The Jeff Smith Movie

We made the trip the old movie house in the Loop (see above entry) called "The Tivoli" to see a movie that documented the recent experience of one of my high school classmates, Jeff Smith. In 2004, Jeff made a bid to win the Democratic nomination for the Congressional seat opened up by the recently retired Richard Gephardt. Watching the movie and seeing all of Jeff's hard work made me so proud of my old school and my graduating class which yielded a diverse collection of people who are engaged in wide range of worthwhile pursuits. I remember Jeff as a kind person (whom I had a crush on in 6th grade!!), who everyone got along with. He was (is) a unique guy: a 5'6" basketball player who was the only white guy on our school's varsity basketball team. In college, he majored in African American studies and eventually earned a Ph.D. in political science. He has been a strong proponent of education and has helped start several St.Louis-area charter schools with rigorous math and science curricula. He ran his Congressional campaign on a platform of equity in public education. As a future teacher myself, his campaign focus captured my attention and support. While he lost the nomination in a close race to a member of a well-known Missouri political family (the Carnahans), he went on to win a State Senate seat in the most recent election. It was an inspiring story about a person who is really attempting to use his life to make a difference in the world around him. I have no doubt that he will do great things in service of my home state and hopefully in service of the country someday.