Women can do anything

It was a great gathering of women, a powerful reminder of how strong we are and how much we can do.

The Women for Obama initiative launched this week, and volunteers from Organizing for America (OFA) — the President’s grassroots team — met in Pontiac, Mich., to listen to a kick-off conference call with Michelle Obama. We made phone calls of our own, too, asking other women to take action and get involved.

The 20 women who gathered in Pontiac are already actively engaged in the 2012 campaign. Each one has a story about why she supports President Obama.

Betty, a retired public health nurse, is passionate about the preventive coverage provided by the Affordable Care Act (ACA). She knows first-hand how much healthcare reform is needed. “The healthiest babies are the ones who are planned,” she said, “and whose mothers can take good care of themselves during their entire pregnancy.”

The environment is important to Pam, who believes in the President’s position on clean energy. “I want to give him a second term so he can work more on that,” she said.

Glenda and Sylvia both admire the President and First Lady for their commitment to American families. They applaud Mrs. Obama’s leadership role in the Joining Forces and Let’s Move programs.

“My granddaughter’s school has put healthier food on the lunch menu and they do more exercise, so my granddaughter has lost weight and feels better about herself,” said Sylvia. “President and Mrs. Obama do so much to help the people of this country.”

That message was reinforced during the conference call, when a volunteer from Florida shared her story about why she got involved. “President Obama is a President of the people,” she said. “He’s fighting for us every day.”

Mrs. Obama thanked all the women listening in on the call for getting involved, reminding us that change happens one person at a time. She asked us to do whatever we can to help the President continue the work he’s doing and protect the progress he’s already made for women and their families.

Whether it’s working a phonebank, registering voters, hosting a house party to educate friends and family about the issues or just talking with people one-on-one, women have a vital role to play in the 2012 election. After all, we play a vital role in this country.

Mrs. Obama asked us to step up. Everyone who was in Pontiac for that call already has. But we’re women. We’ll step up even more. Because there’s no limit to what we can do.