MILWAUKEE — With less than two weeks to go, final preparations for the Republican National Convention (RNC) are underway, including training the people who will help to pull off the major political event.
It is going to take thousands of volunteers to make the 2024 RNC a reality, so there are plenty of questions about who is helping, where they are from, and what they are going to be doing.
Heather Barrie from the Town of Erin is no stranger to lending a helping hand, though never to a cause quite the size of this month’s convention.
“All my life, volunteer has sort of been my middle name, so I know that it takes a lot of manpower to make something like this go off without a hitch,” Barrie explained.
Barrie, who spends most days working remotely as a marketing manager, will, for one day, become somewhat of a tour guide and help those staying at hotels in the suburbs.
“Primarily, it will be helping any of the guests and delegates that are coming to the epicenter here for the convention to make sure that they have the right credentials, the baggage,” Barrie said.
Bill and Mary Kelly of Milwaukee, who are retired, have more time, so helping with the convention all four days in a city they know well just made sense.
“This is such a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to have the convention here. It may not happen ever again in our lifetime for sure, so we just wanted to be part of that and participate and volunteer our time and show off this great city that we call home, that we love so much,” Bill Kelly said.
“I have had jobs where I’ve done a lot of traveling around the city, so I know my way well. I know a lot of the places to go if people come to visit and whatnot, so we kind of wanted to show that off and just tell people what we like about the city and help them,” Mary Kelly added.
Regardless of their roles, many volunteers seem to share the same goal: to put Milwaukee on the map.
“Enjoy the positive vibes that this is going to bring,” Barrie said. “Put all of our differences aside and let’s make Milwaukee a shining star, not only in the state, the nation, but the world.”