Presidential candidate Senator Barack Obama often mentions his public service origins as a community organizer in Chicago — leading some people to wonder just what it is that community organizers do, how they do it, and what kind of person chooses organizing as a career.

A timely new book by Kristin Layng Szakos and VOP Executive Director Joe Szakos, We Make Change: Community Organizers Talk About What They Do — and Why, published by Vanderbilt University Press, explores the world of community organizing through the voices of real people working in the field. They work in small towns and city neighborhoods — women and men of different races and economic backgrounds, ranging in age from those in their twenties to those in their sixties. Fourteen in-depth profiles tell the life stories of a cross-section of the diverse people who choose the life of an organizer. Other chapters, focused on issues of organizing, are tapestries of experience woven from the 81 interviews the authors conducted.

“Community organizers work at their jobs because they are passionate, because they believe that change is possible, and because they enjoy working with people,” writes Kristin in the preface. “Although it’s not an occupation that leads to great wealth, community organizers can make a living at it. They get salaries, pensions and health insurance. They raise families. They do well by doing good.”

Here is a sampling of what these organizers have to say:

• “There’s no other feeling like seeing people actually create change. It’s amazing when people realize that they already have what they need to get what they want done. At the end of the day, it’s a really fun job.”
• “Something big and dramatic and powerful could happen. You could make it happen: not just see it or be a part of it, but make it happen.”
• “It’s about seeing that spark that happens in people’s eyes when you realize that something is possible, when you see someone just move from a place of ‘That’s just the way it is, what can we do about it?’ to ‘OK. Let’s do something.’”

Author William Greider says, “The most wonderful thing about We Make Change is that it’s so much fun to read. It’s like a personal tour of America where you get to meet the most engaging, optimistic kind of citizens — people who love this country’s possibilities and are working to fulfill them. It is also a deeply informative portrait of community organizing — how it works, why it is so important for our future.”

“We Make Change is an inspiring, optimistic book about the people who are doing the hard, creative work to renew American democracy,” notes Deepak Barghava, executive director of the Center for Community Change. “It puts a spotlight on community organizers, who are the neglected and hidden heroes that are developing the capacity or ordinary people to do extraordinary things. In these difficult and dark times, this book provides hope for the future of America. It should inspire thousands of people to find their calling in organizing.”

Activist and social commentator Barbara Ehrenreich writes, “Looking for a rewarding, meaningful career?” “One of the most adventurous careers available is grassroots organizing for social change. The pay is lousy, the hours are long, but you won’t find better company anywhere.”

We Make Change: Community Organizers Talk About What They Do — and Why is available from Vanderbilt University Press (www.VanderbiltUniversityPress.com) or by sending $30, which covers the cost of the book and postage, to Virginia Organizing Project, 703 Concord Avenue, Charlottesville, Virginia 22903.