Dutchess

This was a “kitchen sink” kind of day, where it seemed
that Jim did just about everything that a candidate has to do in an election.  Interview with Conservative Party delegates in Dutchess (check); meet voters at the Pleasant Valley Community Day & Parade, also in Dutchess (check); attend the GOP pig roast
in Poughkeepsie (check); put up lawn signs all over Dutchess & Westchester(check). Whew! What a day. 

Sept. 18 was a day where it seemed that Jim was in more than one place at the same time! He started the morning in Dutchess for the Stamford Community Day & Parade.  Then, he headed back to Westchester for the Eastchester Firefighters Picnic.  After meeting a lot of friendly supporters there, he went to Port Chester where Neri Bakery celebrated its 100^thanniversary with a great party for the whole community.  The final stop of the day was the Greek Festival in New Rochelle.  This event attracts people from throughout southern Westchester, and we think Jim met nearly all of them!  

On Sept. 15, Jim attended events with the Northern Westchester Bar Association, Northeast Yonkers Republican Club and Scarsdale Republican Committee. On Sept. 16, Jim headed to Dutchess County for Sheriff Butch Anderson’s Annual Golf Outing.  Jim’s not a golfer, but he showed his support by attending the post-golf dinner.  As always, Jim was touched by the welcome reception he received from his friends in Dutchess, in particular Sheriff Anderson. Later that night, Jim headed back to his hometown of New Rochelle,where he stopped by Cynthia Lobo’s fund raiser at the Davenport Club.  Cynthia is running for New Rochelle City
Court Judge.  On Sept. 17, Jim attended the Eastchester Columbus Day Dinner Dance. It was another great few days of campaigning and meeting lots of people. 

Jim's been so busy on the campaign trail that this blogger lost track of the posts!  Let's catch up with what's been going on.  The evening of Sept. 8, Jim attended the Westchester County Conservative Party annual dinner and on Sept. 9 took part in the New Rochelle GOP meeting. At both events, Jim said hello to many old friends and received a lot of support.  He took time out from campaigning to attend 9/11 services in Mt. Pleasant and New Rochelle. Then, on Sunday, Sept. 12, he was in Pawling for a GOP steak BBQ...next, he stopped at the Dover GOP event.  Both get two thumbs up. That night, the campaign team met to discuss strategy for the coming weeks. Whew! This blogger is exhausted just writing about this hectic schedule!! More to come when we catch up with Jim again....until then, here's a photo of some of our hard-working volunteers who helped put together about 500 lawn signs last weekend.
 

So, Sunday was just a super day on the campaign trail.  Jim, Jean and Michael headed to Freedom Park in Dutchess County for Sheriff Butch Anderson's fund raiser. Let us tell you, this Sheriff knows how to get it done! What a great event -- more than 1,000 people, a petting zoo, a jumping castle, a K-9 demonstration, live entertainment, a steak dinner...and the list goes on and on!  Jean and Michael were a little distracted with so much to do, but Jim kept his eye on the prize and must have met everyone there! He was so touched by the generous offers of support and lawn sign sites.  Jim looks forward to spending more time in Dutchess County. Thanks again to Sheriff Anderson (pictured below with Jim and Michael) for being a wonderful host and for welcoming Jim.  Oh, did we mention there was a celebrity at the event? Check out the flickr photos and you'll see a famous face (here's a hint: quack)!

Well, it finally happened. You know the old expression about campaigning so hard that you wore a hole in the soles of your shoes? Jim did it and the photo below shows just how much walking he's done on the campaign trail!  Today took him to the Indian-American Independence Day ceremony in Yonkers. This event celebrates India's independence from Great Britain.  Next stop was the East Fishkill Republican Lobster Bake (yum!). The third and final stop of the day: the Pawling Firefighter Parade. Jim received a great reception at all the events. Tomorrow, he needs to take a break to buy a new pair of shoes! 

Friday night, Jim met with many fellow attorneys.  First stop was the Yonkers' Lawyers Association Golf Outing at Lake Isle in Eastchester. Jim then went to the annual dinner for the Columbian Lawyers Association of Westchester (an Italian-American association) in New Rochelle.

Saturday morning Jim visited the Amenia Strawberry Fair in Dutchess County. After meeting a lot of wonderful people, eating some fresh strawberries and seeing a kangaroo (check out the flickr photos!), Jim headed back to Westchester to the Ossining Street Fair.

Special thanks to Putnam County Legislator Mike Kelsey and Ossining Councilman Peter Tripoto for taking time to introduce Jim to so many people. Make sure you visit Jim's flickr photostream.