Ermira Babamusta, Ph.D.
Special events were held in Washington DC to commemorate the second Presidential Inauguration of Barack Obama. The National Day of Service was specifically delegated on 19 January 2013 to celebrate Martin Luther King day and engage the community to participate in several services.
I personally spent the national day of service in Baltimore taking a tour of the Historical Ships, including the US Coast Guard Cutter Taney and the Lightship Chesapeake located in the Baltimore Inner Harbor. It was a great way to remember history and pay homage to the first ever built monument in United States, the Washington Monument (in honor of George Washington) in Mount Vernon. The visit to the Washington Memorial is especially meaningful to Albanians, since the president’s foreign policy supported the interests of smaller nations like Albania during the scramble of Europe. This legacy has been followed by other American heads of state, including the strong support of Bill and Hillary Clinton, former president George Bush, President Obama and Joe Biden who have strongly supported Albania and Kosovo.
On Sunday, January 20 alumni and Obama campaign staff gathered at Penn Social in Washington DC to celebrate Obama’s second victory. The Florida teams helped kick off the GOTV (Get out the vote) efforts in 2008 and continued their work in 2012. Organizers, community leaders, volunteers were present at the pre-inaugural celebration, including State Director for the Obama Campaign in Florida, Steve Schale.
On Monday, January 21, 2013 President Barack Obama took the oath in front of millions of Americans at the US Capitol Hill in Washington DC. The ceremony was followed by the presidential inaugural parade and inaugural balls.
I had the great pleasure of working for the Obama administration in both 2008 and 2012 elections, mainly in Florida, Colorado, Ohio and Pennsylvania. It was an honor receiving a private official invitation for the Inauguration Ceremony and witnessing a historic and memorable moment in US history.
The Global Peace Inaugural Ball was held on January 21st at 6:00 pm at the Hyatt Regency at the Capitol Hill. The event was organized by Dunamiv and brought together dignitaries, diplomats, and contributors of peace. The most memorable event of the night was the Flag and Peace Blessing which among 193 nations, Albania’s flag was also present. The ceremony and prayer was held by Fumi Johns Stewart of the World Peace Organization.
