Apr 20, 2008

Locals rally for Obama, book drive

Parents, students collected more than 1,300 items

By Liz Harrelson / Daily News correspondent

Supporters of the Ravenswood School District and presidential hopeful Sen. Barack Obama rallied for literacy and the candidate's campaign Saturday, collecting more than 1,300 books for the district.

Amid gleeful cries from children playing in Rinconada Park in Palo Alto and the singing of family songs by local performers, about 50 people turned out supporting "Obama '08" stickers, T-shirts and other political memorabilia. One girl, Amelia Ashlund, 5, painted her own shirt in support of the political candidate.

"Once you raise the level of education, you raise the level of quality of life in a community," said Ravenswood School District Board Member Larry Moody.

Moody underscored the district's need for books and help promoting literacy. Of the district's 4,400 students, 70 percent are English language learners, Moody said.

The Democratic hopeful from Illinois captured the enthusiasm of three Peninsula women - Connie Habash, Ruth Simone and Stacey Ashlund - who collaborated and pulled together the event in a little more than three weeks.

"The minute people get ahold of the idea of making a difference in the community, people instantly want to get involved," said co-organizer Simone. "This is Barack's message."

The message of working for community change convinced lifelong feminist Ashlund not to vote for Obama and instead support the female candidate, Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-New York.

"I've been a lifelong feminist - how can a woman of the '70s not vote for a woman for president? We're individuals trying to make a difference in the community," Ashlund said.

At 1 p.m., after music and entertainment by several local performers, including Andy "Z" Zamenes as well as local father and son musicians John and Remy Felsch, the group of about 30 gathered to pledge allegiance to the flag in unison with several other Obama rallies occurring across the nation, Habash said.

"Obama and his platform are very kid-friendly," said Zamanes, a Redwood City-based children's music performer who volunteered his time to perform at the event. "If he gets in, it's good for future generations."