had something to do with that impression. We had been there over an hour, it was past 8 a.m. but we were at the point of no return. After waiting that long we had to stay so we took turns giving pep talks to each other. We both sensed foreboding at about the same time because we realized there was such an obvious lack of security. There were no metal detectors; people would just leave their cars and join the gathering. I looked up at the rafters of the Harbor Bridge and imagined a sniper hiding like I have seen in so many films. I turn to Haley and say “I feel like we are in a movie.” She answered “Yea, a long boring one.” Local politicos started giving pep talks then the mortorcade finally arrived at 8:45 a.m. and brought the President as well as more secret service men to add to the ones already there. While Clinton stood next to Solomon Ortiz who was doing the introduction, he made a smooth move of putting his foot up on the bed rail of the truck to show his cool cowboy boots. The first thing that struck me was how skinny he was which changed how his face looks. He still has his charisma and down-home charm. He gave a short speech emphasizing Hillary’s experience. He also talked about her plan to leave “no child behind” which was a fitting subject because there were some teachers in the crowd. Hillary is endorsed by the American Federation of Teachers. At the end he stepped down and approached the crowd to shake hands. We waited for him to come to our section and we both got a hand squeeze. Now I know President Clinton has soft hands and that made it all worth it.
Photo by Mary Caft Hillary supporters Alice Rosenberg from Sodus, Michigan, Alice Johnson from Minneapolis and Marge Finnegan from Ogden, Indiana are all winter residents at Gulfstream Condos and have been for years. Obama backer Bill Bodrug who has had a seat on the Padre Homeowners Association board for the last three years moved to the Island five years ago from San Francisco.
Photo by Gary Cooper
Primary School Pilots HEB Healthy Living Program The Flour Bluff Primary School piloted a program sponsored by HEB to promote healthy living. Classes from Mrs. Tomscha, Mrs. Tate and Mrs. Jurgensen participated. Students were given pedometers to encourage exercise, they toured the local HEB, sampled healthy food, and HEB Buddy visited the classrooms and gave them samples of a variety of fruits and vegetables. The grand finale was an essay contest which students wrote about why being healthy was
important. The top essay from each class won an HEB backpack filled with school supplies. Winners were Sabrina Childers, Thalia Rigney and Meredith Marcum. Thalia was chosen the top winner and received a $25 gift certificate from HEB. The following students were runners up and received a small bag of school supplies. Standing left - right: Anthony Skrobarczyk, Gabriel Suarez, Alyssa Kiser, Jewlia Albe, and Jesse Ogden.
FBJH Band UIL Solo/Ensemble Awards Congratulations to the following FBJH band members for receiving a
First Division rating on their solos and ensembles at the UIL contest on February 23. Twirling Solo - Cambrielle Gorham; Flute Solo - Kalotha Webber, Caroline Teck, Briana Wells, Jasmine Orona and Tiffany Ferguson; Oboe Solo - Ariceli Suarez and Daniel Hebert; Clarinet Solo - Betty Caraballo, So Hee Park, Stephaen Gibson, Stephanie Aguilar and Eric Cadondon; Bass Clarinet Solo - Adriana Brulloths; Alto Saxophone Solo - Chris Smith; Trumpet Solo - Jordanna Rebbeck, Brandon Everett and John Austin Gallardo; French Horn Solo - Rebecca Martinez, Loren Roberts; Baritone Solo - Savannah Agnich; Snare Drum Solo and Marimba Solo - Nikki Evertson; Flute Trio - Briana Hottell, Courtney Brewer and Kylie Petty.