March 2004 - Cedar Rapids, IA
Camp Wellstone - Working on a Campaign: Tools & Tactics for Success
Since attending Camp Wellstone in June of 2003 Joshua Downey has been a motivated and busy man. Shortly after Joshua attended Camp Wellstone he worked for Grassroots Campaigns Inc. Then in 2006 he served as a Lead Organizer on MoveOn.org's Call for Change to take back the House and Senate where Joshua managed offices in New Mexico, Boulder and Denver. Currently Joshua is the Organizing Director for Grassroots Campaigns Inc. helping clients develop training programs.
Before all that activity, as the 2004 elections were approaching Joshua along with his friends and family were engrossed with the elections, particularly the Iowa caucuses. At the time, all Joshua wanted to do was partake in politics. But despite his passion, Joshua felt he needed the, "know-how and tools" to become active in the political world. And it was at Camp Wellstone that Joshua used his passion to gain that "know-how" and travel from observer to activist. While at Camp Wellstone, Joshua began to understand the importance of action-oriented politics. He learned from the trainers the immense need to have one-on-one interactions with constituents; whether from general canvassing and/or phone banking. Joshua believed Camp Wellstone's training in the one-on-one relationship shaped his outlook on politics. Moreover, he felt the dynamic; grassroots instruction is the best way to sum up his experience at Camp Wellstone. To this day Joshua feels the real life training he received at Camp Wellstone has motivated him in his busy political career.