"The idea came to George Davey like a vision. In his backyard,
which overlooks one of the busiest streets in this bustling suburb of
the Iowa capital, he would build a giant sign — a mini billboard, if you
will. And it would feature the photo of his chosen candidate in the
upcoming Iowa caucuses: Donald Trump. ............ Last fall, Davey, a
49-year-old computer engineer and father of two, casually mentioned his
plan to his wife — intentionally leaving out the key detail that it
would be a very large sign. He knew she’d probably stop him if
she knew exactly what he was planning — a full-on pedestal propped up
against their wooden fence complete with lighting. Better to do it and
ask for forgiveness later, he thought. ..................... Davey, as he explains it,
isn’t a super-political person, though he did once help lead a fight to
block an increase in the local sales tax. But he was a longtime fan of
Trump,having followed his career since he was in college. He’d read all
of Trump’s books and even posed with a wax figure of the New York real
estate magnate turned reality television star a few years ago at a wax
museum in Branson, Mo. A picture of him and his icon became a cherished
possession.
When Trump announced he was officially running for
president last summer, Davey was thrilled. He not only sees Trump as one
of the great business figures of the modern era, but also as someone
whose story is distinctively American. “He’s a great dreamer, someone
who has vision,” Davey said.
Sometime around October, Davey
began to put his plan in motion. He scouted pictures of Trump on the
Internet — looking for that perfect one. He settled on an image of Trump
that, as he sees it, is a bit ambiguous. Is he yelling at someone, or
is he just talking? “It’s up to interpretation,” Davey said. He sent the
image to a sign company in California, where he ordered a
4-foot-by-8-foot vinyl sign that could withstand an Iowa winter. When it
arrived a few weeks later, Davey couldn’t believe how amazing it
looked, but he quickly rolled it back up and hid it from his wife. ...................... The Friday after Thanksgiving, Davey finally began to put his plan in
motion. With his wife out shopping at the Black Friday sales, he ran
into his backyard. There, with the help of his father-in-law, he secured
the vinyl sign on the pedestal he’d designed, and they lifted it up,
securing it to his fence so it wouldn’t blow over. He saw neighbors
peering out their windows, puzzled looks on their faces, while cars on
the nearby Jordan Creek Parkway began to slow down. .................. “It wasn’t until we stood it up and went around to the other side to
look at it, that were like, ‘Oh my gosh, this is going to be wild,’”
Davey recalled, a huge grin on his face. .................... He ran back into the
house to grab his camera, but by the time he’d returned, cars were
already lining up to take photos. It was only the beginning. Now cars
are often stopped on Davey’s block, as people jump out to take photos or
selfies with the sign. And reporters from all over the world have come
to photograph it.
Some have tried to vandalize the sign. Some
have thrown eggs, which largely bounce off the vinyl. It was trickier to
remove the chocolate syrup a group of kids threw on the sign a few
weeks ago. Since then, Davey has installed two security cameras — one
that he can monitor from inside the house, and another that records
video, which he’s saving. ............ The only person who hasn’t shown up is
Trump, but Davey is still hoping. A few weeks ago, a Trump campaign
aide dropped a thank-you package on his doorstep, which included a few
T-shirts and a Trump yard sign, which he held up for his wife. “They
gave me this?” he said. It was minuscule compared to the one in his
backyard. “Seriously, they gave me this?”"
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