The Watauga County Democratic Party held a Labor Day cookout Monday to celebrate their volunteers and acknowledge laborers in the community.
The cookout, which took place at Junaluska City Park, had around 120 people in attendance and started with food and drink served at noon.
“This is just a celebration of labor, we want to celebrate the labor of all American workers, and especially the labor of our staff and volunteers,” said Jack Yordy, operations director for WCDP.
The WCDP is a volunteer-run organization that is focused on environmental issues, local issues and representation, according to their website.
The annual cookout has been held for over 20 years and focuses on the labor efforts done by the WCDP volunteers, staff and community members. Following the meal, Yordy introduced mayoral candidate and current Mayor Pro Tempore Dalton George and invited him to speak. His speech focused on the importance of laborers, specifically blue collar workers.
“They work their tails off but they’re not like politicians, they don’t tell you how much they work,” George said.
Afterward, Yordy called the staff of the WCDP to stand as he introduced them. He then commemorated John Prickett as the volunteer of the year, which came with a cake cutting ceremony and a specialty hat.
Emily Bish, chair of the WCDP, then spoke on the party’s efforts to involve young people in voting and politics, referencing their achievement in getting over 1,000 voters registered so far before the municipal election deadline.
“We try to promote students and young people, get them voting regardless of party,” Bish said.
Taylor Carnevale-Somersett, a senior political science major and president of The App State College Democrats, also spoke on the importance of involving young voters, especially App State students.
“All the decisions that are happening right now deeply impact them,” Carnevale-Somersett said.
App State College Democrats is a campus organization that works through activism on campus, organizing protests and getting students political fieldwork training and networking opportunities. They also work closely with the WCDP to get App State students into politics early on. Bish said that at App State, the WCDP is “very community centric with the college.”
The cookout ended with Carnevale-Somersett and other staff members of the WCDP asking for people to sign up as canvassing volunteers while attendees celebrated one another through laughter and cake.
“We’re hoping some people in the community will come and meet some democrats and realize we’re not monsters. We’re just people in the community. We’re neighbors, loved ones and we’re just here to fight for everybody,” Yordy said.
