LHS students' trip to White House inspiring, life-changing

Jamil Thomas, McKenzie Stenger, Chelsea Stenger, Celia Lamb, Khadijah Baker, Annalisa Perez and CaNada Tate-Griffin take a moment to play tourists in front of the Washington Monument.
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A few weeks ago, we received word that we had been presented with the opportunity of a lifetime. We were 11 of 120 students throughout the country who had been invited to a concert featuring artists and music of the civil rights movement at the White House. We didn’t want to get our hopes up because the prospect was so crazy, but after a few weeks of scrambling and planning, Mr. Joseph Lobozzo, Ms. Alisa Nazelli, Celia Lamb, CaNada Tate-Griffin, Sarah Speice, Khadijah Baker, Adrienne Mahone, Mckenzie Stenger, Chelsea Stenger, Seth Baker, Jamil Thomas, Kristian Hila and I were on an airplane, headed to Washington D.C.

We got this opportunity through a nationwide program with which we’re involved called Facing History and Ourselves, which focuses on teaching students about history and issues of the world today and encouraging them to make their voices heard. They chose our group because of our program at Lakewood High School called RAD, Race and Diversity, which holds meetings every other week to discuss racial and other social issues in our community and throughout the world. Our group included the founders of RAD, as well as current leaders of the group. When we first heard the news, we didn’t know if we would be able to make it happen at such short notice, but thanks to a generous donation from the Lakewood Alumni Foundation, we were able to take care of the financial side of it. Mr. Lobozzo booked our flights, a hotel, and other transportation plans, and we left Monday, February 8th.

We arrived at our hotel late that night and were up bright and early the next morning to make our appointment at the W Hotel with the other students who had been invited. There, we had the opportunity to meet former Pennsylvania Senator Harris Wofford, who worked on the presidential campaigns of both John F. Kennedy and Barack Obama and was a good friend of Dr. King. He spoke to us about his life and stressed the importance of our nation’s youth in making a difference. He talked about Ghandi and Dr. King and told us how people who do great things never really die because their legacy lives on and continues to inspire people long after they’re gone. It was very interesting to be able to meet a man who has done so much for civil rights and change in our country. He inspired us by telling us that even as young people, there is something that we can do to invoke change. 

After his lecture, we got a chance to chat and mingle with some of the students from the other cities. Then, one of the program leaders quieted us down and told us she had an announcement. She said that due to the weather, it looked like the federal government was going to be closed the next day, which is when we were supposed to have our student press conference and go to see the concert. She said that both events were being moved to that day and that we should all go back to our hotels, change into our formal attire, and get ready to go to the White House. We were all incredibly overcome with excitement. We made a quick trip back to the hotel and right after lunch, we walked to the entrance to the White House.

After going through all of the security procedures, we were seated in the State Dining Room and the program began. The director of the Grammy Museum, Bob Santelli, came out and introduced us to Smokey Robinson. He was an incredibly inspirational speaker. He talked about how, “Hate is hand-me-down,” and told us not to spread it, because no one is more important than anyone else is. We heard music from him, gospel singer Yolanda Adams, some of the Freedom Singers: Dr. Bernice Johnson Reagan, Rutha Harris, and Charles Neblett, and Toshi Reagan. We learned a little about their experience during the Civil Rights Movement. They spoke to us about how music gave people hope and strength as they were facing intense adversity and violence. When their voices filled the room with those same songs, everyone could hear the power behind them. It was a great program.

Afterwards, we were all given time to get dinner before the main event. We headed from the W Hotel across the street to the White House and waited through security in a snowstorm, many with heels and dresses on. However, once we walked inside, we couldn’t possibly think about that. We were overtaken with excitement for the concert. As if things couldn’t get better, Lakewood was chosen to sit in the first few rows.  We looked at the name cards that had been placed on the seats around us and realized that we would be enjoying the performance right next to the Obama family, the Biden family, and Morgan Freeman. We were utterly shocked. 

The room went wild with applause as the President walked in from the back and made his way to the stage down the aisle, pausing to shake hands. He stepped up to the stage and made the opening speech to commence the concert. Yolanda Adams then took the stage and sent chills down everyone’s backs with her incredible vocals. Smokey Robinson and Jennifer Hudson performed a duet. John Mellencamp played “Keep Your Eyes on the Prize.” Joan Baez led the audience in “We Shall Overcome.” The Freedom Singers led the room in a few songs. Bob Dylan sang his famous “The Times They Are a Changin'” (about 5 feet in front of me.). Smoky Robinson sang “Abraham, Martin and John,” a chilling ode to some of the leaders of the Civil Rights movement who were killed working towards what they believed in. The Blind Boys of Alabama sang a spirited song. For the finale, all of the artists and Barack Obama came onto the stage and sang a song together. We were all overcome with amazement that we got to be there for this wonderful concert. Afterwards, the Obamas, the Bidens, and several of the artists were kind enough to stay a while, shake hands with us, and give us a chance to express our gratitude for being invited to the event. Ms. Nazelli pointed out how incredible it was to be in the White House with the Freedom Singers who went to jail so that Barack Obama could run for president.

Although we were supposed to be flying home on Wednesday night, our flights were cancelled due to weather and we were not able to get back home until Friday. However, this was a blessing in disguise, because it gave us the opportunity to do a couple more things before we left. We were stuck in our hotel on Wednesday, but it gave us a chance to get to know some of the kids from other cities, such as Seattle, Denver, Chicago, and Compton, California. We even had a small talent show that night. On Thursday, we did some sightseeing and went to the Washington Monument, Lincoln Memorial, and the Natural History Museum. Later that day, we were invited to have a meeting with Ohio Senator Sherrod Brown. We went to his office and had an informal discussion with him.

Finally, on Friday, we boarded our flight back to Cleveland. It was a truly inspiring and life-changing experience. As Mr. Lobozzo put it, we all left Washington with a sense that we needed to go back, and in our lives, earn this. A once in a lifetime opportunity had been given to us and it was up to us to prove that there was a reason for us to deserve it. We’re so grateful that we were able to go on this trip and none of us would do any less. We’ve all been inspired by all the people we were able to hear from. We now know that we have the responsibility to carry on the spirit of the Civil Rights Movement, and never forget how lucky we are.