Celebrities for change

On Sunday afternoon, actresses Ellen Pompeo from ABC's hit drama, "Grey's Anatomy" and Danielle Panabaker from Mr. Brooks, spoke with ECU students about their choices to support Barack Obama in the fast approaching November presidential election.

The rally was quite different from Friday's Canvass Cookout, which focused on voter registration and was highlighted by lively music and food.

Sunday's gathering was smaller and focused more on the issues raised concerning Obama's campaign and allowed the audience to ask questions and talk with fellow supporters.

The group of around 80 people gathered in the great rooms at ECU's Mendenhall to hear the actresses speak and engage in a discussion.

"We have a real opportunity to make a big difference," Panabaker said. "The past eight years have been really tough … It's a really, really scary time right now. Fortunately, we have a candidate like Barack Obama who can change all of that."

Pompeo focused on how our country can come back from crisis.

"Like so many generations before us who've been faced with critical moments - they have their JFKs and their Martin Luther Kings and their Kennedy's - and I believe we have Barack Obama for our moment," Pompeo said. "This is our moment. And moments like this are terrible for our country, but they're also fantastic for our country because this is when we can truly shine."

Pompeo and Panabaker also focused on the importance of youth in this election and the changes they can make.

Melissa Hedge, junior psychology major and field coordinator for the Campaign for Change, was responsible for organizing the Canvass Kickoff Rally hosting the celebrities.

Melissa spoke highly of Pompeo and said that the event exceeded her expectations despite some last-minute changes.

"The energy was awesome," Hege said after the rally.

Hege was also proud of the amount of registrations they had achieved over the weekend and throughout the campaign's stay on campus. She expressed her excitement over student involvement and also her anticipation of Obama's return to the East coast. She stated that many do not realize the impact that small towns, such as Greenville, have on the election.

The highlight of the rally, for Hege, was seeing the parents and students engaging in the discussion. She hopes the rally will encourage even more people to get involved in the campaign and to vote.

Danielle Edmondson, a freshman ICTN major and Campaign for Change intern, said that her experiences throughout the campaign made her "feel important." She also commented that the rally had good crowd involvement and that she now felt like a part of history.

The rally closed a full weekend for ECU Students for Barack Obama and the events on Sunday ended with "100,000 Knocks for Barack," a rally where supporters went door-to-door recruiting voters.

A march is in the works, as well as other canvasses around ECU's campus.

This writer can be contacted at news@theeastcarolinian.com.