KALAMAZOO, MI - About 3,200 people found their way to Wings Event Center on Monday morning to hear Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders.

Many were Democratic faithful, there to rally Sanders to continue his campaign for that party's presidential nomination. Others said they had not yet decided for whom they plan to vote and wanted to hear first-hand Sanders' stance on issues.

Here is what some had to say shortly before Sanders' rally was to begin at 10:30 a.m. Monday:

Noelle Massey, 29, of Kalamazoo, said she wanted to feel Sanders' enthusiasm for issues that she cares about.

"Today I would like to hear some of his game plan for his candidacy and what he plans to do if he becomes president," Massey said. "But also to experience his enthusiasm for issues that I've been affected by for many years."

Among those issues, she said, is his pledge to make college more affordable. A graduate student of communications at Western Michigan University, Massey said she is carrying about $50,000 in student debt.

"I truly believe in Bernie Sanders' stance on equality for all," she also said. She said she thinks the rich tend to determine policy with their money and resources. She hopes Sanders' election will change that.

"I think he pays attention to people who have been ignored and are disadvantaged," said Ken Grzanka, 29, of Grand Rapids.

He said he traveled to Kalamazoo to attend his first political rally in order to see someone who could become president of the United States. And he said he wanted to hear "what he's about, what he plans to do right for this country and how he can be a great president."

Grzanka works for a medical billing office.

Neal Money, 34, of Grand Rapids, said, "I just believe in Bernie Sanders' message of equality for the masses -- not one rule for the rich and another rule for everyone else."

An adjunct professor of English at Grand Rapids Community College, Money said he thinks the cost for young people to attend college is a travesty, and he hopes Sanders has a plan to correct it.

"These days getting a college degree doesn't guarantee anything," he said. "Some graduate with $100,000 in debt. You might as well go stand in the welfare office after you get your degree. ... My hope for the future is really to focus more on students because they don' have a voice."

He said he is also passionate about ensuring paid family leave for women - at least three months for any working woman who has a baby.

Western Michigan University students Jaleese Campbell, 23, and Shateya Smith, 25, said they wanted to be more informed voters. The pair drove in from their hometown, Bangor. WMU students are on spring break.

"I want to get more informed," said Campbell, a student of social work. "I hope to hear a lot about jobs, the minimum wage and what he's trying to do for the middle class."

Campbell and Smith arrived Monday in time to buy and put on "Feel the Bern" T-shirts.

"I just came to see what he's talking about," Smith said, "to get more information before I make a vote. It's really important to gather more information so you don't make the wrong vote."

Monday's gathering was Sheri Moore's first political rally. An independent who said she voted Republican for many years, including George H.W. Bush and George W. Bush, said she started to think their policies were "ludicrous" and "I'm tired of being a bystander and generally allowing corporations and the rich to basically control the country."

The 55-year-old Plainwell resident is retired from working as an administrative assistant for a local real estate firm.

"I believe in all of Bernie's policies and I think he's really the only one who is forward-thinking," Moore said.

She also said really likes the way Sanders "stands up for women's rights and minorities. He's the one who can bring this country together."

MLive writer Al Jones may be contacted at ajones5@mlive.com. Follow him on Twitter at ajones5_al