Former President Bill Clinton stopped in Syracuse on October 19 to hold a rally in support of 1199SEIU -endorsed Congressional Candidate Dan Maffei. Two 1199 hard- working Member Political Organizers, David Tefler and Shawn Carter, were happy to participate at the rally, together with other union members. Clinton educated the group on economic issues and the importance of electing Dan Maffei to help get back on the road to recovery, stating, “If we don’t have a strong middle class we don’t have a strong economy and we are on the way with Dan Maffei.”



David is a CNA at Loretto Nursing Home. Originally from Jamaica, he is passionate about American politics, saying, “Before I even became an MPO here, I talked about politics with my co-workers every day.” He loves educating people on the benefits of Obamacare and has been a great help in getting out the vote.



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He is working on his citizenship and is looking forward to the day he can vote in the same elections he works so hard encouraging 1199 members to vote in. As someone who loves reading about politics and watching CNN and MSNBC, David enjoyed seeing the former president speak. “What I love about Bill Clinton is how he can explain things, andeverybody leaves and has a good understanding,” said David.



Shawn Carter is the Dementia Activities Leader at Menorah Park. She wasn’t involved in political work prior to becoming an MPO. She had a great time at the Clinton rally and was interviewed and on local television that aired that evening.



Shawn got another opportunity to talk to her co-workers about political action after they saw that interview. She was moved become an MPO because she read an article about making a positive change by doing community work and decided she needed to break out of her shell.



She didn’t know much about the local political scene and now she feels very educated. She understands the importance of signing up for political action and supporting Union workers. She finds that many of her co-workers don’t know what the candidates stand for and are relying solely on the commercials which can be misleading.



Shawn likes talking to other members about the issues.. “As long as I am reaching one person, that person can go reach another person,” she said. “If we reach one person it is worth it.”