Sunday, October 26, 2008
Palin's fans are eager for her visit
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Shanna Flowers is The Roanoke Times' metro columnist.
Shanna Flowers
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For store owner Pauline Wood, Sarah Palin will be good for business.
Wood, who owns Shades of Colors in downtown Roanoke, has ordered some hard-to-find Republican campaign memorabilia to sell at Salem Stadium, where Palin is scheduled to speak Monday.
But don't label Wood a "red" or "blue" voter.
"Everything is green," she said, laughing. "I'm a merchant. May the best man win."
Wood said she has been accused of supporting Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama because she has sold a lot of his merchandise -- T-shirts, tote bags, key chains.
"People have said, 'Oh, you're taking sides.' I'm not taking sides. It's just that I can't get the artifacts" for the Republican ticket, headed by John McCain.
Wood said she secured two dozen white T-shirts a while back, bearing the portraits of McCain and Palin. They went like hot cakes because no one was selling them locally, she said.
On Monday, she eagerly awaits Palin's visit -- as well as the arrival of the mailman. Wood's order of more than 100 T-shirts and three-dozen baseball caps is scheduled to arrive hours before the rally.
But Wood doesn't mix business with politics. She held her cards close when I asked her whom she supported for president.
"You know how it how it is; you do not discuss your vote. It's like religion," she added.
Wood will have plenty of customers when she sets up this week at the stadium for the rally.
The popular vice presidential candidate and governor of Alaska has a strong fan base in the Roanoke Valley, judging from several people I spoke with last week.
"She's young, she's fresh, she has great ideas," said Kristin Musser of Christiansburg. She hopes to attend the rally.
"She's a mother. I just feel like she's very in tune to what's happening ... just change. She gets me fired up," the radio account executive said.
Everyone talked about how Palin's addition to the ticket provided an instant infusion of energy and excitement to McCain's lethargic campaign.
"That turned me from, 'Oh, I'm voting for McCain,' to 'Hell yeah, I'm voting for Sarah Palin and McCain,' " said John Brill, his voice transforming from a near yawn to excitement.
The 28-year-old Roanoke man, who plans to attend the rally, noted his admiration for Palin's fiscal conservatism and executive experience.
"She has a record of lowering taxes. She's really good on energy, and that's what this country needs," said Brill, a graphic designer.
Palin's faith and anti-abortion beliefs are a big draw for Heather Bonorden.
"Her morals very closely match our morals," Bonorden said, referring to her husband, Steve, and their sons, 12-year-old Nick and 11-year-old Sean. "Pro-life, her Christianity -- all that stuff."
Bonorden said she appreciated McCain's fiscal conservatism, but "John McCain doesn't necessarily come as close to our values as Palin does."
"When we found out who his running mate was, finding out more about her as she was revealed and the things she believes in, it solidified our decision," said Bonorden, who secured her tickets online to see Palin.
Gina Hawkins of Roanoke went to the local Republican headquarters office to secure seven tickets for herself, her husband, their two daughters and other family members.
Hawkins said she was familiar with Palin before McCain picked her.
The mother of two daughters said she was impressed with the Alaska governor after reading an article about her decision to carry the pregnancy of her youngest child, Trig, to term knowing he would be born with special needs.
"Pro-life is the bottom line for me," Hawkins said.
Her 12-year-old daughter is a huge fan of Palin's as well.
"She's already wearing her Sarah Palin-John McCain button," Hawkins said, adding that her daughter enjoys talking about the election.
I spoke with Palin supporters on the day that news of her pricey duds made a splash. They agreed it was "a nonstarter," as Hawkins put it.
"A girl has to look good. They had to dress her up," Musser said, pointing out that Obama wears nice suits and McCain wears Ferragamo shoes.
"She's keeping up with the Joneses," she said laughing. But when asked whether Palin's high-end shopping spree detracts from her message of being the ticket of a Joe the Plumber working class, she turned serious and added, "Absolutely not."
"When you spend $8,000 for a toilet seat, I guess it's all in perspective, I suppose," she added.
