Palin supporters rally along highway

PALMER — Politicians, family members, well-wishers and even a few out-of-towners braved the wind and cold Saturday to wave signs along the Glenn Highway’s frontage road in support of Gov. Sarah Palin.

“You’ve got to be a hardy breed to be out here on the street. Obviously we have that,” said Don Benson, a Valley resident who has worked on a number of Palin’s campaign and was one of the locals who helped organize the rally.

Benson started a warming fire for folks standing along the highway, between the Glenn’s Knik River exit and its interchange with the Parks Highway.

In front of him, Gwen Mitchell and two friends waved homemade signs reading “No Failin With Palin” and bearing a Photoshopped image of Palin posing sidesaddle atop a large, black motorcycle on the White House lawn.

“I just believe she’s a real person,” Mitchell said, saying she’s met Palin a number of times in more than 20 years living in the Valley. “She always remembers you. She remembers where you work.”

“I’m in awe of her,” said Mitchell’s friend Nancy Chambers. All three agreed that Palin is well spoken and has a very engaging oratory style.

“She does it better than Tina Fey,” said the third member of the group, Sandy May, referencing the Saturday Night Live comedian whose Palin impersonation has become an Internet sensation.

Farther down the line, Rep. Carl Gatto, R-Palmer, who is facing a challenge from Democrat David Cheezem in the upcoming general election, also was on hand to rally and show a McCain/Palin sign.

Gatto noted that, despite polls showing the Democrats pulling ahead, the McCain campaign continues to send out e-mails saying attendance at rallies far exceeds expectations.

“I’m guessing it’s for Sarah Palin,” Gatto said about the huge turnouts and rallies nationwide. “They want to see her. They want to see her in person.”

Also out Saturday were Cindy Gunther and Barbara Strang, who came to Alaska to visit friends at Fort Richardson but also to see with their own eyes a bit of the Palin mania in the Mat-Su Valley.

“It’s so much fun,” Strang said, noting that they really didn’t know when they came what they were in for.

Gunther agreed, saying, “It’s like when we went to Germany and fell into the Oktoberfest.”

About an hour into the event, Palin’s father, Chuck Heath, strode out in front of the rallyers, walking along the highway’s shoulder across a grassy median from the other sign-wavers. Benson shouted a joke about the “Obama side of the road.”

Closer to the interchange, Rex Turner made his office available for snacks and live music. A guitarist sang “North to Alaska” substituting the names of Heath family members for George Pratt, Sam McCord and other characters in the song.

Inside, another of the event’s organizers, Linda Menard, who is running against Democrat Erick Cordero for a state Senate seat vacated by outgoing Republican Senate President Lyda Green, said she was pleased with the turnout.

Menard, who has known Palin since the governor was a toddler, said it’s been a whirlwind of a season for her.

“Obviously, I’m running my own campaign, but I feel like I’ve been on a whirlwind for Sarah as well,” she said.

Contact Andrew Wellner at andrew.wellner@frontiers-man.com or 352-2270.