Darcy Burner, after the fire that destroyed her house in 2008
(Ellen M. Banner/The Seattle Times)
So, we weren't there with a quilt
four years ago for Darcy Burner after her house fire. She could have really, really used a quilt by
Sara R and
Ann/winglion in the immediate aftermath of that devastating day. If you weren't back then and missed the story: four years ago
this week her brilliant son Henry, then just 5-years old, woke the family at 7:45 on a Tuesday morning because he smelled smoke. That smoke was from a faulty lamp that was in Henry's bedroom. Because of his quick action, the family—including their 8-month old puppy—was saved (though the cat didn't make it).
But everything the family owned, the house and all its contents, were destroyed. As a community, as Darcy's extended family, we stepped up. She was in the middle of an incredibly competitive campaign for what was then the congressional seat for Washington's 8th district, and took over fundraising for a few weeks, to give her the time to deal with putting her life back together. Which she did, in a typically determined and successful way.
Well, if you weren't around to help out Darcy in that time of need, now's your chance. She has her house back, and her house is now in District 01, a more Dem friendly environment. It's so friendly that there's a whole raft of people running in the Dem primary for the seat. The election is on August 7th, so this month the Community Quilt project has chosen to work on getting Darcy a win in this primary. Here's Sara R's explanation from her introduction diary:
The entire month of July will be a quilt fundraiser for Darcy Burner, candidate for Congress, WA-01. There will be a drawing for the quilt signed in Providence at NN12 the first week in August. Everyone can get one chance per day, each and every day in July by EITHER donating $10 or more to Darcy Burner's campaign through a special Act Blue page which I will post on July 1, OR by writing a 50-word-or-less essay on this topic: How can we bend the arc of history more towards justice for all?. Send essays to winglionquilts AT gmail DOT com with "Darcy Burner" in the subject line. To recap, earn an equal chance once a day every day in July by either donating or sending a short essay (one or the other), every day in July. That means everyone can have as many as thirty-one equal chances in this drawing. The first week in August, I will find a neighborhood child to do the drawing and someone will become the new owner of the quilt.
Win, win, right? You help out Darcy Burner, and you get a chance in the drawing for the quilt. Which you know is going to be beautiful. You've seen the quilts they do, right?
But more, you'll be helping Darcy represent WA-01, but more importantly represent us in Congress next year. I've considered Darcy a friend, a good friend, since I met her during her first run in 2006. (Really? Six years? How in the hell did that happen? Friendship aside, I've been on the ground with Darcy, both in 2006 and 2008. I've gone to house parties with her. I've watched her do call-time (her dedication to this includes getting up at 5:00 in the morning to make the calls to the East coast, on the phone asking for money, the thing every candidate loathes). I've gone door-to-door with her in the cold November rain. And I found her an invaluable ally as she was trying to build a bridge between us on the outside and the Congressional Progressive Caucus at Progressive Congress.
Quite simply, Darcy rocks. Because of her intelligence, her tenacity, her progressive principles. There's a lot about Darcy that scares a lot of people, like her willingness to challenge all of us, but particularly the status quo. Frankly, as I said in a comment to that amazing diary from digby about here, "Darcy tends to scare the shit out of the establishment. Which is pretty much why we need her in Congress."
Help her get there.