http://www.todayonline.com/world/americas/106-year-old-says-she-can-die-happy-after-obama-meeting
106-year-old says she can ‘die happy’ after Obama meeting
106-year-old says she can ‘die happy’ after Obama meeting
A screenshot of the video of 106-year-old Virginia McLaurin shaking her groove with excitement quickly went viral on the Internet.
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Published: 9:32 AM, February 23, 2016
Updated: 9:46 AM, February 23, 2016
WASHINGTON — At 106 years old, she’s seen more than a dozen presidents come and go, but Mdm Virginia McLaurin says she can finally die happy after meeting President Barack Obama.
Video of the centenarian shaking her groove with excitement quickly went viral on the Internet after last week’s Black History Month reception at the White House. The grandmother told The Associated Press that when she saw the president and first lady Michelle Obama in the flesh, “I was so happy, I started dancing.”
What's the secret to still dancing at 106? Watch 106-year-old Virginia McLaurin fulfill her dream of visiting the White House and meeting President Obama. #BlackHistoryMonth
Posted by The White House on Sunday, February 21, 2016
“I’ve come a long ways, a long ways,” Mdm McLaurin said in an interview outside her Washington home. “I just didn’t think I’d ever live to go this far in the world.”
For Mdm McLaurin, who said she was born in South Carolina in 1909, the White House invitation was a long time in the making. It’s been more than a year since she started a White House petition asking to meet the president — and offering to come to his house to make it easier.
“I didn’t think I’d ever live to see a coloured president,” Mdm McLaurin, who is black, said in a YouTube video accompanying the petition.
Her petition didn’t garner enough signatures to meet the White House threshold for an official response, but it didn’t keep her from securing an invitation to Thursday’s reception, where Mr Obama reflected on the legacy of US slavery and called America “a constant work in progress”.
Dressed in a teal blue suit with matching nail polish, Mdm McLaurin nabbed a few moments of one-on-one time with the president and Mrs Obama during a photo line for the reception’s guests, where a White House videographer captured shaky video of her jumping up and down with excitement. Independent news organisations weren’t allowed to see or record what the White House described as a private moment.
“I know he said something, but I don’t remember,” Mdm McLaurin said of Mr Obama. “My hearing is kind of bad.”
The meeting turned Mdm McLaurin, who said she’s lived in Washington since the 1930s, into something of an overnight celebrity. She said her phone had been ringing since 5am Monday, depriving her of a chance to eat breakfast or lunch.
So what’s next for a woman who said her dream has been fulfilled?
“I don’t know,” Mdm McLaurin said. “I could just die happy.” AP
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106-year-old says she can ‘die happy’ after Obama meeting
106-year-old says she can ‘die happy’ after Obama meeting
A screenshot of the video of 106-year-old Virginia McLaurin shaking her groove with excitement quickly went viral on the Internet.
View all comments
[Pin It]
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Published: 9:32 AM, February 23, 2016
Updated: 9:46 AM, February 23, 2016
WASHINGTON — At 106 years old, she’s seen more than a dozen presidents come and go, but Mdm Virginia McLaurin says she can finally die happy after meeting President Barack Obama.
Video of the centenarian shaking her groove with excitement quickly went viral on the Internet after last week’s Black History Month reception at the White House. The grandmother told The Associated Press that when she saw the president and first lady Michelle Obama in the flesh, “I was so happy, I started dancing.”
What's the secret to still dancing at 106? Watch 106-year-old Virginia McLaurin fulfill her dream of visiting the White House and meeting President Obama. #BlackHistoryMonth
Posted by The White House on Sunday, February 21, 2016
“I’ve come a long ways, a long ways,” Mdm McLaurin said in an interview outside her Washington home. “I just didn’t think I’d ever live to go this far in the world.”
For Mdm McLaurin, who said she was born in South Carolina in 1909, the White House invitation was a long time in the making. It’s been more than a year since she started a White House petition asking to meet the president — and offering to come to his house to make it easier.
“I didn’t think I’d ever live to see a coloured president,” Mdm McLaurin, who is black, said in a YouTube video accompanying the petition.
Her petition didn’t garner enough signatures to meet the White House threshold for an official response, but it didn’t keep her from securing an invitation to Thursday’s reception, where Mr Obama reflected on the legacy of US slavery and called America “a constant work in progress”.
Dressed in a teal blue suit with matching nail polish, Mdm McLaurin nabbed a few moments of one-on-one time with the president and Mrs Obama during a photo line for the reception’s guests, where a White House videographer captured shaky video of her jumping up and down with excitement. Independent news organisations weren’t allowed to see or record what the White House described as a private moment.
“I know he said something, but I don’t remember,” Mdm McLaurin said of Mr Obama. “My hearing is kind of bad.”
The meeting turned Mdm McLaurin, who said she’s lived in Washington since the 1930s, into something of an overnight celebrity. She said her phone had been ringing since 5am Monday, depriving her of a chance to eat breakfast or lunch.
So what’s next for a woman who said her dream has been fulfilled?
“I don’t know,” Mdm McLaurin said. “I could just die happy.” AP
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