Quincy Herald Whig

'This is a great example of America at its best': Obamashows gratitude for volunteers, urges for more help in Quincy

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Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama shakes hands with people helping with sandbagging efforts while being escorted by Quincy Mayor John Spring, left, after he spoke to a crowd of about 500 people inside the Oakley-Lindsay Center on Saturday afternoon. Obama, who was in Pennsylvania earlier in the day, came to Quincy and spent about 40 minutes meeting with volunteers and helping shovel sand into sandbags. (H-W Photo/Steve Bohnstedt)

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Published: 6/14/2008 | Updated: 1/23/2009

By RODNEY HART
Herald-Whig Staff Writer

Justin Bower was shoveling dirt into a sandbag in the parking lot on the south side of the Oakley-Lindsay Center Saturday afternoon when up walked a man who hopes to be president of the United States.

His reaction to meeting Illinois Sen. Barack Obama?

“Speechless,” said Bower, 21, one of hundreds of volunteers who continued to fill sandbags in the biggest flood-fighting effort in the Midwest in 15 years.

Obama, the presumptive Democratic nominee, made a whirlwind appearance in Quincy. He expressed gratitude to the hundreds of volunteers who already have turned out, and urged others to donate their time in Quincy and elsewhere.

“We’re grateful to all the volunteers who are already here,” Obama said. “We still need more like them. Grab some of your friends and neighbors for a couple of hours after church (Sunday). The next few days will be critical.”

Obama helped volunteers fill sandbags that are being trucked to reinforce levees on both sides of the Mississippi River, just three blocks from the Oakley-Lindsay Center. Authorities expect the Mississippi River at Quincy to reach a near-record level of 32 feet by Wednesday.

“Since I’ve been involved in public office we’ve not seen this kind of devastation,” Obama said, referring to Midwest flooding, as he used a shovel to fill bags being held by 10-year-old Dylan Muldoon, a Quincy Boy Scout who had been bagging sand for two days.

Obama vowed to push the federal and state governments to provide needed aid to stricken areas throughout the Midwest, including Quincy.

Bower was there with his father, Terry Bower. They were the first two Quincyans Obama spoke with, shaking hands with him in parking lot. The Bowers were helping fill sandbags and Obama, dressed in an open-collar shirt and blue jeans, grabbed a shovel and began helping.

“When America is in need, everyone helps everyone,” Terry Bower said. “What he did today, that’s big to me. I am so impressed he came here. We’re in a state of emergency. Him being here is awesome.”

“He has a ton of charisma,” said Justin Bower. “It shows the character of the man. He wants to meet the people and show that he wants to help.”

Obama, who began his day campaigning in Pennsylvania, flew into Quincy Regional Airport a little after 2 p.m. and took a motorcade to the Oakley-Lindsay Center. He was briefed by local and county officials before walking out the southeast door at about 2:40.

Flanked by state Sen. John Sullivan and Quincy Mayor John Spring, Obama strode to the parking lot to greet those working outside. Dressed in blue jeans and a blue shirt, he put on a pair of gloves and began filling sandbags.

Obama filled more than 20 bags with the help of Spring and Sullivan, and then Muldoon, as he talked with workers and members of the local and national media that surrounded him.

He said flooding throughout the Midwest, notably in hard-hit Iowa, points to the need to improve the nation’s infrastructure. He said he has sponsored a $60 million “reinvestment plan” to help with roads, bridges and other crucial transportation issues.

“It will make us more competitive in the long run,” he said.

Obama then headed inside the Oakley-Lindsay Center, where about 500 people were patiently waiting in front of huge piles of sand. A huge roar erupted when he walked through the large garage door and began shaking hands.

The chant “Yes we can” erupted minutes after he walked into the building.

Sullivan used a wireless microphone to address the crowd and said Obama called him Friday and asked to come to Quincy to show flood-fighting support.

Obama again thanked the volunteers and asked others to follow suit. He asked for prayers for the 124,000 residents of Cedar Rapids, Iowa, a town that is submerged in floodwater.

“This is a great example of America at its best,” he said of the volunteer efforts across the Midwest. “There’s no problem we can’t solve if we don’t work together.”

Then it was another round of handshakes and greetings as Obama worked the huge room to periodic roars from the crowd.

At about 3:15, he posed for several photos and finally was whisked away by motorcade to the airport,

“He has a ton of charisma and he can relate to people,” Sullivan said. “He looks you in the eye and he listens to you. He’s real, and that’s why people like him.”

-- rhart@whig.com/221-3370