Isle residents eager to see Obama's big day in D.C.
Published: Wednesday, January 21, 2009 10:37 AM HST
Tribune-Herald Staff And Wire Services
Hawaii is celebrating island-born Barack Obama's inauguration on TV, with hula dancers and at multiple parties from the islands to Washington, D.C.
Some Big Island residents have made the trek from the balmy islands to the cold of the nation's capital, and many more will wake up early to see one of their own be sworn in at 6:30 a.m. Hawaii time today.
In Washington, D.C., the parties started Sunday, and they'll continue into tonight.
On the rooftop terrace of the Hay-Adams Hotel, three of the state's four mayors joined musician John Cruz on Sunday to serenade a crowd of about 200 who gathered to toast Obama at the Hawaii for Obama Inaugural Gala.
"The excitement that people have, I think, knowing that we're going to have a new president, a new hope for the future -- it's just been a really amazing time," said Andy Winer, who served as coordinator of Obama's campaign in Hawaii.
About 500 people attended the first Aloha Inaugural Ball, where they enjoyed performances by hula dancers from Halau Hoomau i ka Wai Ola o Hawaii and Halau o Aulani.
Big Island resident Maureen Riley and her husband, Lionel, started planning back in June to take their two daughters to the inauguration.
Around Thanksgiving, they had to resort to eBay to find a ball gown and tuxedo to wear to the Aloha Inaugural Ball.
"We had to give our Social Security numbers to the Secret Service." Maureen Riley said.
Since cell phone service in the D.C. area will be sporadic today, with an estimated 4 million people squashed into one area, the Rileys bought walkie-talkies to keep in contact with their two daughters, Grace, 15, and Abigail, 10.
"Our kids are the exact same racial makeup as Obama," Maureen Riley said. "This is almost a pilgrimage for us. Every barrier has been broken but gender."
Tonight's Obama Home States Inaugural Ball at the Washington Convention Center is one of 10 official presidential balls, with a visit expected from Obama.
Lyman Museum Director Dolly Strazar, who was a Hawaii superdelegate, planned to attend the Home States ball with her husband, Louis Doody. Both are professional historians.
"To see something this major, such a significant change, to see a hapa-haole president, and from Hawaii. To me, that's a dream come true," Strazar said.
Elsewhere in Washington, the Hawaii State Society will hold an unofficial bash several blocks away from the Home States ball. Then there's also an Inaugural Luau, featuring Hawaiian music and island food including laulau, kalua pork, lomi salmon, long rice and poi.
"People in Hawaii always read about history in the textbooks. We don't experience it," said Sandi Yorong, a financial adviser from Oahu who has tickets to the swearing-in ceremony and the Home States Inaugural Ball. "I want to be there to capture the history and feel it and bring it home with pictures and stories to pass on to my grandkids."
Cynthia Orlando, superintendent of Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, got stuck in a half-mile line of people Sunday trying to pick up their tickets for the ceremonies. She was just there to bring a box of ginger cookies from the Big Island to U.S. Rep. Mazie Hirono.
"I was prepared for the cold," Orlando said. "I was not prepared for the lines."
Hilo High School teacher Mike Staszkow and a group of seven Big Island high school students flew to Washington, D.C., last Thursday.
Staszkow said the students were eager to attend today's inauguration.
"It's a way for them to live history," Staszkow said of the students. "They come back better for the experience. The kids are really excited."
Karen Welsh, a freelance writer for the Tribune-Herald, shared the sense of anticipation. A conservative who did not vote for Obama, Welsh nevertheless felt compelled to attend the inauguration.
"I am a spiritual woman, and I felt I was supposed to go as a witness," said Welsh.
To get a ticket, Welsh wrote Hirono a note, "laying it all out on the table."
"I am a Republican, and I didn't vote for him," she said. "They wrote back and said I had a ticket."
Welsh added: "People are so excited about this. There's a level of energy I've never seen in my life for a president. I am willing to support Barack Obama as if I had voted for him. I want things to change in this country."
Back in the islands, many more festivities are planned for today -- from small parties in Hilo, to upscale galas at Waikiki resorts.
The Democratic Party of Hawaii will sponsor a ball with tickets starting at $250 at the Royal Hawaiian Hotel in Waikiki.
In addition, the All Korean American Inaugural Ball will charge $100 per person for its party at the Hawaii Prince Hotel.
"It's awe and nonbelief," said Alan Lum, one of Obama's high school basketball teammates who now teaches second grade at Punahou. "It's surreal. you can't believe it. If you were to ask me, I can't explain. I'm dead silent."
Published: Wednesday, January 21, 2009 10:37 AM HST
Tribune-Herald Staff And Wire Services
Hawaii is celebrating island-born Barack Obama's inauguration on TV, with hula dancers and at multiple parties from the islands to Washington, D.C.
Some Big Island residents have made the trek from the balmy islands to the cold of the nation's capital, and many more will wake up early to see one of their own be sworn in at 6:30 a.m. Hawaii time today.
In Washington, D.C., the parties started Sunday, and they'll continue into tonight.
On the rooftop terrace of the Hay-Adams Hotel, three of the state's four mayors joined musician John Cruz on Sunday to serenade a crowd of about 200 who gathered to toast Obama at the Hawaii for Obama Inaugural Gala.
"The excitement that people have, I think, knowing that we're going to have a new president, a new hope for the future -- it's just been a really amazing time," said Andy Winer, who served as coordinator of Obama's campaign in Hawaii.
About 500 people attended the first Aloha Inaugural Ball, where they enjoyed performances by hula dancers from Halau Hoomau i ka Wai Ola o Hawaii and Halau o Aulani.
Big Island resident Maureen Riley and her husband, Lionel, started planning back in June to take their two daughters to the inauguration.
Around Thanksgiving, they had to resort to eBay to find a ball gown and tuxedo to wear to the Aloha Inaugural Ball.
"We had to give our Social Security numbers to the Secret Service." Maureen Riley said.
Since cell phone service in the D.C. area will be sporadic today, with an estimated 4 million people squashed into one area, the Rileys bought walkie-talkies to keep in contact with their two daughters, Grace, 15, and Abigail, 10.
"Our kids are the exact same racial makeup as Obama," Maureen Riley said. "This is almost a pilgrimage for us. Every barrier has been broken but gender."
Tonight's Obama Home States Inaugural Ball at the Washington Convention Center is one of 10 official presidential balls, with a visit expected from Obama.
Lyman Museum Director Dolly Strazar, who was a Hawaii superdelegate, planned to attend the Home States ball with her husband, Louis Doody. Both are professional historians.
"To see something this major, such a significant change, to see a hapa-haole president, and from Hawaii. To me, that's a dream come true," Strazar said.
Elsewhere in Washington, the Hawaii State Society will hold an unofficial bash several blocks away from the Home States ball. Then there's also an Inaugural Luau, featuring Hawaiian music and island food including laulau, kalua pork, lomi salmon, long rice and poi.
"People in Hawaii always read about history in the textbooks. We don't experience it," said Sandi Yorong, a financial adviser from Oahu who has tickets to the swearing-in ceremony and the Home States Inaugural Ball. "I want to be there to capture the history and feel it and bring it home with pictures and stories to pass on to my grandkids."
Cynthia Orlando, superintendent of Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, got stuck in a half-mile line of people Sunday trying to pick up their tickets for the ceremonies. She was just there to bring a box of ginger cookies from the Big Island to U.S. Rep. Mazie Hirono.
"I was prepared for the cold," Orlando said. "I was not prepared for the lines."
Hilo High School teacher Mike Staszkow and a group of seven Big Island high school students flew to Washington, D.C., last Thursday.
Staszkow said the students were eager to attend today's inauguration.
"It's a way for them to live history," Staszkow said of the students. "They come back better for the experience. The kids are really excited."
Karen Welsh, a freelance writer for the Tribune-Herald, shared the sense of anticipation. A conservative who did not vote for Obama, Welsh nevertheless felt compelled to attend the inauguration.
"I am a spiritual woman, and I felt I was supposed to go as a witness," said Welsh.
To get a ticket, Welsh wrote Hirono a note, "laying it all out on the table."
"I am a Republican, and I didn't vote for him," she said. "They wrote back and said I had a ticket."
Welsh added: "People are so excited about this. There's a level of energy I've never seen in my life for a president. I am willing to support Barack Obama as if I had voted for him. I want things to change in this country."
Back in the islands, many more festivities are planned for today -- from small parties in Hilo, to upscale galas at Waikiki resorts.
The Democratic Party of Hawaii will sponsor a ball with tickets starting at $250 at the Royal Hawaiian Hotel in Waikiki.
In addition, the All Korean American Inaugural Ball will charge $100 per person for its party at the Hawaii Prince Hotel.
"It's awe and nonbelief," said Alan Lum, one of Obama's high school basketball teammates who now teaches second grade at Punahou. "It's surreal. you can't believe it. If you were to ask me, I can't explain. I'm dead silent."
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