Twenty years ago, artist Sheryl Oring embarked on a mission with a simple yet profound tool: a manual typewriter. Her project, I Wish to Say, invited people to express their thoughts directly to the U.S. president. Oring, dressed as a 1960s secretary, created a public office where she typed participants’ messages verbatim onto postcards. Each original was sent to the White House, while a carbon copy was preserved for her archive.

To date, Oring has typed 4,314 postcards across hundreds of locations in the United States, from parks and town squares to college campuses and festivals. This fall she is visiting university campuses, parks, and libraries across the country to encourage civic participation in this critical election. Oring, formerly a professor in the UNCG School of Art, will be on the UNCG campus during Hispanic Heritage Month. Join her in this powerful act of civic engagement, and make your voice heard!