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Surprise! Barack and Michelle Obama greet first visitors to new Chicago center
AP News • • nation
Key Points:
- Former President Barack Obama and former First Lady Michelle Obama personally greeted the first 100 visitors at the opening of the Obama Presidential Center in Chicago, surprising attendees on Juneteenth.
- The Obamas, joined by former “Reading Rainbow” host LeVar Burton, read "Where the Wild Things Are" to 25 school children at the Chicago Public Library branch inside the center.
- Guests were impressed by the center's features, including a 38-foot-tall painting inspired by Carl Sandburg’s poem about Chicago, and the campus’s mix of museum, library, playground, and athletic facilities.
- The opening event included a star-studded dedication ceremony with speeches from the Obamas and attendance by three former presidents, first ladies, celebrities, and thousands more watching via livestream.
- The Obama Presidential Center is located on Chicago’s South Side near the Obamas’ former neighborhood and political beginnings, with public tickets sold out through November and a weekend of celebratory events planned.
