He's the final account from Rachel Bennett Steury of her travels on Bus#3.  Thanks, for giving us an insight into the your world  for the last three days! "Alright folks.  This is Rachel coming at you with our last day of the bus tour. It was long, eventful and bitter sweet.   Our final day together was both a relief, that we would soon find our way back home and sad because our Bus crew had seen its last day.  We left the hotel very early in the morning so that we could make our stop on time. (What a crap hotel by the way. They didn’t even have shampoo. What’s that about?)  Little did we know US Route 24 would be infected with detours between Napoleon and McClure Ohio. So, Benny, our faithful driver, was called to the challenge once again to beat the clock.   At 9:59am we arrived in Bowling Green, Ohio to meet the Ohio coordinators Kenny, Donnie and Dave and the two Cooper Standard locals that hosted the event.  Another symbolic moment, having our first Ohio press conference in the parking lot of a nearly abandoned mall tells you a little something about the shopping habits of the area…no one is shopping.  The event was great with folks from both factories speaking their truth at the podium.  Assistant District 1 Director Dave Caldwell joined Local 1042L President Woody Shelton and Local 1152L President Aaron Collins in putting the bigger picture into perspective for local folks.  The Buy America resolution that has been working its way around the country, was displayed in a poster board sized image to drive home the importance of passing it at all levels of government.  You couldn’t miss the resolution OR its messageJ   Moving on to Van Wert, Ohio we were welcomed by Pat Herman’s crew from USW Local 14742.  The union hall was packed to the gills with folks from all ranges. SOAR members, UAW members, and laid off workers were came to be a part of the campaign.  Folks from the shut down Kongsberg facility in Van Wert also joined us.  Several speakers addressed the crowd and Kenny and Donnie pulled out all the stops with their multi-media capabilities.  The music video “They’re Shutting Down Detroit” was played and caused lumps in the throats of many in the crowd.  USW Sub-District 3 Director  Billy Boyce presented a power point with information that dropped the jaw, let me tell you.  The balance between imports and exports of automobiles is shameful.  Take Korea for example.  It is very clear that Korean Hyundais and Kia’s are everywhere on our roads but we only export 5,000 automobiles every year to them.  Does this make sense?   USW Kyle McDermott brought up a good point about the media representatives that were in the room.  A woman from the local station had her video camera in one hand and her note pad in the other. She even interviewed herself.  At one time, she had help; a camera person used to be with her to make the news that much more easy to capture.  Everyone is connected my friends.   Our last Buckeye event was in Dayton and we had some time to spare for a great local meal.  We went to The Spot in Sidney, Ohio, and it surely hit the spot.  Thank you to the 100 year old restaurant for having the best black raspberry pie!        The Dayton town hall event began at 6pm at the Central Labor Council.  Hundreds of working folks packed the house to meet UAW Vice President Bob King, State Attorney General Rich Cordray, and many, many other folks connected to the labor movement.   Food and fellowship were abound and Mongo once again worked the crowd to sign our petition.  The Steelworkers Buy American resolution was positioned front and center and USW’s Donnie Blatt presented the oversized document to the elected officials in the room to take back to their councils and commissions to support domestic manufacturing.  What a great event! Kudos to Donnie and Kenny for their work to make this final stop a memorable one.   As I reflect here in the hotel room, I can honestly say that  in spite of the grueling schedule, the sporadic availability of food and water, and the lack of sleep I am glad I was able to be a part of the Bus #3 crew.  I was able to work with the greatest bunch of people that I may not have met otherwise.  Mongo Williams, the diligent SOAR member accomplished his mission of leveraging our “Keep it made in America” pins with every person’s signature.  Honestly, you can’t get something for nothing in this life; definately not from Mongo.  If you want to get a “Keep it Made in America” pin from Mongo you need to tell Washington to “Keep it Made in America” with your signature.    What a guy!  Our UAW brother Brian Babcock rose to the occasion in any way he could at every stop. From speaking to the masses to hanging up the banners, there was no task he would not tackle.  I would like to testify to the empathy Cheryl DeCero displayed at every stop along this bus tour.  She sought out the women in the room and made it her mission to make that connection; to tell them that they were not alone in this struggle.  Being laid off herself, with many questions and uncertainties in the steel industry, she understood…and listened.  I am a big Cheryl fan!  And to the stop coordinators for Bus #3, Kenny, Chris, Donnie and Dave: fantabulous work guys! You really shined.  Media was abound at every stop thanks to the work of Tony Montana and Kyle McDermott from USW.  When you visit the madeinamericatour.org website you’ll see the work of Bus #3 multi-media producer Rob Hess.  He really puts the plight of working people into perspective.  Best of luck Rob in your future work!   And last but not least; me, Rachel.  I’m the Bus Captain; challenged to be the one with the answers, the right answers at that!  Sometimes when you’re the Go-To Woman with the schedule to keep, the deadlines to make, and the pressure to deliver, the folks you work with will sometimes feel like telling YOU where to go, if you know what I mean.   Along with the good experiences comes the not so easy responsibility of keeping the bus on the track.  I am glad that Bus #3 rolled with the punches and we were all able to work together with respect and understanding.  Spreading the word across the Midwest was our primary mission and we rose to the occasion.  So, Bus #3; You rock!  See you on the flip-side. "