The 14 students from Pittsburg High School who were in Washington, D.C., for President Barack Obama’s inauguration were not going to miss their wake-up call Monday, their teacher said.
“The students were up at 4:15 this morning and on site (at the National Mall) at 6 o’clock,” Gary Wolgamott, a government teacher at the Kansas school, said by telephone Monday afternoon. “We were probably about 10 to 12 blocks from the actual area of the Capitol building where the ceremony took place.”
Wolgamott and his students are in the nation’s capital for the inauguration of Obama to his second term, which they watched via large screens set up on the National Mall. The trip was organized by WorldStrides, an educational nonprofit travel group that has been offering inaugural trips for 20 years by invitation only. It was coordinated at the school level by Wolgamott.
Wolgamott said he and his students stayed for the entire ceremony, starting with the seating of the politicians and dignitaries in attendance through Obama’s inaugural speech. He said the ceremony was steeped with history and rituals, from the Bibles being used during the swearing-in of the president to the 21-gun salute from Arlington National Cemetery.
“There’s a tradition here, and the traditions that are being practiced are the same ones we started off with when the nation was started,” he said. “It’s amazing to stand there and watch these processes that go back to the time of the Founding Fathers.”
Wolgamott often shows a video of presidents’ inaugural speeches in his classes, but to hear one firsthand was a unique experience for his students, he said.
“I think being there adds a whole different perspective, especially when you have the crowd around you responding to what’s being said, so you’re kind of feeding off the people around you,” he said. “The kids brought an American flag, so they were going crazy.”
Wolgamott said he hopes his students will use the experience to become more civic-minded residents of their community.
“Like I told our students, it doesn’t matter whether you support his policies or not,” he said. “It’s (about) the respect of the office he holds, and that’s one of those character-educational opportunities to hopefully make them better citizens in the future.”
Since arriving in Washington on Saturday, the group has visited the Library of Congress, the Capitol, the National Archives, the Smithsonian museums, Arlington National Cemetery and several memorials, including the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial.
“We were there (at Arlington cemetery) when President Obama was there putting the wreath on the Unknown Soldier’s grave,” Wolgamott said. “We didn’t get to see him, obviously, but we saw his motorcade, and that was pretty impressive for the students.”
Today the group plans to visit Ford’s Theatre and perhaps the National Archives once more before flying out this afternoon.
“It’s been a very whirlwind three days so far, but that’s good,” Wolgamott said. “We’re all tired, but it’s a good tired.”
Also in Washington
MEMBERS OF THE McDonald County High School band as well as Sanjay Jenkins, a junior at Thomas Jefferson Independent Day School in Joplin, also were in the nation’s capital Monday for activities related to the president’s inauguration.
Top Stories
Pittsburg students in nation’s capital for inauguration
- Top Stories
-
-
Federal, state leaders salute Joplin’s recovery
A deadly May twister may have punched a hole in Joplin and Duquesne two years ago, but the resolve to repair it will help other communities stand strong when they face similar disasters. That was the message of state and national diginitaries to a crowd of about 2,500 who observed the second anniversary of Joplin’s devastating May 22, 2011, storm during a ceremony Wednesday in Cunningham Park.
-
Rick Rescorla award named for hero of Vietnam War, 9-11 terror attacks
The Rick Rescorla National Award for Resilience is named for a 62-year-old vice president of security for Morgan Stanley Dean Witter & Co. who directed an evacuation of the company’s 2,700-person workforce in the South Tower of the World Trade Center on Sept. 11, 2011.
-
Banner from Joplin to be sent to Moore residents
A giant vinyl banner adorned with heartfelt messages from Joplin tornado survivors to the residents of Moore, Okla., became a centerpiece of Wednesday’s observance of the two-year anniversary of the May 22, 2011, tornado.
-
Families in Moore, Joplin linked by disasters
Zach Woodcock knew the storms were going to be bad on May 22, 2011, so turning on the Weather Channel was a natural. What he saw filled him with fear. The Moore resident’s family lived in Joplin, Mo.
-
Nixon: Joplin offers 'a beacon of hope'
Two days ago, after seeing the devastating destruction in Oklahoma, Nixon said, "I believe that you are something else too, something the people of Moore need right now. A word we all remember seeing, in front of the old high school, made from duct tape: Hope.
-
Grant enables 20th Street Project to move forward
A $20 million grant from the Economic Development Administration, announced at Joplin's tornado anniversary event today, will enable the 20th Street Project and the building of a new Joplin Public Library to move forward.
-
Community gearing up for two-year anniversary ceremony this afternoon
With the playground full of children, it could be any other day at Joplin’s Cunningham Park, but the white tents popping up and neat rows of white chairs lined up nearby indicate something more is happening today.
-
Awards mark Joplin observance of tornado anniversary
Joplin will serve as the beacon for resilient recovery from a disaster to communities across the United States, including recently hit Moore, Okla., said the nation’s secretary of Homeland Security, Janet Napolitano.
-
VIDEO: Restore Joplin designer stepping up to help Moore tornado victims
The designer of the Restore Joplin T-shirts who helped raise nearly a quarter-million dollars for Joplin in the wake of the 2011 tornado has put together a similar design to raise money for residents of Moore, Okla.
-
SMB sets up fund for Moore, Okla., storm victims
Southwest Missouri Bank has set up an account so area residents can donate to storm victims in Moore, Okla., which was hit by an EF-5 tornado on May 20.
- More Top Stories Headlines
-
Britain Attack Believed Linked to Radical Islam
Raw: Kevin Durant Tours Moore After $1M Pledge
Weiner Launches Bid to Become NYC Mayor
Okla. Teens Get Video of Deadly Tornado Overhead
Man Shot While Questioned in Boston Probe
School Storm Protection Spotty in Tornado Zones
9-year-old Tornado Victim Loved Family, Singing
Moore Native Toby Keith Tours Tornado Damage
Oklahoma Survivors, Heroes Survey Damage
Okla. City Mayor: Up to 13K Homes Hit by Tornado
Raw: Aftermath of Deadly Attack in London
Paperless Scanner, Vision of the Future
Florida FBI Shooting Has Boston Bombing Links
Garcetti Elected Los Angeles Mayor Over Greuel
Raw: New Video of Deadly Oklahoma Tornado
IRS Official Pleads 5th Amendment
Lawyer: Feds Investigating Susan Powell Case
