Coro Fellows Bring the West Wing to Life

The following post is written by one of our current Coro Fellows, Olivia Warren.

There are twelve individual Coro Fellows each year, and scattered amongst the more than quadrillion collective cells in our twelve bodies are at least several hundred unique goals and ambitions. 

Some of those dreams we state openly, readily. Most obvious is our mutual desire to serve communities. From that base, more personal goals emerge. These are the kinds of goals that we put in our Coro application essays, that we spoke about at Selection Day, that are glaringly obvious in the story of our one-page resumes. Come in on any morning and you will hear all of us advocating for our visions and railing against the inequities we feel are most insidious. 

Together, we talk about access and opportunity as it relates to healthcare, education, parity in the workforce, and political participation. We talk about how different systems of oppression--be they based on race, class, gender, sexuality, religion, age, or ability--function together to make our goals of equity hard to achieve. We talk about what we're reading and how it impacts what we thought we knew. We talk about our work and how we will use the tools we gain as Coro Fellows towards whatever our personal mission is. 

We never have time to talk about the weather.

But occasionally we get to nurture some of our other dreams, those funny, perhaps trivial bits of ourselves that we might not lead with at a job interview. We are encouraged to take control of our own learning and our own experience, and slowly people's fantastical quirks start to come out. 

And at last we have come to a point in the year where I am willing to make one of my own quiet dreams heard out loud on the Coro blog. Yes, indeed, the time has come when the Coro Fellows, and all of you, have the opportunity to make my dimples sink craters into my cheeks with the glee I will feel bursting forth from my soul. 

Folks, it's here. The Coro Fellows have the chance to recreate an episode of the West Wing. 

All right, that is not quite the full initial pitch I gave to the group when pitching this event. It may not even be the way the event turns out. Yet I feel I owe everyone honesty and disclosure in my intent in the planning of our fabulous Future Presidents Day Happy Hour, and I must be perfectly frank: I just wanted to make the West Wing come to life, even for only a few hours. I wanted the demagoguery, the witticisms, the alliteration, the obscure trivia, the spectacular suits, the early 2000s haircuts. I wanted it all! 

My cohort of Coro Fellows has been kind enough to indulge me in this zany vision, and next week, you can come join us as we try to make people laugh with our wry, comedic expertise and our political savvy. 

But wait! There's also much in it for you! Not only will you get to see us in our first live, mock debate (something you can tell your grandkids one day when we're on TV), but you can enjoy fabulous drink specials, great company, and take advantage of the opportunity to bid on a Dinner for Two at Habitat Restaurant or a Day with Councilmember Peduto!

So I ask you to please join me, and we Coro Fellows, in an evening of parodied political debate and satire in the extravagant setting of Andys at the Fairmont Pittsburgh. If you come early, I'm happy to play the West Wing theme song on my kazoo... 

Future Presidents Day Happy Hour

Wednesday, February 22, 2012 

5:30 - 7:30 p.m.  

Andy's at the Fairmont Pittsburgh. 

Suggested donation $10. All proceeds will support the 2011-2012 Class of Coro Fellows on their trip to Washington, DC for National Affairs Week!
Feel free to just show up or RSVP to Mphelps.fellow@coropittsburgh.org.