When I first met Silver Dreaming Wolf several years ago at a local political event, I wasn't quite sure what to make of her and her sidekick Janis Gregory.
I'm a quiet, somewhat reserved, almost hermit-type individual (social distancing is in my DNA). What I did know is that we were all at the same event for the same reason: to support American ideals and promote local politicians who shared our values.
The specifics of our conversation that day escape my memory, but obviously I mentioned my support for the Convention of States Project and my upcoming trip to Albany for our New York Surge Day to lobby our state legislators on behalf of COS.
Somehow the fact that I was traveling alone to meet fellow patriots came up. Despite the fact that Silver's recollections of that day have me inviting her to keep me company on the road, that's not quite the way I remember it.
As noted earlier, I'm the introverted loner who's learning to come out of my shell in order to be an effective servant leader someday. I'm always the person standing in the corner admiring the Silvers of the world from a distance, hoping and praying that their magnetic personalities will rub off on me, so that I can one day be part of an army of fellow patriots that will be studied for their success in saving our republic.
As I recall, Silver offered to accompany me on the drive to Albany so I wouldn't be alone. On the drive there from Staten Island, the main topic of conversation was the Convention of States Project, how it got started, what the goals were, why we were visiting the legislators in Albany, etc.
It was my first time going to a Surge Day, and there were others who showed up at our meeting spot who were also first-timers. Silver joined right in with us, soaking it all in, at one point even taking charge of directing us through the confusing hallways.
After that day, Silver became more and more involved, first as a general volunteer and then as a District Captain and every role in between, all the way to Co-Director of COS New York along with Lois Alimonti. At a critical point in her journey, I had to step back for a very long two years.
In November 2019, as I was starting to feel better, my curiosity peaked one day. I searched the internet for COS New York and found a blog article written by Silver. Imagine my utter amazement when I discovered how much my friend had grown inside the Convention of States Project.
In February 2020 I was finally able to resume my volunteerism under the guidance of our two brand new State Directors, who've welcomed me back with open arms. They will never be able to comprehend how much I missed them and every single person I've met and interacted with inside COS.
Just a few weeks ago, I had the pleasure of traveling from Staten Island to the Oneonta New York Gun Show with Silver to help our Legislative Liaison, Gerry Allen, at a COS table. We had a very successful day collecting petitions and sharing the wonders of Article V.
We also had a lot of fun along the way, thanks to Silver Dreaming Wolf and her need to detour and explore. Between Silver and Gerry no stone was left unturned. Every step of the way, I was impressed by Silver's knowledge and understanding of COS and all the volunteers throughout New York State.
I was floored to realize that for the past two years Silver has been traveling throughout the state and even to other states by train and bus to share her enthusiasm and expertise at table setups. Such devotion!
Thank you, Silver Dreaming Wolf, for being you and for giving me a living example of genuine servant leadership to aspire to.
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