In 1980, Ronald Reagan was running for President. He was scheduled to make a campaign speech at the State House in Columbia, and I wanted to see him. As I have said before, one of my obsessions is to see every President or potential President in my lifetime, and I have except for JFK. And, I am a political junkie, so I had to be there.
One way to see someone famous is to figure out how he is going to get to the site of his speech. Which route is he going to take? I knew that Reagan would have to come in the south side of the State House, because it was easier and more private from a security standpoint. I stood next to the south side entrance to the grounds. It was just me and an elderly woman. Just the two of us. Shortly, we heard the sirens of police cars, and a nondescript car approached. It wasn't a limousine. Just a plain four-door sedan. The car had to slow down to take a speed bump just before the entrance to the grounds. I was about three feet from the car. I looked inside the back seat, and there was Ronald Reagan along with his wife Nancy. The woman and I waved at them, and they waved back. I then gave a thumbs up to Reagan, and he did the same back to me.
After that brief encounter, I noticed that Reagan gave the thumbs up sign a lot after that. I don't know if I gave him the idea, but it is nice to think so.
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