By David Fleet

Editor

The 58th presidential inauguration included some local representation.

Goodrich residents Stephan and Vickie Brochu were among the inauguration crowd that gathered on Jan 20 at the U.S. Capitol in Washington as Donald Trump was sworn in as the 45th president of the United States.

The Brochus traveled to Washington to accompany their daughter, Jolie Brochu, an eighth grade student at Goodrich Middle School, who participated in the Presidential Inauguration Leadership Summit a few days prior to the inauguration. The once every four years event provided about 2,500 students nationwide the opportunity to witness history, hear from several leaders which included Colin Powell, former U.S. National Security Advisor, celebrate the inauguration and collaborate with others creating some recommendations for the U.S. Congress.

“Our group created a proposal for Congress centered on the topic of ‘Racing extinction—water, wildlife, and weather at the year 2050,’” said Jolie, 14.

“Our group of six students earned the ‘Outstanding Delegate, Scholar and Leader Award,’ that also included scholarships for each of us. Hopefully, Congress will now take our plans and solutions regarding the enviroment and use them. It’s such an honor working with so many outstanding students from across the nation.”

While Jolie attended Friday’s inauguration with fellow students from the leadership summit, Stephan and Vickie joined the crowds at the National Mall. Tickets to the event were provided by Dan Kildee, representative for Michigan’s 5th Congressional District, which includes the Atlas Township area. In addition to tickets for the inauguration, the Brochus also received invitations to the Michigan Inaugural Gala at the Smithsonian National Museum of American History.

According to news reports, Gov. Rick Snyder, Attorney General Bill Schuette and Secretary of State Ruth Johnson, a Groveland Township resident, were among the more than 2,000 who attended the event.

“We were about 200 yards from the Capitol and Trump,” said Stephan. “We arrived about 6 a.m. when the gates first opened and were standing just behind the first row of chairs on the mall facing the Capitol. The crowds were very supportive of Trump and we felt very safe although the security was very high.”

Many in the crowd, like the Brochus, stood about six hours prior to the start of the swearing in just before noon on Friday.

“I felt very inspired and fortunate to be part of history,” said Vickie. “There’s a lot of pride and tradition to be there in the crowd with others from all over the United States. It’s a very humbling experience, one that is not taken lightly given the negatives regarding Trump.”

The Brochus were less than 100 feet from the Army cannons.

“They were incredibly loud when they were fired after the swearing in of Trump,” she said.