Scores line up to grab tickets to see Barack Obama in Terre Haute

By Howard Greninger
The Tribune-Star

TERRE HAUTE April 10, 2008 11:48 pm

— Young and old lined the hallways of The Meadows shopping center early Thursday morning in hopes of getting tickets to see Sen. Barack Obama speak this evening at Terre Haute North Vigo High School.
The Democratic presidential candidate’s campaign issued 2,000 tickets, limiting them to two per person. Starting at 9 a.m., all of the tickets were handed out within 31/2 hours. Nearly 1,000 people stood in the hallways of The Meadows at one time, stretching from near MCL Cafeteria to the end of the mall at Stein Mart.
Brenda Culver, 59, of Terre Haute sought to get tickets for herself and her grandson. She is undecided on whom she will vote for, she said while standing in line.
“I think the economy is where we are all at. The war has to end in order for the economy to get better,” Culver said. “My husband and I are retired and we have watched our savings dwindle and watched the economy go down the toilet. I just think it is time for that to take a swing and go up.”
“We are seeing things get worse, not better. In spite of what we are hearing from our president, we don’t see it. This is a very exciting time for Terre Haute. We are an important part of this campaign and I want to see all these candidates and hear what they’ve got to say,” Culver said.
Larin Jones, 25, stood in front of Culver in the line. He is a senior at ISU majoring in radio, TV and film. He arrived at 7:30 a.m.
“This is unique to see a presidential hopeful and is historical. I have seen Barack, Hillary and Chelsea and plan to see [former President] Bill [Clinton]” today in Vermillion County.
“This is the first time in 40 years that Indiana has ever had a say-so in the presidential election. I am going to vote for Barack,” he said.
Jones said he wants to hear Obama “speak about the economy, relating to a recession, which is one of my main concerns as I am graduating. Health care is another issue. I don’t have any; being a college student, I am in that weird stage where I am off my parents’ insurance and am qualified to get my own, but I can’t because I am a full-time student and I can’t work 40 hours to cover health problems that might occur.”
Also in line was Vigo County resident Bob Pabst, 86, who served in the infantry during World War II from 1943 to 1946. Pabst said he will vote for Obama.
“I like his message and am interested in what he advocates and what he stands for,” Pabst said. “I want to hear everything he has to say about health insurance and getting out of Iraq. There are no such things as good wars. I don’t care what [author Louis] Studs Terkel said about World War II, it was not a good war. I was there and it was not good.
“I hear Obama saying, ‘Let’s get out of Iraq.’ It doesn’t make any difference whether we stay there 100 years or 10 years or whatever, as soon as we leave there is going to be civil war there. So, let’s get out now and let them fight it out and decide what they want among themselves. We have no business there,” Pabst said.
Jennifer Nelson, 39, of Terre Haute took a day off work from her job at Eli Lilly in Indianapolis. She was the ninth person standing in line.
“I am totally elated and excited that [Obama] even wanted to come to Terre Haute. We are not known for a lot of things and it makes me proud to know that it doesn’t matter that we are not a Chicago or New York,” she said.
“We are a small city and he is coming here because he cares about the people here and wants the people here to know his message,” Nelson said.
Nate Brown, 24, of Terre Haute sat on the floor, leaning against a tree planter in the center hallway at The Meadows while in line for Obama tickets. He read a book, “Why You Do the Things You Do: The Secret to Healthy Relationships” by Tim Clinton and Gary Sibcy.
“My wife wanted me to stand in line and get tickets for us. I do the things I do because I love my wife and she asked me to do it. It really comes down to that, more than anything to do with the political process, it is the family process, the marital process,” Brown said.
Amanda Vessey, 20, is a junior at Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology studying math. Vessey said she skipped classes to stand in line to get a ticket. Vessey already has voted for Obama in her home state of Virginia, where she voted absentee.
“I wanted to see him and hear him speak. I think it is historical to see him speak as he may be the next president, so I want to be able to say I saw him in person,” Vessey said.
First in line was Tressman Goode, 23, a graduate student at Indiana State University. He is from Bainbridge, studying student affairs and higher education. Right behind him was Kate Penn, 20, from Needham, who is a sophomore at ISU studying political science.
Goode said he is a supporter of Sen. Hillary Clinton, but wanted to hear Obama speak.
“We got the idea that we definitely wanted to go when we found out he was coming to Terre Haute. It is a once-in-a-lifetime experience. I had the opportunity to meet Hillary and Chelsea, so Barack is next in line, you’ve got to meet him. I will also being going to see [former President] Bill [Clinton] in Clinton” today.
“Indiana never gets this. For me being 23 years of age, I have to take advantage of it, especially in my back yard. I am voting for Hillary Clinton, however that could change once I hear Barack, but I doubt it will change though, I am a Hillary fan. In the end, when November comes around, a Democrat has to be in the White House,” Goode said.
Penn said she is leaning toward voting for Sen. Clinton. “I will probably wait until the very end to officially say,” she said.
Goode said he and Penn drove by The Meadows at 12:30 a.m. to see if anyone was in line, then came back to stay about 3 a.m. to ensure the first spot in line. “It was a lot of chaos because no one was here to tell what was going on and it was hard to find the start of the line,” he said.
Darrell Shouse, 49, of Terre Haute was among about 50 people to congregate at The Meadows around 5 a.m. to secure a place in line for the free tickets.
“I’m number 30 in line,” he said. “No one knew what direction was the front of the line when they opened the doors at 8 a.m.”
Shouse shook hands with Sen. Hillary Clinton when she visited Terre Haute last month. “I wanted to see both candidates. I have made up my mind, but am not saying. I skipped work today to get a ticket. It is not every day a presidential hopeful stops here. I think the community is real excited about this. Hillary [Clinton] had a good turnout and she is a good candidate, too,” Shouse said.
Sharon Miles, 71, wife of Chuck Miles, a Terre Haute City Councilman who died last year, and Teresa Miles, 48, who owns Teresa’s School of Dance at The Meadows, were near the front of the line. The two got in line about 6 a.m.
“I have been a fan of Barack Obama since his first book. I read both of his books,” Teresa Miles said. “I think it is essential that people get out and vote. We need a change.”
Paul Cormac O’Duffy passed out Obama fliers. He has been in Terre Haute for about seven months after living in Ireland. He was born in the United States but said the image of the nation abroad “is appalling, regarded as a war-mongering nation who wants to sort out nations if they don’t like them. I think Obama can restore the image of America,” he said.
Howard Greninger can be reached at (812) 231-4204 or howard.greninger@tribstar.com.

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