Despite the recent Packers loss and extremely chilly weather, Wisconsinites are still on fire celebrating their recent victory: recalling state Governor Scott Walker. Organizers trudged through serious snow to deliver 1.5 tons of paper petitions to the Government Accountability Board. They surpassed their goal of 540,208 signatures with a total of over 1 million signatures in support of Walker’s recall and 845,000 recall signatures for Lt. Governor Rebecca Kleefisch and four Republican state senators.

As the media quickly began reporting the story, my Twitter feeds and Facebook statuses read things like “1,000,000+” and “Don’t mess with the badger.” A close friend of mine simply posted a video of Lil’ Wayne’s “A Milli”  video. My phone started blowing up too with text messages from friends in Wisconsin. I longed for an insider look into what the past 60 days of signature gathering meant to the people of Wisconsin. I spoke to Angelina Cruz, a Wisconsin native and middle school teacher who was heavily involved in the recall.

Here's what she said:

When did you get interested in politics? I’ve always been politically-minded, but didn’t really get involved until the 2008 election, which was historical so I felt the need to participate. I’ve been volunteering on numerous campaigns ever since. It’s important to participate because the candidates you elect determine what will happen in your community.

What does the recall mean to you? Back in mid-February when word spread about the Governor’s proposed budget and anti-collective bargaining legislation, I accompanied my union, the Racine Education Association, and protested at our state Capitol in Madison. Teachers were directly affected and I wanted to make sure our voices of opposition were being heard.

Things just got more out of hand. The governor started to attack BadgerCare, women’s health, and don’t even get me started on Voter ID laws! He has disenfranchised thousands of people from voting—hurting youth, the elderly and people of color.

These attacks are personal to me. Cuts to education have a direct impact on my students. Many of my kids get reduced lunch and BadgerCare. These cuts would have hurt their chances to excel in school.

What was your role in the recall election? I helped run the only volunteer-based recall office in Milwaukee’s Riverwest neighborhood. There were no paid staff. We had over 300 volunteers helping gather petitions and contributed to 3.7% of the statewide total.

Can you share one story that helped inspire your work? There was this one volunteer, a retired professor from Milwaukee in his late 60s that had only 60 days to collect over 500,000 signatures. He ended up collectingover 2,600 signatures by himself! He came into the office every day and only missed three days! When you see ordinary people doing extraordinary things, it’s truly inspiring.

If you could say one thing to the Governor what would you say? Stop what you’re doing and think about how this is affecting people rather than the bottom line. When you start putting people first, everything else comes. You can’t sacrifice people for profit; it’s not conducive to society.

What do you have to say to the people of Wisconsin? You all are surprisingly beautiful people. I can’t thank everyone enough for being involved. This is truly the greatest thing I’ve been involved with and a true representation of our democracy at work.  —Adrian Garcia

Adrian Garcia is the Executive Assistant to Voto Latino’s Founding Executive Director, Maria Teresa Kumar. A native of Chicago, Adrian graduated from Marquette University in Milwaukee, Wisconsin and now lives in Washington, D.C.