Sincerely, Your Friend
Michael P. Powers
THE WHITE HOUSE
Michael—
Thanks so much for the wonderful letter, and the good advice. I am returning the picture, since it must be important to you, but I will remember your dad’s memory.
Barack Obama
From: Ali Hazzah
Hobe Sound, Florida
September 16, 2009
I lost my job in 2001, after the tech meltdown. Was a senior IT manager for an Internet company in NY that went belly up. I applied to hundreds of jobs, after this disastrous event—nothing. I was never able to get a full time job, I guess due to my age (I am now 58), but got by on my considerable savings, and some minor real estate transactions. Of course I hade to take out private insurance. I was assured by the sales agent that rates rarely went up. Since 2001, my insurance premiums have gone up exactly one hundred per cent—and i have never had a serious illness of any sort. In the last 8 years, I have paid almost ONE HUNDRED THOUSAND DOLLARS in insurance premiums, for my wife and I, to Blue Cross Blue Shield of Florida. I believed in then Senator Obama, when he said it was time for a change, that yes, he could be the one we could believe in to change things. I was one of the few where I live who put up Obama/Biden election signs (at my own expense, and at some personal risk from Republican goons, who tore them down every night) up and down US1 and did other things (such as contributing $100 to the Senator;s campaign, and working with the local democratic party) to help him get elected—this in a conservative, often bigoted, religion-obsessed county, a place where Rush Limbaugh is actually taken seriously by many. Three month ago, my wife had to have minor arm surgery. Our insurance premium immediately went up 30 per cent, and this is the first claim we have ever put in. I now have to make do without insurance—I can no longer afford it—and I am, I repeat, 58 years old, not exactly in my prime. But I guess people like my wife and I dont really matter to you, President Obama, or the rest of the Washington crowd; we are just disposable, powerless losers who will be forced to go through everything we own before we can one day qualify for Medicaid. Thank you, Mr. Obama, thank you so much for reminding me what Washington is really about, and how much my wife and I mean to you. I just have one question: how could you put aside what your own mother had to go through? Sorry for taking up your time. After all, I am nothing but a disposable old fool in your world, right? Good luck getting our vote next time around. I am even going to vote Green or sit out the midterm elections to teach you and your cynical coterie of advisers a very very small lesson about keeping one’s promises. You betrayed me, Sir: shame on you. I will never forget it.
THE WHITE HOUSE
WASHINGTON
Dear Ali—
Thanks for your letter. I confess I was confused by the anger directed at the Administration, since we are working every day to get a strong health care bill passed. Of course I wish it would come quickly, but change is never easy. And I am convinced we will get it done before the end of the year.
Barack Obama
Dear Mr. President,
I was watching your State of the Union address a few nights ago on television. There was a part in your speech where you alluded to the many letters you receive from people throughout the United States. I’m writing because I thought that you might somehow get to read mine.
I am a 21 year old college senior at East Stroudsburg University of Pennsylvania majoring in elementary education. My home is farther south, in the small town of Walnutport. That is where I reside with my family when I am not living at school. My father is in his fifties and has been laid-off from his job as a union construction laborer for many months. He is receiving some money through unemployment, but not nearly as much as he would receive if there were a job available to him. My mother is in her late forties and has a job in a screen printing factory. Her hours are cut frequently without notice. My 18 year old brother graduated from high school last year and has opted to work two jobs, one at a local grocery store, and the other at UPS. I recently had to take a few months off of my jobs as a swim coach for two teams to ensure that I can put all of my energy into student teaching.
The reason I am writing to you is to ask for some advice. I want to help my family. We are lower middle class and very hard-working, especially my mother and father. We are certainly not at the top of the food chain, but we have always been thankful for the things that we do have, knowing there are others with larger needs. My father is used to experiencing temporary lay-offs, as it is typical of the construction industry. Because of that, we have always been an efficient and frugal family. We’ve also been able to make it through past financial hardships by sticking together and waiting patiently for things to get better. But I’m starting to really worry. My parents have always kept their concerns hidden by telling my brother and me that they were the aduts and these were not problems for us to worry about. Well, I am an adult now, so I have a decent idea of what our status is.
Throughout my life, my father has always been positive about everything. He works incredibly hard and is very good at what he does. But since he has been out of work for so long, I can see a marked change. It is mainly in his eyes. They seem much more sullen. He does not laugh nearly as much. He seems smaller somehow. I can tell by the way he acts that he feels responsible for all of our current worries. Will my mom have enough gas to make it to work? Which car will break down this week that he will need to fix? Out of all of the important bills, which is most important to be paid first? How long until his benefits run out? What if one of us gets sick? What groceries will we be able to afford this week? Will he have a pension when he is finally able to retire? The list goes on and on. I can see it all eating away at him. He can’t sleep. And I wonder…if even he is starting to break, what can the rest of us do?
And my mom, she tries hard as well. She stayed home with my brother and me for most of our lives because her job couldn’t pay for child care, and she hated the idea of strangers raising us. She went back to work a few years ago. Now, after getting sent home early due to lack of work, I’ve seen her come inside, a long while after hearing her car park, only to enter the house with red eyes from the tears she just cried to herself in the car.
Please don’t get the impression that I am searching for an appology or pity. Those things are never necessary or useful, and there are others who are far worse off than I can imagine. I know action is the only way we can move forward. But I feel so insignificant and helpless. I don’t know what I can say or do to help my family. I know the usual answer, “Just wait, things will get better.” I have to be honest though, I don’t know how much longer we can wait. I don’t know how much longer I can bear to look into my father’s eyes and see the deep-seeded sadness that has replaced his positive demeanor and posture. I don’t know how much longer I can watch them be told to “just wait, it will be OK,” just to see their hopes be smashed again and again. I don’t know how much longer I can listen to the subtle note of defeat that is invading my mother’s words. And I don’t know how much longer I can deal with the guilt of putting additional financial strain on my family by trying to be the first of us to attend and graduate college. And now, I am realizing that the chances of me being able to get an honest job as a teacher is more like a fairy tale than a reality.
I guess the advice I am searching for is “What do I do?” I know that as the president, you have a lot of expectations placed on you. A lot of the things that people are expecting of you are not even things you have direct control over. I also understand that all of the things contributing to our country’s problems will not and cannot be fixed overnight, or even over four years. It’s not your job to respond to me, or even to read this letter. But for some reason, I felt that I needed to try. Maybe my mind finds comfort in the fact that I took some sort of action.
Anyway, I don’t care about having enough money to buy
a new car, or a laptop, or a smartphone. I just want to be able to walk back into my house and see my mom smile the way she used to, or hear my dad laugh without it sounding like it is coming from someone else. I miss that more than anything.
Name Withheld
Walnutport, Pennsylvania
March 17, 2010
Ellen F. Crain, MD, PhD
Professor, Pediatrics and
Emergency Medicine
Network Director
January 23, 2009
The Honorable Barack H. Obama
President of the United States
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington, D.C. 20500
Dear President Obama:
I want to share with you a story from our pediatric emergency department which demonstrates the impact of your Presidency on our young people in a way that might not otherwise be apparent. Both the patient and her mother have given me permission to share this story with you as well as their names and address.
On January 21, 13-year-old — — was brought to our pediatric emergency room by her mother, — —, after being punched in the face by other youths on her way home from school. She had two lacerations just below her right eye that needed suturing, but she was crying and trembling so much that we couldn’t treat the wounds without risking injury to her eye. Nothing anyone said could calm her down. Then I asked if she had watched the inauguration and President Obama’s speech. She said yes, and I asked her, “What would President Obama want us to do right now?” She replied, “He would want us to do what we have to do and do our best.” She took a deep breath and became still, and we were able to successfully and close her wounds. I told her President Obama would be very proud of her, and she beamed. I know she would treasure a communication from your office. Her address is below:
Ms. —— —
— — —
— — — —
More impressive than the many remarks we heard from citizens about your inauguration’s meaning to them was to see how your election and inaugural remarks could give a young person the strength to successfully deal with a personally frightening situation.
Sincerely,
Ellen F. Crain, MD, PhD
Medical Director
THE WHITE HOUSE
WASHINGTON
— —
Your doctor, Ellen Crain, told me about your recent difficulty. I’m proud of how you handled things, and have confidence you will do great things in the future.
Be well!
Barack Obama
THE WHITE HOUSE
WASHINGTON
Dr. Crain—
Thanks for the note. I wrote to Ms. —, and appreciate your interest!
Barack Obama
Dr. Ellen F. Crain
Medical Director
Kenny Jops
Chicago, IL
Dear President Obama,
I heard that you are good at correcting homework. I was wondering if you could take a look at this (particularly the highlighted portion on the back). How did I do?
Thank you,
Kenny Jops, Beaubien School
Chicago, IL
Kenny Jops
—wants you to look at his homework
Send back with the vocabulary list.
Kenny Jops
Beaubien
Vocab Lesson 2
1
dubious
c
d
precariously
c
2
vacillate
a
c
qualms
c
3
qualm
d
b
conclusively
a
4
precarious
d
c
unequivocally
b
5
indeterminate
b
d
apprehensiveness
d
6
apprehensive
c
b
tentatively
c
7
tentative
a
b
categorically
d
8
categorial
d
d
dubiously
d
9
unequivical
d
c
indeterminate
c
10
conclusive
b
b
vacillation
a
apprehensive, anxious, uneasy, Bill was apprehensive about sky diving.
categorial, absolute, Her categorial boycott of Cheese Flavored Cheese Snacks left her yearning for cheese.
conclusive, decisive, ending uncertainty, His colclusive report on cells changed the science world.
dubious, unsure, This report left no one dubious.
indeterminate, vague, Even slightly indeterminate statements made by the president seemed to fascinate FOX news.
precarious, dangerous, This puts Obama in a precarious position.
qualm, a sense of doubt, He is probably in a qualm as to why this is happening.
tentative, uncertain or provisional, FOX is probably tentative as to what to do when he makes good decisions.
unequivocal, perfectly clear, Some believe that it is unequivocal that during this scenario FOX will run around like a headless chicken and scream death panels.
vacillate, to switch opinions, They always seem to vacillate drastically so as to disagree with him.
THE WHITE HOUSE
WASHINGTON
Kenny—
Nice job on the homework. I caught only two words misspelled on the vocabulary list.
Dream big dreams.
Barack Obama
Kenny Jops
Chicago, Illinois
June M. Lipsky
East Meadow, NY
March 4, 2009
Dear President Obama:
I have not been able to contain myself over the news I have been hearing in the last few days.
I voted for you in the last election and I was very excited about the change you promised. I watched the presidential debates. I remember hearing you say that you would stop the spe
cial pork that has plagued every bill passed in Washington for the last several years. I remember you saying that your presidency will be marked by putting an end to special interest groups. I was so excited about the prospect of these changes.
Newsday reported this week that Lobbyists are gearing themselves up to help special groups to seek the distribution of the billions of dollars that the Stimulus Package and the Proposed Budget make available contrary to what you promised for CHANGE.
You have nominated and sworn individuals who have been part of the problem in Washington for many years, and while you indicated in your speeches before being elected that you will CHANGE. It sounds like more of the same.
I am a Democrat and I have always voted with the Democratic Party. I am a regular citizen, part of the middle class. I have worked all of my life, living within my means. Never collected unemployment insurance, never applied for Medicaid, never asked for financial assistance. My mortgage is paid off. I have been saving regularly for my retirement and invested to have a comfortable retirement.
I hear that your program will serve the needs of many taxpayers that earn less than $250,000, that I will receive a sum of money $800 if I remember correctly.
To Obama Page 4
