Cate's friends join campaign team

PORTSMOUTH, N.H. — Most would have expected this group of friends to spend Intersession in Cancun, Florida, or even Firestone. Yet when Sen. John Edwards, father of Cate Edwards '04, decided to run for president, the troop of 17 students sacrificed tans and theses to pile into a fleet of minivans headed to New Hampshire.

They looked like any other anonymous supporters framing Edwards and his daughter with campaign banners for the cameras. These volunteers, however, were on a first name basis with the man who had helped them move into freshman dorm rooms and had discussed Senate votes with them over Chinese food. They knew that his daughter could get giddy with the thrill of the campaign and that it was the senator's wife who "wore the pants in the family."

The group likened the atmosphere of their New Hampshire accommodations — the home of Hayden Odell '04 — to summer camp, and the intensity and pleasurable exhaustion of a productive day campaigning to skiing.

While many began the trip out of loyalty to Cate, they all ended up convinced by Edwards' message. They cheerfully waved signs, engaged local residents in political discussion and provided welcomed breaks for the candidate's daughter.

"It's more energy than I've seen out of some of them," Cate laughed.

Erica Hahn '04, Cate's friend and freshman year roommate, compared their method of canvassing a neighborhood to that of a swat team. Pouring out the side of a van, the students would quickly scatter to reach as many houses as possible, while the driver kept their get-away vehicle warm.

At other times, the group assumed the role of cheerleaders, creating dances and waving Edwards banners at passing cars.

"One honk makes us so excited," Catesby Perrin '04 said during a break at The Friendly Toast, a bright pink, retro cafe in Portsmouth. "We're making fools of ourselves, but it's all for a good cause."

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With the group's excitement, it was hard to guess the students came from a campus associated more readily with political apathy than activism.

As the students sat in the cafe spooning mounds of marshmallows and gobs of cream into hot chocolates, they spoke with conviction about the energy and compassion that had turned the senior Edwards from Cate's dad into a presidential candidate in whom they believed.

"I actually teared up today during his speech, even though I've heard it so many times," said Hahn. "I'm lucky enough to know he is genuine."

While others said Edwards' speech had given them the urge to stand up and cheer, all commented on the substance behind the smile, exemplified by a 60 page booklet the Senator had printed on his policy proposals.

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By then, Cate said, those who had not been involved in the politics of the campaign really began to care.

"Part of the reason they came, of course, was to come support me," Cate said. "But you could tell at that point that they really realized that they believed in what they were doing, and believed that my dad would make a great president."