800 families fed in Albany, NY: Americans Feeding Americans, a project o...

My wife and I have supported this organization, and I am glad to see much needed resources for our Albany residents being given to them.  This is what it is all about, helping each other even with daily basics, and I plan to continue.

End of the School Year

Now that the end of the school year is drawing near, I would like to take this time to congratulate all the students for their hard work and efforts in making the grade from Pre-K to College graduates here in Albany. A special note of congratulations to all the students who won judging at their schools to move on to the Joseph Henry Science Fair; that is quite an accomplishment indeed; I know because my daughter was one of them. Special note of congratulations to all the spellers who spelled in the District Spelling Bee, the Regional Spelling Bee and the National Spelling Bee, another great accomplishment. My son won for his District and placed 19th out of 112 in the Regionals. A special note to all other students who had to deal with bullying during their school year or years, it is your strength that will bring you through the coming years. You don't need to change for them. Never give up on yourself. You are a very important person, no matter what your obstacles may be, don't forget that. Accomplish your goals and dreams despite their actions.

Benzie Johnson For Albany's Mayor 2009

All information pertaining to the issues and my resolutions for the problems follow after this entry. I will run again for mayor in the future.

Thank You

I would like to say thank you to all of my supporters over the years, and to all my campaign volunteers who worked so hard in achieving our mission and we did just that. We definitely had the best campaign of them all this year, and I personally feel that we won, based on the fact that we did our best, and made even more people aware of the problems that face our residents. We won because even more residents now know that I had the resolutions to the issues; we won because we did not cave in and quit running due to the wrongdoing that was done to my campaign and family, and yes this is all true, we held strong over these past five years and still ran. No one can take that away from us, no matter how hard they tried to threaten us, and my campaign workers jobs. We won, because we had the strength and courage to continue on and that is the sign of a true leader, none of my other opponents would have been able to do that; and to those who said "over my dead body will you run for mayor again", well I did it, and your not dead yet. My message here is clear to all young people and everyone alike, that if you want to do something in your life, because you want to, do not let anyone stand in your way of it. Those that knock it, mock it and make fun of you for it, are just jealous and insecure with themselves that they would not be strong enough to do something like that, and so they can't have anyone else do that either, for it makes them feel uncomfortable and bad about themselves and gives them a false sense of control and superiority by degrading you about it. Be strong and fight on; you never know who you will inspire by your positive actions. I hope that I have inspired many residents. Even though the election is over, my fight for the residents will never die, and I will be venturing into another avenue for the residents. Any future candidates that want to run for mayor or any position who need assistance, advice, etc. please contact me at speakupalbany@yahoo.com. Thank you again, but unfortunately, I have to say this, now you are once again in the hands of a reprobative city government.

Write In Vote Directions For Old Voting Machines

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When voting on November 3rd, be sure to bring a black or blue pen with you. If you forget to bring a pen, and there is no pen in the booth, ask a poll worker for a pen. Upon entering the voting booth please do your write in vote first. 1. Press and hold in the silver button at the top of the left hand column of the voting machine. At the same time, slide the silver door slot open that is directly to the left of the title/label for mayor. 2. Once the door is slid open, hold it open with one hand and then release the silver button. (If the sliding door accidently closes on you, just start again). 3. Once the door is open, there should be paper exposed in that slot for you to write on. (It is important to remember that the candidates' name must be spelled correctly and written in full, including both the first and last name for your vote to be counted as valid). 4. Write on the paper in the slot, Benzie Johnson. Let go or reslide the door closed, and your write-in vote is complete. Remember to bring these directions with you, and program your phone now, with my Speak Up line number (518)512-1329 to hear a recording of these directions over the phone on Nov. 3rd, and my Direct Access line (518)253-1028 to call if you encounter any problems voting. Need a ride to the polls call (518)438-8282. I thank you.