The Ladies Lunch With Luke

I’ve been meaning to write this up all weekend, but I have to admit that I’ve been a bit out of commission with a wicked-nasty cold thing. Mock has been picking up the slack like a dutiful partner-in-crime, but I have to admit tardiness on my behalf when it comes to scooping the Luke Lunch we had last Friday. Bad Daisy. Bad.

So, who’s Luke, you ask? Luke is Luke Messer, a really cool guy running for Congress in Indiana. Even though Mock and I live about 50 miles apart from each other, we share the same district, and Mr. Messer happens to be running against the incumbent, Dan Burton, for a seat in 2010.

Luke met us at our favorite lunch place on the north side of Indy, and he brought with him his adorable assistant Matt who looked about 19, but in reality was in his late 20s (he was flattered that I referred to him as a “pup”). As I tried desperately not to hack up a lung during lunch, Mock asked several questions about Luke’s background, his political philosophies, and why he was running. He answered her questions with several stories from his life, and one in particular stood out in my mind.

Raised by a single mom, Luke wanted to try out for football as a self-proclaimed, “overweight” young kid. He did just that, and with his mother in the stands, he went through the regular tryout drills. As he lagged behind and came in dead-last on one, a few of his other potential teammates screamed up to his mother, “Ms. Messer – Luke is crying!” Several other kids said the same thing to her. Luke was all the way at the back – dead last in the drill, and indeed crying from a sense of pre-pubescent defeat and agony.

He said to his mom, “I can’t do this. I want to quit.” To which she responded, “Quitters never win, and winners never quit. Now get back out there.”

He didn’t quit, he continued to work hard, and that very same year, he received the team award for Most Improved Player. Luke went on to play football all through his formative years, and then played college ball at Wabash here in Indiana. Quite the story for a kid who was once dead-last and just mere seconds away from quitting altogether.

It was his mother’s push and then his own determination that kept him in the game. And it was that same determination that turned a conceivable loser into a winner. That kind of story – I’ll ALWAYS love. Not only from a parental standpoint, but also from a human will standpoint. I think it’s the same reason that Shawshank Redemption is my favorite movie of all time. Perseverence is one of those amazing virtues that I believe pays off. And Luke believes – as do I – that hard work and determination will allow you to conquer hurdles you may have never dreamed possible. In America, if you dream it – you can do it. I’ve always believed that. And, while it may sound corny to those who don’t believe in that type of thing, it’s anything but. That spirit is the essence of the American dream, and that notion has decayed a bit over the last few decades, replaced in many by the weakened sense of entitlement. Luke’s draw to run for Congress was as a result of several things – but this notion of a weakened sense of self-motivation replaced by that sense of entitlement was one of the bigger motivators.

As lunch progressed, we talked about his kids (so sweet you may get a cavity – see below) and his lovely wife. His wife, as it turns out, is ULTRA-lovely, as she’s a University of Tennessee graduate – she even got her law degree there, so she and I are already instant friends (GO VOLS). We talked about how he was representative of the younger Republican face – the “new blood” that is starting to rise through the ranks of the party. He believes that our site’s mantra – “because conservatism needs a makeover” – relates to him. And, he’s running partly to help give the party that much-needed facelift. A fresh perspective, if you will.

Of course, Mock insisted on a pic – much to my hesitation due to a general sense of “I look and feel like absolute dog crap today.” Between her not ever taking no for an answer and me being completely weakened by snot-overhaul, she got her shot (sans any face-smashing, much to Luke’s happiness, I believe):

Oh, and this is his ridiculously precious family:

For those of you who prefer the more traditional candidate information, you should know that Luke worked as a state representative under Mitch Daniels, as well as Executive Director of the Indiana GOP, and he’s a believer in good old traditional conservative principles.  You can learn more about him here.  While we’re making it an official Chicks On The Right practice not to endorse any particular candidate in the primaries, we are ALL ABOUT letting you in on the more personal side of the candidates we have an opportunity to meet.   We’re like Fox News that way – we report, and you decide.  🙂