This Monday the 4th, I began our August “crunch” to meet with our respective Congressman and Senators while they are in recess. Many members use the August congressional recess to host town halls and forums in their communities – so check out their websites for a schedule to meet up with yours. If you can go, wear a ONE T-shirt and use your voice for the world’s poorest people. These events are free and open to the public so it is a great opportunity to let your representatives in Congress know that you care about fighting extreme poverty and global disease.

My first town hall meeting of this August’s recess was with Congressman Christopher Carney. About 40-50 of his constituents came and spoke directly with the congressman about issues that are important to them.

After the meeting concluded, I was able to meet with Congressman Carney and his Chief of Staff. I made sure to thank him for his support of the AIDS, TB and Malaria funding bill PEPFAR and spoke with him about ONE Vote ’08. Lastly, I mentioned a few of the amazing things our volunteers have accomplished in Pennsylvania and asked if it might be possible to set up a meeting with him and ONE members from his district.

All in all, this was a great experience and fantastic exposure for ONE and the world’s bottom billion people.

-Brian Sweeney, Pennsylvania ONE Field Organizer