A smile, a handshake, a few political cards and conversation were the tools Glenn Lipsey took with him on the campaign trail Thursday.

With much of his door-to-door campaigning for Concordia Parish sheriff complete, Lipsey hit several hot spots Thursday morning, trying to see larger groups of people at one time.

From greeting those in the parish who could call him by name and tell stories about him to meeting the ones who have never heard his name before, Lipsey made some rounds.

Starting at home in Monterey, Lipsey began at the Black River Farm Supply for a cup of coffee at the roundtable with some friends &045;&045; farmers gathered on a colder day between farming season and hunting season.

Lipsey was making sure everyone remembered they needed to vote Saturday, even if it was the beginning of muzzle-loader season.

The conversation and questions melded from personal to political.

&uot;It’s getting close.&uot; &uot;Are you ready?&uot; &uot;How are you feeling?&uot; &uot;What are you doing?&uot; they said.

&uot;People said this is one of the most interesting sheriff’s races ever,&uot; Lipsey told the men.

&uot;I didn’t know I was that important,&uot; he said, breaking those gathered into laughter.

This was what much of the day was like, talking about the race and asking for votes. But that is what Lipsey said his campaign is all about.

&uot;I am targeting the common people,&uot; Lipsey said of his grassroots campaigning. There is no outside help from consultants here, he said, with his brother Will Lipsey in tow Thursday and his wife and other brother, Brad, lending much support on the campaign trail.

&uot;It doesn’t matter if you’re black, white, rich or poor, everybody wants somebody they can talk to,&uot; he said. And that has been his plan.

&uot;You never pass an opportunity to talk to people.&uot;

After the farm supply, Glenn and Will headed to Scott Tractor Company in Frogmore, talking and shaking hands.

With some stops door-to-door in Ferriday, talking to people in their yards or walking along the street, the political cards were handed out.

These people received a card, a polite &uot;please consider me&uot; and a small glimpse of the man other voters, earlier in the day, knew simply as Glenn, not as a number on a ballot.

Although he has worked his whole career in the parish &045;&045; about two years as a sheriff deputy under Sheriff Hubert Lee McGlothin as and a state trooper serving Concordia and Catahoula parishes since 1992 until quitting to run for sheriff &045;&045; Lipsey said through this campaign he has had a chance to meet so many people.

After deciding to run for sheriff kind of late by many people’s standards &045; in August &045;&045; Lipsey said he hit the ground running with only six weeks before the primaries.

&uot;If nobody even steps out to take that risk to make things better, we wouldn’t have good leaders,&uot; Lipsey said.

&uot;As one (state) trooper, there is not much I could do. As the chief law enforcement officer in the parish, I can make a greater impact.&uot;

Lipsey said he learned a lot through his personal campaigning.

People in the parish are worried about the drug problem, the largest crime problem the parish is facing, he said.

&uot;On the law enforcement end, that would be my first priority, to start a real war on drugs,&uot; Lipsey said.

His solutions are: to increase the number of officers assigned to the narcotics task force; start a highway interdiction program to teach officers roadside interview techniques to detect suspicious behavior; request more assistance from state and federal agencies; open the line of communication to surrounding, local agencies.

Also, he wants to build on the programs in place, like D.A.R.E., Drug Abuse Resistance Education. Lipsey said while it is a good program, he also wants to implement something for teenagers.

Continuing the trip through the streets, to senior citizen apartments in Ferriday and then to the Senior Citizen Center, just before lunch, and to Clayton, Lipsey talked with people, sat with people and joked with people.

Even at lunch, just sitting down for a good meal, there were hellos, handshakes, smiles and conversation for each person that passed.