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Hey y’all, I wasn’t planning to post anything today, but I just came across this old photo of me and my mom, and I thought I’d send a quick note.
When I see this, I think about how much my mom went through while she was raising me on her own.
From an early age, I remember her sitting at the kitchen table – head in her hands sometimes – budgeting to get us to payday, eating ramen noodles for dinner a lot, and saying a little prayer as she swiped her debit card at the grocery store.
I treated our local bookstore like a library, sitting in the stacks and reading books cover to cover because we couldn’t afford to buy them. And I practically lived at our local YMCA when my mom worked late, because there was nowhere else to go.
I’m telling you all of this because I want you to understand where I’m coming from when I talk about fighting for our families.
Raising a kid on a single parent’s salary was barely possible when I was growing up, and it’s even more out of reach today. Parents are working harder than ever with less to show for it. We can and must do better.
Every family deserves to be able to put food on the table, go to the doctor when they need to, have a safe roof over their head, and send their kids to a good school.
There is no excuse – especially in a country as wealthy as the United States – for every family not to have these opportunities. But right now we’re going backward. Our economy is rigged for the wealthy, and our elected officials are making things worse, not better.
It’s frustrating. And I know it’s easy to get caught up in the negative. But the main reason I wanted to share this photo with you today is because it helps keep me hopeful. It reminds me of everything good out there that is worth fighting for. All of the single moms and good parents who just want to give their kids the best possible life. That’s what I’m thinking about every day on the campaign trail; that’s what keeps me going during the long car rides and late nights.
I learned a lot from my mom but these are the three things that have stuck with me the most: Work hard. Seize every opportunity. Help others when you can.
Those are the lessons I took to Baylor, the NFL, law school, the Obama administration, and Congress that I’m passing on to my own children. And I promise you, that’s what I’ll take to the Senate – the determination to work hard and make a difference for my kids, your kids, and all the families out there who deserve it.
If you’re in this fight with me – and you’d like to make sure we can make it to the Senate next year – please chip in whatever you can before our critical end-of-quarter FEC deadline on Tuesday.
Thanks for joining me on this trip down memory lane, and for being a part of this movement to drive meaningful change in our communities.
Colin
Colin Allred is a fourth-generation Texan, former NFL linebacker, and Democratic congressman running for U.S. Senate. Multiple polls already show him in the lead – including the most recent poll from this race that has him up by 2 points – but with corporate PACs and right-wing millionaires pouring money into Texas to stop him, he relies on supporters like you to fund his campaign. With his major FEC quarterly deadline coming up, our campaign needs to raise $350,000 before Tuesday – will you make a donation today to help Colin deliver real change for Texas families?
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