Grassroots Campaigns, Inc. On-the-Ground Staff

Click here to meet canvass leadership staff

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Katie Rooney
Canvass Director
San Diego, CA

Katie graduated from Emmanuel College in May of 2005 with a degree in psychology. While unsure of her next move, she knew she wanted to make a difference. Always passionate about environmental issues, she soon found a summer job canvassing door to door on a campaign to defeat President Bush's 'Clear Skies Initiative'.

Katie learned the importance of grassroots fundraising, and decided that political activism was the work she wanted to do full time. Starting as a canvasser, she advanced first to Assistant Director, then to Canvass Director in Boston before moving on to take over the San Diego office.

As a Director, Katie worked on campaigns to help the environment, win back Congress, and protect our civil liberties.

Suzy Jaffe
Canvass Director
Boston, MA

Suzy started with Grassroots Campaigns the day after graduating from UCLA in June 2007. Aside from a brief stint of canvassing before the ’04 election, Suzy had no real campaign experience. What she did have—aside from her active leadership in UCLA’s Mock Trial program—was a desire for activism and the wholehearted belief that if more concerned Americans stepped up and took action, then real change would occur.

Suzy started as an Assistant Director in the Portland office, helping to run a 20-person office exceed its initial summer goal by over 50%. After two months in Portland, she took over as Canvass Director. Her efforts in Portland have led to over $200,000 being raised for the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and the largest membership base ever for the Oregon Chapter of the ACLU. She now works as the Canvass Director for the Boston campaign office.

Natalie De Sole
Canvass Director
Minneapolis, MN

Natalie graduated in 2007 from Grinnell College, IA, with a degree in History. During college, one month after Hurricane Katrina hit, Natalie organized and led a group of 30 students to help with Katrina Disaster relief. Seeing first hand the impact of global warming and the US government's failure to help those in need angered and frustrated Natalie. The belief that people deserve more propelled her to apply to Grassroots Campaigns in 2007.

Since then, Natalie has worked on five projects in four cities across the country, from Assistant Directing in Denver training activists and campaigning on behalf of Howard Dean's 50 State Strategy, to organizing the largest student global warming conference ever with PowerShift. Currently, Natalie is leading a campaign for sustainable solutions to poverty on behalf of Save the Children in Minnesota.

Erik Shoemaker
Canvass Director
Minneapolis, MN

Erik graduated from the College of Wooster in 2007 and spent a year working in the D.C. Canvass office. In college, he spent most of his time studying community organizing and immigrant rights. After doing research and work in Los Angeles, CA and Arizona on the challenges faced by immigrant communities, he realized that we needed to get politicians in office who actually understand how policy affects all people in the U.S. In D.C, he has worked on a variety of campaigns. His office launched a canvass with the League of Conservation Voters and in January of 2008 they helped elect a progressive Democrat, Donna Edwards, to Congress. Erik is currently running the Minneapolis canvass office.

Meredith Zeitzer
Assisstant Director
Philadelphia, PA

Meredith came to Grassroots Campaigns in the summer of 2007 hoping to learn about canvassing and what a political campaign entailed. Like most Americans, she knew the Bush administration was driving our country into the ground and it was impossible to sit back and watch. So Meredith began canvassing for the Democratic National Committee, as well as the American Civil Liberties Unionin the Boston office. Soon thereafter she was leading teams of canvassers herself and realized that canvassing on behalf of the DNC and the ACLU was not just another "summer job". After graduating from Tufts University with a dual degree in English and French Literature, she began work as an Assistant Director in the Philadelphia Street Office.

Jeremy Todd
Assistant Canvass Director
New York City, NY

Jeremy graduated from Harvard University in 2004. Fed up with the direction of the country, he decided to start canvassing. Immediately he became one of the highest performing canvassers in the country and then part of the directing team for the New York City office. During his time with Grassroots Campaigns, Jeremy has been able to help groups ranging from the American Civil Liberties Union to the Democratic National Committee to Save the Children.

Michael Moeder
Canvass Director
New York City, NY

After graduating from Kansas State University, Michael spent time with the Peace Corps in Kazakhstan. Watching the Bush administration from afar, he became increasingly frustrated. Upon returning to the States in the summer of 2006, he started working with Grassroots Campaigns as a field manager in the New York City canvass office. By the fall, he was working on MoveOn.org’s Call For Change campaign to take back Congress. Since then, he’s become Lead Director for the NYC canvass office.

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