The upcoming fall presidential election campaign is building with more excitement than I have seen in awhile.

I have always enjoyed following the national conventions of the two major political parties and analyzing the candidates. This year, it seems there is more interest in the campaign than in many years. I expect we will have a strong turnout for the general election day in November.

I spent a lot of time watching the Democratic National Convention this past week. In fact, I let my two children stay up and watch U.S. Sen. Barack Obama’s acceptance speech on Thursday night. I hope area residents also will watch the Republican National Convention next week. The conventions are a good way to find out details about the candidates.

It was good to see a full house at the Democratic National Convention in Denver on Thursday night. Obama, the junior U.S. senator from Illinois and the Democratic presidential nominee, sure has people talking about things. It will be interesting to see how U.S. Sen. John McCain of Arizona, the Republican presidential nominee, responds this week at the Republican National Convention.

If you aren’t registered to vote, I encourage you to do so. There is nothing more important than exercising our voting rights.

Also, keep watching in The Telegraph for local election previews. I think we always do an excellent job profiling the local candidates and races.

Several people in the Alton area have been reflecting this week on Carl Davis, the leader of the “Grandpa Gang” organization.

Davis, 84, died on Sunday, Aug. 17. Davis was one of my favorite people in the region, always working to help others. His greatest volunteer contribution was Christmas Wonderland, the annual holiday light display at Rock Spring Park.

Some don’t know this, but he was also a World War II veteran in the Army, serving in the Battle of the Bulge. He never talked to me about his war service, like so many of the other vets of his generation.

He grew up in Greene County and attended school near Greenfield, so we were fellow Greene County natives.

I talked to Kerry Smith, owner of the Illinois Business Journal and a former Telegraph staffer, who once rented an apartment from Davis, about him. She called him “a second father” and said he meant much to her in her life. When anything was broken at her residence, Davis was the man to fix things.

When the “Grandpa Gang” needed someone to devote time to the park display or fix something, Davis was there. He will be sorely missed by residents in The Telegraph area.

I can only hope that others will step forward to fill Davis’ shoes with the Christmas display. He would have wanted that.

Do you have a memory of Carl Davis you would like to share? Send it to my blog.

I can officially claim I have climbed to a top of a mountain after an experience on Monday.

We took a trek up 3,124 feet to the top of Table Rock Mountain, near Pickens, S.C. My father-in-law, Joe, wanted to climb to the top of the mountain to mark his 71st birthday. He said it would be one of the more memorable experiences of his life.

Climbing a mountain is not an easy task, especially with four children 7 to 9 years of age. I had to carry my 7-year-old daughter, Sierra, some up the mountain, but she made it on her own all the way down. It took about 6 total hours for our mountain adventure.

Table Rock State Park opened in April 1938, one of the 17 developed areas across South Carolina by the Civilian Conservation Corps. The Corps was part of President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal. It’s amazing we are still seeing much of Franklin Roosevelt’s vision across this country 70 years later.

My brother-in-law and sister-in-law built a house on Table Rock Mountain. It brings my mind back to proper reality staying for a few days near wildlife and in the pristine environment of the mountains. As my sister-in-law says, “the air is pure here.” It’s difficult to rise early when most of what’s around is the wildlife and birds chirping.

I was most proud of my two kids, my two nephews and especially my father-in-law for making it to the top of the mountain. It’s not easy to go up and down a mountain with every rock and crevice imaginable for 7.2 miles.

We met a pastor who provided some much needed water during the trip down and on the way up a couple from Greer, S.C. People around us were friendly and encouraging on the climb.

I also discovered Aunt Sue’s Country Corner near Table Rock in Pickens as a place to write my blog. The food here was fantastic. I am always impressed by Southern hospitality. In the South, it is common to hear “yes, sir,” and “yes, ma’am,” constantly. I told my wife I miss the politeness of people in the South.

We closed our day after the mountain climb in a waterfall letting the spring water drench us. It was a fitting conclusion to one of those wonderful days, one that will etch in my memory from here on.

Do you have a mountain experience you would like to tell me about? Respond to my blog. I would like to hear and post the details.

Alton Fire Department and EMS personnel were as busy as they could be on Monday and Tuesday.

On Monday, the departments had to respond to a situation near Forest Homes-Maple Park area near Cottage Hills where a meter reader was found dead.

On Tuesday, the departments responded to a heart attack victim near ConAgra, then a wreck out on Homer Adams in Alton.

I don’t think we often reflect about how these men and women deal with weather conditions, both positive and negative. The heat index was in the 110-degree range the last couple days, but still the fire officials and EMS people performed their duties.

I looked over at them from the Carrollton Bank in Alton on Tuesday during the crash and thought how hot they must be in their gear. Sweat seemed to just roll off the firefighters.

If you get a second, say a kind word to these people. I think they deserve it for what they do to respond to incidents.

Have you been helped recently by any of these workers? If so, send me your responses to my blog.

Class reunions are always an interesting experience.

This past weekend, I attended the Carrollton High class of 1978 reunion at the Lone Oak Golf Course in Carrollton.

Attendance was down some for the 30th reunion, but still some of my main friends were there. Tony had to be called a few times to come, but he did make it. It was great to see him again, even though it was brief.

The reunions take a lot of work on the part of the organizers, tracking down people, and I think they do a terrific job.

We are all busy today with our jobs, kids, etc., so I understand it being difficult to attend.

I had one person get irritated with me because I didn’t automatically know who they were, but once I was told her name I realized she hadn’t really changed, although no matter how many times I said it, she didn’t believe me.

People who did attend had changed. Some had gained weight, some looked better than they did 30 years ago; some looked almost the same.

For each of us I think it was an opportunity to return to our roots. I was most appreciative of getting to sit next to my wife, Alan, Rick and their spouses and Tammy, Jenny and her husband. Without Jenny’s work on the phone, Tony wouldn’t have attended. We had a chance to share a lot of things over the past five years. It was also good to spend some time with Tim, a local dentist, and enjoy his dry sense of humor.

I was most appreciative that Ruth Ficker, our high school typing instructor and class sponsor, attended. I admire her greatly and she is the reason I am able to type this blog.

When I got back to our country place, I had trouble sleeping. It seemed almost too much to absorb in one night, seeing the classmates, taking a trip down memory lane and realizing some things have changed permanently. Life is always an odyssey and as my dad always said, it never stays the same.

Do you have a memorable recent class reunion experience?

If you attended the Carrollton reunion on Saturday night, send me your impressions.