For Immediate Release
Contact Jim Spearman 334-262-2221
Montgomery, AL - Approximately 300 Alabama Democrats are busy making last minute arrangements as they get ready to depart over the weekend for Denver to begin the 2008 Democratic National Convention. Alabama's official delegation includes 78 delegates, alternates and standing committee members. In addition, scores of elected officials, county chairs, college democrats and local activists will be joining in the weeklong activities. Events Monday through Wednesday will be held in the Pepsi Center and a record 76,100 voters from around America will gather at Invesco Field to hear Sen. Obama accept his party's nomination.
State Party Chair and Delegation Chair Joe Turnham said that the intensity of this year's convention is off the charts. "Alabama delegates truly sense that we are part of a historical event that will culminate in nominating a dynamic new President who will help rebuild the American Dream for all Americans. The requests for rooms and credentials have been unprecedented compared with previous conventions. We have a record number of Alabamians going to the convention and our party staff has been working around the clock to handle the logistics of the trip." Turnham said.
Alabama delegates and guests will hear from former SEC football star and North Carolina Congressman Heath Schuler on Monday. Former US President Jimmy Carter on Wednesday will speak to a joint Alabama - Georgia gathering. On Thursday, Alabama native and veteran US Congressman John Lewis will speak, and the Quilters of Gees Bend will sing and showcase the famous Vote Quilt that will symbolize the political patchwork of America that comes together to elect a President. Lewis will speak on the 40th anniversary of Martin Luther King's I Have a Dream Speech. Lewis was a King Protégé who was beaten at the Edmund Pettus Bridge on Bloody Sunday in Selma.
Alabama Democratic Party Chairman Joe Turnham has also been selected to address the welcome gathering of attendees from 56 delegations and their guests on Sunday at the Colorado Convention Center. This event is a celebration commemorating the recovery and rebuilding of areas affected by Hurricane Katrina. The Friends of New Orleans, non-profit dedicated to ongoing recovery efforts, will receive a donation. Several Alabama Delegates will participate in the Day of Service in Denver with Meals on Wheels and restoring defaced property. The official Alabama Hotel is the Doubletree at Stapleton Center.
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