‘Change is coming’

Kendall Ratliffe felt overwhelmed by John McCain's nomination acceptance speech Thursday night.

"What really struck me the most is how much he emphasized that he was serving us," said Ratliffe, a Juniata College senior. "That came across so well. The way he talked about his history and that he's gonna continue to fight for us - I wasn't expecting him to say that. I think he's right."

Ratliffe and other McCain supporters gathered at Juniata College and Altoona's Holiday Inn Express to hear the Republican candidate accept the party's nomination.

A giant McCain sign, McCain cardboard cutout and red, white and blue decorations set the tone for the "watch parties."

Enjoying snacks and sporting McCain/Palin buttons, many still talked of the excitement surrounding running mate Gov. Sarah Palin's speech Wednesday.

Frank Stoy, treasurer for the Juniata College Republicans, called Palin's address "phenomenal" and said she opened the door for McCain's speech.

Lisa Kasianowitz, a junior at Penn State Altoona, also expressed excitement at Palin's speech and said the campaign would be boring without her.

McCain spoke of Palin during the speech, saying he's proud to introduce her to the country.

"But I can't wait until I introduce her to Washington," he said.

"And let me offer an advance warning to the old, big-spending, do-nothing, me-first, country-second Washington crowd: Change is coming."

Lindsey Lanzendorfer, a Juniata senior interning at the Republican National Convention in St. Paul, Minn., said she hoped to see McCain's speech from the floor and hoped he would paint himself as the "model for change."

"I think he's done a lot, but people are still unsure because Obama has done a good job painting himself as the candidate for change," she said. "McCain is just the maverick for change, and he's gonna shake up Washington, and he needs to make sure people get that message."

Kasianowitz hopes McCain's speech "gets people riled up" and people realize McCain won't be a third term of President George W. Bush.

"I just hope he points out the key issues for everyone here," she said. "And what he's gonna do for the country to create change."

Juniata sophomore Eric Frys, a Democrat, said he would watch McCain's speech to obtain more information before he votes in November.

"I figure most people here are Democrats, and I don't hear a lot about McCain," he said. "All I hear are bad things about McCain. I think I want to hear his viewpoints on key issues and how he'll help the economy."

Others wanted to hear McCain talk more about his willingness to work with Democrats.

"He's been a rather independent person, and I think that is good," said Betty Ruhlman of Huntingdon County. "You have to work both sides of the aisle to get anything done, and I think that's good."

Brenda Carey of Hollidaysburg wrote down one of McCain's quotes she agreed with.

"He talked quite a few times, and I'm glad he did, about reaching across the aisle," she said. "One of the quotes he even said, toward the end of his speech, and I thought was really significant, to use the ideas from both sides and to hold everyone accountable for what they do."

Mirror Staff Writer Jessica VanderKolk is at 946-7465.