Jan 31, 2012

DC trip

Kari Frisch of the CLC speech faculty was the only Minnesotan attending the Dec. 6-10 United Nations World Food Program White House Community Leadership Series in Washington, D.C. She had taken a class last fall offered by the organization and the ONE.Org Campaign that focused on global hunger and advocacy. As part of that course, Kari created a social networking advocacy, the Eleventh Hour Challenge, to raise money and awareness to combat local and global hunger. Her effort enlisted followers of her Facebook page to pledge resources for the cause. “It was an exciting surprise that came at the end of the class,” said Kari. “We were invited to Washington to be part of the White House Leadership Series.”

The staff at ONE organized an advocacy day on Capitol Hill as part of the event. Meetings were arranged with the staffs of Senators Al Franken and Amy Klobuchar as well as Rep. Chip Cravaack.
“Senator Franken’s office had on a wall 30 pennants from Minnesota schools, including Central Lakes College,” Kari noted in her five-minute, digital video report of the trip.
Kari received tickets to the gallery, where she was able to watch Klobuchar preside over the Senate floor.
“It was interesting to see democracy at work inside and outside the Capitol,” she said, illustrating the experience with a shot of Occupy Washington protesters of domestic and foreign policies.
The trip included several tours of special sites, such as the Newseum, National Museum of American Indians, U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum, Supreme Court Building, Library of Congress, historic monuments and architecture, and the Eisenhower Building, where national dignitaries led meetings focused on issues of human welfare on a global scale.
“It kept me busy, as there was a lot to do and see,” she said.
The group enjoyed a tour of the White House, which was decked out for the holiday season.