The inaugural activities were just as exciting for people who live in Washington, D.C., as it was for visitors.
Just ask Becky Ballard, 27, daughter of Martha and Bruce Ballard of Salisbury. An attorney for the Department of Commerce who lives on DuPont Circle, she was able to spend time with old friends from the N.C. School of Science and Math, Duke University and the UNC School of Law when they came to witness the historic event.
First she had a whirlwind weekend, starting with activities at Foundry United Methodist Church, a fake inaugural ball one of her friends hosted (complete with Becky’s red, white and blue cupcakes), the celebration of Martin Luther King Jr. Day and the free concert given on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial on Sunday.
Becky donned layers and layers of clothing to see what she says was the best rock concert ever, with Woodstock as second-best and the Beatles’ first performance on the Ed Sullivan Show as third best, in her estimation.
It was that good.
The highlight was when country performer Garth Brooks sang “Shout!” and got the audience to join in, she said.
Monday night, she and boyfriend John Means of North Carolina attended the North Carolina Society Ball, where she saw Sen. Kay Hagan and other N.C. movers and shakers ó and lots of UNC Law School alumni. She shagged to “Carolina Girl” wearing the black-velvet dress from her prom 10 years agoó “I kid you not.”
The day of the inauguration, she ventured out to see the crowds and take in the atmosphere, then watched the event on TV with friends ó where it was warm.
“I felt like I was watching history,” Becky said. “I never before felt like I’d be telling the next generation about my experience.”
She loves living in the nation’s capital. “You feel like you’re at the center of things.”
ó Elizabeth Cook