Chris Lien for Congress

Part 2 of the Lien Machine crew's Southeast SD adventure...

Hopefully you’ve had a chance to see the first part of the Lien Machine crew’s journey through Southeast South Dakota (specifically Viborg, Wakonda, Volin, and Gayville) on Tuesday. If not, click here to catch up.

The next leg of our journey brought us to Yankton, South Dakota, and it was well worth the stop. After visiting various communities and businesses, we were able to put up quite a few Chris Lien for Congress bulletin board signs (which can be found by clicking here). We also stopped in a few places to talk with people about their thoughts on the political landscape of South Dakota and also had a great talk with a bird we came across (if you don't believe me, check out video at the end of the post).

It was great to go into so many businesses and have good conversations with the people there. Even if they weren’t able to put up our Chris Lien signs, everybody was very willing to their share thoughts and ideas on the political landscape and hear what we had to say about Chris.

We also got to cruise through a big portion of the parade route we enjoyed during Riverboat Days Parade a few months ago. It was much better riding the parade route in the Lien Machine than it was walking it this summer (I seriously think it was the longest parade we’ve walked in during this entire campaign). Yankton always has a good feel to it, so it was nice to be there for a few hours.

And as good as we felt about the work we did around the Yankton area, we enjoyed even more our stop at the Pizza Ranch in town. Trying to decide on a place to stop for lunch wasn’t easy until we found our favorite cowboy pizzeria in the world. After loading up with food for the day, we were back on the road to Tabor.

What’s that? You are on the edge of your seat to see what crazy shenanigans we got into in Tabor? Well, I guess you’ll just have to wait until the next post, because I’ve gotta go for now. But here’s some footage of our time in Yankton to hold you over until then:

Hope to see you tomorrow in Vermillion for the D-Days parade! If you want to join us, e-mail me at mike@chrislienforcongress.com and I'll get the details to you right away. See you then!

-Campaign Mike

Lien Machine crew cruises Southeast SD, part 1

Here’s a question for you: besides their general location in South Dakota, what do Wakonda, Volin, Gayville, Yankton, Tabor, Springfield, Tyndall, Avon, Olivet, Scotland, Menno, Tripp, and Parkston all have in common?

Any guesses?

Alright, I’ll go ahead and fill you in. All of those cities and towns enjoyed a visit from a Lien Machine crew consisting of myself, Chris “C-Money” Bohlen, and everyone’s favorite enormous blue van, the Lien Machine on Tuesday. And with so much adventure and excitement to be shared from our journey, I figured it was best if I filled you in on all of the action (if you stick around to the end of the post, you may just find some video footage too).

The morning started off bright and early in Sioux Falls, with a 7:30 departure on our way to Wakonda. In Wakonda, C-Money and I handed out brochures to some local businesses and hung up our Bulletin Board Blitz posters on the public bulletin boards (as well as the bulletin boards of people or businesses willing to show their support of Chris Lien). I personally enjoyed the large mural on the wall on Main Street that appeared to be painted by a school class.

After a great start in Wakonda, Chris and I headed to Volin, where we had a fantastic breakfast courtesy of Cindy at the Volin Community Café. We also enjoyed a great conversation with some of the folks there, including some of the customers and Trina, one of the café employees. While the conversation was great, Chris and I were even bigger fans of the delicious eggs and toast whipped up in the Volin Community Café and we highly recommend stopping in for a bite if you’re in Volin.

Now, the next stop for the journey was supposed to be Gayville, but a mishap in our directions took us on a lovely trip through Mission Hill instead. After cruising through that area, we were back on track and arrived in Gayville. It was quite quiet, but we managed to get in and talk with the lovely ladies working at the CorTrust Bank and, even though they couldn’t let us hang up our great Chris Lien posters, they did offer us some delicious candy and made the stop a fun one.

After that, we were off to Yankton. But, here is where I leave you with a cliffhanger. If you want to know what happened in Yankton, check back in soon and find out. For now, here’s some video footage highlighting some of the stops on the journey. Enjoy.

The Importance of Volunteers...

We here at Chris Lien for Congress have been fortunate to have plenty of great volunteers at the various parades and festivals we’ve been a part of throughout the recent months. Whether it has been volunteers coming into the office and helping with some of the campaign duties or volunteers who have helped represent the campaign at parades and events around the state, the Lien Machine crew owes a big thanks to everyone who has been a part of this journey.

Now, with 99 days until Election Day in November, we’re going to be working even harder to ensure that Chris is elected to the U.S. House of Representatives and can put a true voice of South Dakota back in Congress.

That’s where you come in.

You may not realize it, but volunteering to help with the campaign in any way makes a huge difference as we head into the fall and move closer and closer to Election Day. And it’s really not all that hard to volunteer. I promise.

As someone who hasn’t been entirely involved in politics until about three months ago, I’ll be the first to admit that I was a little nervous with my first parade walk. I felt good about it (as the Teapot Days Parade video will attest to), but I had only watched parades from the sidelines and never walked around to give out candy, stickers, brochures, and Chris Lien fans. But I can honestly say that, when all was said and done, my nervousness was certainly unnecessary.

Parade-goers are very easy-going and are a ton of fun. Not surprisingly, the kids are quite receptive to candy and the adults certainly don’t mind a Chris Lien fan to fight off the summer heat. It’s not as intimidating as I had feared it might be (this, coming from someone who is usually a pretty confident person), and, since the Teapot Days Parade, I have enjoyed each festival more and more.

Why the long-winded story, you ask? Well, the point is this: if you’re apprehensive about volunteering for whatever reason, we understand. But I think you’ll find that, if you give it a try, you won’t regret volunteering. It’s easier than it sounds, and every little bit helps.

And while parades are just one example of a great place to have volunteers, they are not the only volunteer-friendly environment available. We have plenty to do in both the Rapid City and Sioux Falls offices, there will be a ton of county fairs where we can walk around and distribute information, and we’ve got Chris Lien for Congress yard signs and 4’ x 8’ campaign signs being printed and placed as we speak. And these are just some of the ways you can help as a volunteer.

So, if you know there’s a parade coming up in your town or a county fair taking place in your area soon, let us know. We’d be happy to get you stickers, brochures, and a “Lien Machine” t-shirt (they’re all the rage this campaign season), as well as whatever other campaign materials you may want.

If you feel strongly on an issue or if you were impressed by a conversation you had with Chris, write a Letter to the Editor to the local newspaper and let the people of your region know.

If you simply want to come into the office and spend an afternoon making calls or chatting with Courtney, Drew, and myself in Sioux Falls (or Lynn out in Rapid City), swing by and we’ll be happy to hang out with you while we take care of the business that will help put Chris in Congress this fall.

Who knows? You might even end up on the blog a time or two (if you’d like to, obviously).

As a campaign staff, we appreciate everything you volunteers have done for us so far and we hope you will continue to contribute your time and efforts as we kick this campaign into high gear. If you know others that might be interested in volunteering, or if you’d like to do more, give us a call at either office (605-791-4022 for Rapid City and 605-271-8959 in Sioux Falls) or e-mail Courtney at courtney@chrislienforcongress.com. She is in charge of coordinating the volunteer efforts and would be happy to hear from you.

Until then, thank you for your continued support, and we’re looking forward to everything you volunteers will be doing with us in the upcoming months.

-Campaign Mike

Not new to us, but she's new to you...

Time to introduce you to yet another Lien Machiner, and while you may be meeting campaign Scheduler and Constituent Communications Director Lynn Kendall here for the first time, she’s been just about as active in this campaign as Chris has been himself throughout the recent months.

To say Lynn is an intense person would pretty much be the definition of an understatement. Lynn just got out of the Air Force in October after a ten year stint in the service. While she originally started her military career building bombs...yep…building bombs, Lynn spent the last few years serving in Korea, Japan, and Rapid City as a protocol director for the Air Force and taking on the tough organizational tasks of preparing the base for distinguished visitors (think generals and elected officials). When you spend a substantial portion of your career making sure the AIR FORCE is staying organized, you must be good at paying attention to detail and keeping things on schedule.

Lynn has also been married for eight years and she has a four year old son named Logan. Unfortunately for the family, Lynn has been insanely busy (possibly another understatement, even with the “insanely”) for the last few months working on our campaign. She’s more or less managing the West River end of the spectrum with Chris, so she’s not exactly on vacation every day. However, don’t feel too badly for the Kendall’s, as our new campaign crew members (including myself) are finally relieving her of some of her myriad duties. As she put it, “I’m excited to have more people on board who are ready to help Chris get elected.” As I put it, I’m excited to know how much easier you are making all of our lives, Lynn. Keep up the good work, keep holding it down in Rapid City, and let’s keep this machine running smoothly!

-Campaign Mike

Sioux Falls, SD – Minnehaha LDD

Some might say that the Ramkota Exhibit Hall is an intimidating place to speak. I might be one to agree. However, when you have so many who care so much about making a difference, you realize that it’s not the speech that counts, but the message you carry. And all who were there carried great messages!

Vermillion, SD – Elephant Luncheon

I’ve heard it said that every solution begins with a conversation around the dining table.  That sentiment could not be more evident at the Elephant Luncheon in Vermillion.  What an impressive and insightful group of 10 people.  Thanks for the fish!

Rapid City, SD – BHSU and SDSM&T College Republicans

As stated before, I am truly impressed with the level of knowledge and commitment of our college republicans. This night was no exception. Between the great attendance, tough and insightful questions (not to mention the thunderstorm shaking the building), it made for a very exciting evening!

Kadoka, SD – Jackson County LDD

The week leading up to the Jackson County Lincoln Day Dinner in Kadoka was an eventful and tiring one.  However, when I got the chance to meet so many people who work so hard everyday, it reminded once again why I am committed to this journey!

Vermillion, SD – SD College Republican Convention

If you’re ever concerned about whether our future is in good hands, just speak to a group of the SD College republicans. Believe me, you’ll feel much better!

Madison, SD – Lake County LDD

I knew that Hugh and I were well into campaign strategy when we realized that we were nearing the Brookings exit off of I-29. As it turned out, we had a great time taking the back way to Madison!