Winter weather photos
Northeastern vs. West Liberty-Salem
House destroyed in fire
Inauguration tickets excite locals
Thursday, November 20, 2008
Springfield, Ohio — It just may be the hottest ticket in town.
And some locals practically already have tickets to President-elect Barack Obama's inauguration in their hot little hands.
Courtney Davenport, 19, is a native of Springfield at Ohio State University. An Obama supporter, Davenport secured her tickets to the Jan. 20, 2009 event by participating in the University Presidential Inaugural Conference.
"It's kind of hard to put into words how excited I am," said Davenport, whose church members at Mt. Pilgrim Baptist in Springfield helped her with her expenses through donations.
"The whole process of getting Sen. Obama elected was a long one," Davenport said. "But I think it shows the community that if we work together, we have the ability to affect change."
Excitement is a common theme among those who will be heading to the inauguration.
"I'm really excited," gushed Kirsten Midgley, a 19-year-old sophomore at Wittenberg University.
Midgley, a biology/pre-med major, hit the jackpot when she acquired tickets for herself and a friend by winning an election prediction contest sponsored by Wittenberg.
She accurately predicted what states Obama and Republican opponent Sen. John McCain would win and the popular vote percentage on Election Night, Nov. 4.
"I know it sounds bad, but I was just guessing," Midgley confessed. "I was really surprised when I found out I won."
Wittenberg political science Professor Ed Hasecke organized the contest, which was sponsored by his department and the Office of Student Development.
"There was so much enthusiasm in this election and we wanted to take advantage of that," Hasecke said.
School officials contacted U.S. Congressman Dave Hobson, R-Springfield, to request tickets "many months ago" and now are at the top of the list to possibly attend several inaugural events, Hasecke said.
"It's just way beyond what we expected," said Hasecke, who will attend the inauguration along with Midgley, her friend (whom she has not yet chosen) and another Wittenberg professor. "We have to give Congressman Hobson's office the credit for turning this into much bigger than what we could promise."
Contact this reporter at (937) 328-0374 or boutten@coxohio.com.
Comments
By Mike
December 2, 2008 12:47 AM | Link to this
I am a member of 12th Mass. Vol. Ifantry, a republican and John McCain supporter and am proud to march on the 20th. I salute the office, not Mr.Obama. Just like in the service I used to salute a rank…
By Proud GOP gal
November 22, 2008 9:25 AM | Link to this
No I am not. You couldn’t pay me to go to the inauguration for NObama.
By gene
November 21, 2008 4:43 PM | Link to this
could we work out some kind of deal where Dale Henry could be donated to Washington DC forever?
By flipper
November 21, 2008 11:12 AM | Link to this
NOT REALLY.
By John
November 21, 2008 3:05 AM | Link to this
Well, I’m not so excited as to who is inaugurated, as I am that the Bush regime is finally coming to an end. I have much hope now and am happy too see so much positive energy coming on to the presidency. I am excited we will have a new leader and new leaders. May this nation and the world see the USA in a different light.