FREDERICKSBURG, Va. — The first black man to serve on Stafford County’s Board of Supervisors was on hand to celebrate the second inauguration of this nation’s first black president.
At an election gala held by the Stafford County Branch of the NAACP on Saturday in Fredericksburg, Bob Woodson joined his Democratic Party supporters at a black tie dinner for President Barack Obama.
Woodson served on Stafford’s governing Board represetnting the Griffis-Widewater District until he decied in 2011 to not seek reelection. He says his transition from elected official back to everyday county resident has not been as tough has he feared it would have been, and added he remains in touch with the issues that face county residents.
“You have a lot of good people here in Stafford, and many here of them and their families have lived here for generations,” said Woodson when asked if he thought another African American would be elected to the Stafford Board in the near future. “Many more of those people are more interested in moving the county forward than they are in racial politics.”
But politics was key at this event of supporters of President Obama, as several items with the president’s face emblazoned on them were made available during a silent auction and raffle — including commemorative plates, posters, and even a bobblehead doll.
Others, including Make the Future founder Michael Futrell said it was important for those who could not make inaugural celebrations in Washington to attend events in their own communities.
“People were afraid when the next inauguration came around that you wouldn’t see the same excitement and the coming together of the people like we saw in 2008, but it’s here and it’s amazing to think about what this means as the first black president has been reelected,” said Futrell.
Others who attended the ball said they were there to support the president, but added more needs to be done over the next four years to improve life in the U.S.
“I’m a veteran. So, what do I really think of what’s going on in Washington? I really hope more of them get along. I would like to see more employment,” said Fem Brown, of Stafford, who spent eight years in the Navy. “There are jobs out there right now, it’s just that the big corporations won’t give them up.”
Some of the other attendees to Saturday night’s event traveled miles to be there.
“Logically, intellectually, it did not seem it would happen, but since he was reelected, it would seem it is ordained that be be there in the White House,” said John Matthews of South Carolina.
President Obama was sworn into office for his second term just before noon today. The ceremony came after a weekend full of inaugural balls and celebrations.
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