June 4,1968....I became a Democrat.......

Fresh off the Minnesota DFL State Convention as a Delegate, I was reminded why I am a Democrat.....Bobby Kennedy.

It was exactly on this date and day, Monday, June 4, 1968, I became a Democrat. I was a 16 year old high school student at Andrew Hill in San Jose. Mr. Bill Connelly was my Social Studies Teacher and H.S. Counselor as well. We were studying how Presidential Election campaigns affect Foreign Policy going forward.

Mr. Connelly took a handful of his best students, of which I was one, out to St. James Park in downtown San Jose. Bobby Kennedy was stumping through Northern California to garner support before the Tuesday California Primary. His charismatic persona was felt throughout the crowd. I had seen his brother JFK in 1960. Bobby spoke of his plans to end the Vietnam War, support for Israel , his pledge to carry on Martin Luther King's Civil Rights legacy, and so much more.

That Tuesday, June 5th, was a hot day. I remembered waking up after 11pm and hearing my mother crying in the living room. My Father was still at work at Lockheed Missle and Space in nearby Sunnyvale. I asked my mother, "Mom, why are you crying?" She replied, "Bobby Kennedy has just been shot." She had on CBS News with a Special Report from Walter Cronkite. Then I saw the replay and was shocked to my core. "Didn't you just see him yesterday?" she asked. I was crying too as I watched the replay of his Victory speech ending..."and now on to Chicago.".

Talk about hard to go to school the next day. It was if a member of the family had died. Even Mr. Connelly was in tears. All we talked about that period was the assassination at the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles and the loss to this country at such a pivotal time . I skipped school for the rest of the day, I could not go on. I was so emotionally spent. Friday, school was cancelled. I spent the entire weekend glued to the TV as I watched the Funeral Mass from St. Patrick's Cathedral, Teddy Kennedy's tearful eulogy, the train procession to Arlington National Cemetery with people lined up at the tracks waving flags, with hands over their hearts, and Salutes as the train passed them by, to the burial itself. I remember it all.

1968 was a pivotal year. The Tet Offensive that marked a turning point in the Vietnam War. The assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr. The loss of Bobby. The Chicago riots at the DNC, to the closing of the year of the fantastic photos of the Earth from space from Apollo 8.

In these past 50 years, I have had much to reflect on as a Democrat. The election of George W. Bush and loss of my friend Paul Wellstone, made me realize that I could not just sit on the sidelines, I had to become part of the solution. I remain steadfast in my commitment to do and be as much as I can to make sure this country remains FREE for my Adult children and 3 fabulous Granddaughters.

I am emotional just writing this for the chance to not only witness history in the making, but actually being a part of making history for the past 18 years. I see no slowing down on my part. I am fired up and ready to go!