Obama's Visit

As Air Force One’s wheels touched down at Sky Harbor Airport on Wednesday about 6 p.m. for Obama’s history making visit, (the first time a U.S. president would deliver a commencement speech at ASU) a small group of VIPs anxiously awaited to greet the president.

Ten year old Kevin Goddard wore his lucky shirt. Yes, amidst the headlines of Arizona Cardinals Kurt Warner, his wife Brenda and 17 year old daughter Jesse, having some “time out” time with Obama ---- I’ve got the behind the scenes scoop for you!

In a small bland looking room off the runway of the Lincoln J. Ragsdale Executive Terminal - Kevin, a stack of papers in hand, and his father Arizona Attorney General Terry Goddard, were among the 15 or so dignitaries invited to greet the Pres behind closed doors.

Obama spoke for a few minutes and then greeted each guest in the receiving line, which included Maricopa County Supervisor Mary Rose Wilcox, Arizona Democratic Party Chair Don Bivens and President of the Salt River- Maricopa Pima Indian Community, Diane Enos.

While Kevin proudly presented the president with his gift of poems and stories written by his classmates at Herrera Elementary, his mother enjoyed the moment behind a glass window. “Some of our names didn’t make the list that had to be submitted to the secret service in advance,” says Monica Goddard. “But that’s O.K., I wanted my son to have the opportunity,” she notes, because Obama caught a glimpse of her and Earl Wilcox, (Mary Rose’s husband) peeking through an opening in the curtains. He smiled and waved to them.

(And Monica was hopeful Obama would read the cover letter that was part of her son’s presidential gift. She wrote about the educational budget crisis across the state and nation- with her example of the loss of the talented teachers at Herrera who were recently pink slipped and other cutbacks affecting the school, located, actually, not too far from where Air Force One touched down.)

After the brief meet and greet, (and Kurt Warner receiving an invite to play hoops with Obama at the White House, ) the president was whisked away into a limo, with a motorcade of security vehicles in tow, with a group of the traveling press and White House staff following closely behind, in white SUVs.

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