Worth The Wait
OMAHA - Opportunities to see the President of the United States in person don’t come around very often, so when Glenwood residents Russ and Sybil Finken heard President Barack Obama was going to be making an appearance at the University of Nebraska-Omaha, they were among the first in line to secure tickets.
Last Wednesday, the Finkens were among an audience of more than 11,000 people who came to Baxter Arena to hear the president’s remarks on the day after he gave his final State of the Union Address to the American people.
“It was so exciting,” Sybil Finken said. “You could tell by the enthusiasm of the crowd, everyone was so ready. It was such a party atmosphere, really. A lot of us had been there for six hours before he started speaking. Everyone was so enthused.”
The Finkens, retired educators and lifelong Democrats, are longtime supporters of Obama.
“We’ve always been President Obama supporters, from his early days,” Russ Finken said. “We really appreciate what he’s done for the country – the economy has really turned around. When he took over, as he said during his speech, the economy was really pretty much in one of the worst situations we’ve ever seen. His stimulus packages, incentives and programs helped the economy take a positive turn.”
Sybil Finken said she believes Obama has pointed the country in the right direction during his first seven years in office.
“We’re so pleased with the things the president has done,” she said. “He hasn’t gotten a great deal of support along the way, but in spite of it, he’s managed to really bring the country around.”
Judging by social media posts, the Finkens were two of several Mills County residents who saw the president in Omaha, including Samuel Kalhorn who was there in official capacity as a member of the UNO Jazz Band. Glenwood Community High student Maeve Bittle came to see the president with her mother, Marietta. They stood for seven hours – three hours outside before the doors opened and another four once they got inside the arena.
“Seeing the President of the United States and hearing him speak on issues that I care about made it all worth it,” Bittle said.
Bittle, 18, has taken an Advanced Placement (AP) government class at GCHS where she learned a great deal about American Democracy. Standing less than 25 feet from the president’s podium during his speech gave the GCHS senior an even greater appreciation for her country and its Democratic form of government.
“After that class and learning all about the presidency and the different branches of the government and all the power they have in our lives, it was just really cool to see our executive leader,” Bittle said. “That was so cool – it was just great.
“He talked about the current political issues and some of the things I studied in my class. It was really exciting to see politics in action. Now, being able to vote in the caucuses and being able to vote for the next president, I’m very excited.”
Bittle and the Finkens said they appreciated the upbeat tone of the president’s message.
As he did during the State of the Union, Obama dismissed what he calls the “doom and gloom” of the current presidential campaign, drawing laughter from his Omaha audience when he referenced the “political hot air” coming from candidates vying for support across the river in Iowa.
He conveyed appreciation for our nation’s military forces and challenged critics who don’t support the belief the United States is the strongest and most powerful nation in the world.
“That should not be a controversial statement,” Obama said. “That’s how crazy our politics have gotten sometimes – we now feel obliged to not root for America doing good.”
The president solicited one of the loudest roars of the afternoon when he encouraged Americans to reject politics that target people because of their race or religion.
Obama also showed he has a sense of humor when a supporter started a “four more years” chant midway through his address.
“I can’t do that because of the Constitution and because Michelle would kill me,” he said.