New York Post

Celebratio­n by people, for people

- SALENA ZITO

WASHINGTON — Mikaila Vigeant came to the inaugurati­on of the 45th president of the United States with the hope she might catch a glimpse of Donald Trump from afar when he took the oath of office Friday.

“We were just about to cross the street, when we heard the sirens,” the 9-year-old from Troy, NY, said Thursday, breaking into a broad smile.

“And then he and his motorcade drove past us and I got to wave to him.” Did he wave back? “Absolutely,” said Mikaila, who was with her grandfathe­r Bill Vigeant at the base of the Capitol on their way to see Trump at the Lincoln Memorial for the inaugural concert.

Washington is filled with school groups, families and busloads of people from all over the country. They were buying souvenirs from street vendors, a choir group was spontaneou­sly singing “America the Beautiful,” and families like the Vigeants were holding hands and celebratin­g the peaceful passage of power.

Many were headed to the concert or streaming into congressio­nal offices to pick up their inaugural tickets for Friday’s big day.

Even folks who did not back Trump.

“I did not support Mr. Trump, but I respect the office and the process and, as our president, I respect him,” said Edison Nicholson, 48, of Erie, Pa., a program director of the Youth Leadership Institute.

“I want him to be successful. We have a moment to move the country forward and I wanted to be part of that. I wanted to respect this and hopefully bring our country together.”

Nicholson, who is African-American, says people should end the divisivene­ss and focus on helping Trump succeed.

“It’s like they always say, if he is successful, we all are,” he said.

Nicholson was joined by 55 other folks from Erie who were at a pizza reception hosted by their congressme­n, Republican­s G.T. Thompson and Mike Kelly.

“We gave out over 400 tickets today,” Kelly said. “We could have easily given out double that.”

Don Navarro and his wife, Kim Pichanick, of Dallas walked a mile to get to the line for their inaugural tickets.

Navarro, 70, is the son of an il- legal immigrant who came here from Mexico in 1927.

“My father was so proud to eventually become an American citizen,” Navarro said. “He always taught us to never speak Spanish outside of the home, to assimilate with the customs, languages and traditions of the country, and to be proud to be an American.”

About 20 minutes into the concert, Trump and his wife, Melania, walked down the steps of the Lincoln Memorial to the Rolling Stones’ “Heart of Stone.”

While sitting with his family, Trump was clearly enjoying the concert, smiling, swaying with the music and even singing.

Despite all of the criticisms ahead of his inaugural celebratio­n, it was a joyful event.

“This is what it is all about, the country, the people, and all we can achieve,” Navarro said. “It is not about the celebritie­s, it is about celebratio­n.”

 ??  ?? WHAT SO PROUDLY: The crowd reacts to the national anthem Thursday before the inaugural concert in DC.
WHAT SO PROUDLY: The crowd reacts to the national anthem Thursday before the inaugural concert in DC.
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