About 50 Kansans were part of the crowd of 2,000 at AFP Foundation's 2009 Defending the American Dream Summit. One of our Kansas attendees, Kimberly Tibbs, has submitted some photos as well as her thoughts on the weekend:

The first day, Oct. 1st, we had a delightful morning full of activity: information gathering, shopping the various booths and countless opportunities to network with other groups. People were excited to be here in Washington, D.C., to let our voices be heard. Hundreds of people milled around striking up conversations with other "Fellow Americans." Strangers did not exist! Even the elevators were chatty with talk of "Where are you from?" and on and on it went. What an exciting time to be here.

Film crew from Switzerland

Around 12:45 p.m., we started to board buses waiting outside the hotel for us. The ride to the capitol was an extra treat as it afforded us the opportunity to sightsee. As we crossed the Potomac, I couldn't help but think of George Washington and the other Founding Fathers who sacrificed everything to establish a country based on freedom ... freedom from government tyranny. This brought into focus my reason for being here -- to voice in a united, peaceful manner our unhappiness with the current direction OUR government is headed.

Upon our arrival at the fountain area, I was breath-taken at the sight of our nation’s Capitol. I snapped photos and mingled my way through the 2,000-plus crowd of people peacefully assembled to let their voices be heard. The crowd heading to AFP's Capitol Hill Town HallI discovered many of the attendees were like me and had never been involved before. It was encouraging to see the diversity in age, background, profession, and race of those compelled to be in attendance. I was totally at ease. As 2 p.m. neared, you could feel the excitement growing as more and more people stood up. Most all in attendance waved signs expressing how they feel. Once the speakers got under way the cheering started. We were uplifted, encouraged, motivated and moved to sympathy, especially for the Canadian woman who shared her story about Nationalized Healthcare in Canada.

I cannot be more proud to have been associated with any organization. I never saw an angry mob like the mainstream media likes to portray, just a group of concerned citizens who believe in the Constitution and are afraid their freedoms and choices are being eroded. This is why we all left the comforts of our families, homes, and lives to travel to Washington, D.C. so our representatives would "Leave Their Hands Off Our Healthcare."

More than 2,000 gathered for the Town Hall

You cannot buy the kind of enthusiasm I saw at any price. We all had the hope of peace and prosperity at this rally. We were all united in a purpose and that my friend is why I am already planning ahead for next year’s Summit. Hopefully, I can contribute more next year and maybe encourage another reluctant "first timer" to participate by sharing my wonderful experience.

Thank you to [AFP Foundation President] Tim Phillips for all his hard work, and to Derrick Sontag, our Kansas Director, and Jennifer Rezac, Communications Director for Kansas. I also want to send my heartfelt thanks to each and every person who had a hand in making this Summit a huge success. I can honestly say this was the most fabulous time I ever had!

See you next year in DC!

Regards,
Kimberly Tibbs