John Volkmar is CU-Boulder grad student; essay gets him the honor
Friday, August 15, 2008 at 11:24 a.m.
Read more: Local, State, Education, Election, Military
DENVER -- The Obama campaign announced local Iraq Vet and CU-Boulder graduate student, John Volkmar has been selected to go “Backstage with Barack” at the Democratic National Convention in two weeks.
The 10 voters selected for backstage access for Obama’s speech include a retired teacher from Florida, a Republican law student from Ohio, a college student from North Dakota, and a veteran from Virginia. The ten supporters from across the country are allowed to bring one guest and will receive airfare and accommodations in Denver. They will attend two days of convention activities, including a private meeting with Senator Obama before his historic speech at Invesco Field in Denver on Thursday, August 28.
John Volkmar of Boulder was among those selected from a pool of Obama supporters who responded to an e-mail sent by campaign manager David Plouffe challenging supporters to write a 100-word essay on why they were supporting Obama and why they wanted to meet Barack backstage at the convention. He will be joined backstage with Barack by voters from Alaska, Florida, Indiana, Montana, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Virginia.
John served in the U.S. Army for nearly 10 years, including two tours in Iraq, and recently left to become an MBA graduate student at the University of Colorado in Boulder.
“After seeing the link between the country’s energy dependence and our failed foreign policy approach first hand, I decided to go back to school to work towards a more effective national energy policy,” said Volkmar. “Once I graduate, I hope to join Obama in taking on the influence of special interests and helping America develop a secure energy future."
Information provided by Obama "08.
