PHS Dems: Canvassing & Voter Reg
By Dionne Blakemore
The Pittsburg High School Democrats Club reformed in the fall of 2023 as the brainchild of Hadrian Zurek and Vivian Blakemore. They recruited several students to join them in their vision of educating others in the democratic process. In the last year, the students have attended three state conventions, and Hadrian attended the National Convention! Their sponsor, PHS teacher Dr. Nichole Foster, has been instrumental in facilitating many of these trips. During their travels, the students have visited the State Capitol Building, met governors, senators, and representatives on the state and federal levels, state party officials, and have become members of various state caucuses.
This summer, Emily Walters and Jack Bertoncino launched a canvassing internship for the PHS Dems and the Young Dems of Crawford County. This really kept the high school students engaged in the party and, under the mentorship of the Young Dems and Campus Dems, allowed them to learn the skills to canvass for candidates and causes in our county. Vivian Blakemore, Hadrian Zurek, Gabriel Black and Ania Brown spent the summer knocking on doors throughout Crawford County, helping to bring our county party to the forefront of door knocks this year, only to be surpassed by Johnson County late in the campaign season.
This fall, the PHS Dems filled out their executive board by adding a treasurer and have worked to find a weekly meeting time that suits most members. These kids aren't the kind of kids that sit around idly; they are involved in many academic and civic activities, so finding a time when they aren't otherwise engaged in Debate, Theater, Choir, Band, Key Club or sports can be a challenge!
As we in the county party know, Marcia Weeks is a driving force for voter registration in Crawford County. Vivian saw the opportunity to use her expertise and resources to set up a voter registration booth at the high school during the lunch periods on October 15 to help students aged 18 get registered to vote. Marcia, Dr. Foster, Vivian, Hadrian, and Gabriel gave up their lunch hours to man the booth and registered several students to vote in this election, and gave out numerous KSVotes cards to students to encourage their parents to register. Marcia followed up with one student and his mother; they both voted early at the Meadowbrook Mall.
We are so lucky as a party to have so many great kids who have made government and politics a priority in their busy lives. They have school full time, part-time jobs, rehearsals, and events outside of regular school hours, and some are even taking college courses as underclass high school students. Most teens don't put in that kind of time to just one activity, much less all of that and working hard to make our state and county a better place to live. When you see one of these wonderful people, give them an extra nod for what they do for us.
The PHS Dems are working on two pages withing the Crawford County Dems website. One main page, and one fundraising shop. Check them out at https://www.crawfordcountyksdems.org/phsdems
