The Associated Press

Fri, May 9, 2008 (2:29 a.m.)

Aaron Alpern, 46, and his wife live in Chicago and have a combined income of $30,000. They have a 4-year-old son. Alpern's an actor, and not always employed. He says it's hard to pay the bills each month, but they've managed to contribute to Obama four or five times online, about $50 at a time. "I plan on giving every time I have a chance," he says. "He has excited me in a way that no other candidate has." Alpern says he's been particularly motivated by one of Obama's frequent campaign pitches: "The change you're waiting for is you." He has also helped the campaign by making phone calls to Texas voters, and adds, "I also know I'll work for him again before this election is over."

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Larry Levine, 59, lives in tiny Hinton, W.Va., where he co-owns a theater and serves as the chair of two community organizations. He's not sure exactly how much he's given to Obama, but says he gives $50 or $100 online every few weeks and plans to keep doing that until he hits the legal limit of $2,300 for the primary election. Hinton likes Obama's "sense of the world" and his life history, which spans two continents. "Something else I appreciate about his candidacy is the level of integrity and respect throughout the debates, in trying to keep the discussion on issues rather than personality," Levine says. Levine says hardly anyone would see an Obama sign on his gravel road, but he keeps an Obama sticker on the window of his car.

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Timothy Sweeney, 24, is a medical student at Duke University and lives in Durham, N.C. He did his undergraduate work in Chicago, where Obama made an impression on him with his "high-minded approach to things." Sweeney has given about $300 online overall, starting with a contribution to Obama's exploratory campaign in January 2007. Obama was "just an honest decent man and I felt like somebody like that should be in the race," Sweeney says. He says he's willing to contribute another $100 to $150 to Obama, but probably only if the candidate makes it to the general election and adopts a more centrist policy in that race. "I don't think at this point donations would make a difference in terms of Hillary vs. Obama." He says he doesn't have time to volunteer for the campaign but did take seven hours to catch Obama speaking during the North Carolina campaign. "The energy inside the arena was really quite pumping," he said.

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John Jolly, 77, is a retired librarian who lives in Portland, Ore. He's donated online three or four times, totaling a few hundred dollars. He sees Obama as bringing "something new to the whole thing." Asked to explain, he adds: "Obama believes in talking to people, talking to enemies as well as friends and I believe in that, too." Jolly says he's given multiple times because Obama asked him to. "Every once in a while I felt like I had to chip in and help the cause." He expects to contribute again. "It's very simple," he said. "It's done in a couple of minutes."