Vol 2: “I Met Two Presidents…”
I’ve met two Presidents and, as you can imagine, both have had a significant impact on my life—but maybe not for the reasons you would think.
President George W. and Laura Bush, with Steve Gilreath
Over the course of three days, I produced a television special in the White House just a year after the tragic events of 9/11. The show involved Hope and America’s Heritage through music, hosted by President and Mrs. Bush and featured CeCe Winans, Yolanda Adams, Steven Curtis Chapman, Blind Boys of Alabama, Michael W. Smith, and Bill Gaither, among other fabulous and faithful artists. As producer, I spent time going over the script with George “W” (43) and talking through the flow on a couple of occasions prior to and during the show. Our nation was very much in the throes of recovery from 9/11 and President Bush exuded a daunting confidence and control, personally and through his staff everywhere we intersected.
The afternoon I spent with Ronald Reagan felt like I had stepped outside myself—that it couldn’t be real. Reagan was larger than life, even though I was a bit taller than he. In the mid-90s, just as they announced his affliction with Alzheimer’s, a friend and I were invited by a staffer for a quick visit to meet the president. On our way in, they canceled plans for afternoon meetings, after the president reported he was not feeling well, but kept our appointment scheduled for just a few minutes as his last of the day. Our time then expanded to a much more relaxed period, with Reagan sharing delightful stories, giving us a detailed tour through the items on the shelves in his office in Century City (the Fox Plaza 34th Floor- site of the 1988 filming of Die Hard immediately before he moved in) and a discussion about the view of the Pacific Ocean—a favorite view of his. A staff photographer captured the afternoon for us and a signed autobiography, personalized for me followed in the mail.
Each of these men, the most powerful person in the world in their time, greeted me with a firm handshake, a smile and a direct look in the eye. They each took time to tell a joke and share a laugh, then ask a question about me, a nobody-producer from Nashville.
Ronald Reagan with Steve Gilreath
My expectation was that there would be a frantic air, a busy-ness that would not allow pleasantries to slow things down. Those hours for President Bush were especially tense, yet the time and care each extended to people around him were astounding, meaningful. He took time to put me at ease, to feel special, as though I mattered. When the President (W) slaps you on the back and says, “Hey Hoss,” you can’t help but feel like friends.
Since that time, I’ve experienced a hundred meetings where hotshot artists or managers won’t take time to introduce themselves or even shake hands. I’ve seen promoters and business leaders in a rush and jump right into details before greeting everyone in the room. I smile quietly and think, “I know two presidents that have taken more time to greet me than you just did.”
But how I’m treated isn’t the point. The critical part is how I treat others, now that I’ve recognized that gift. How can I inculcate that action of putting others at ease into my daily course of life? Peers that I have business with; Quick interactions at a service counter; absolutely with those that are helping set-up for an event I’m producing, whether they are carrying chairs into the facility, security, a guest speaker—whatever. Everyone deserves that treatment, that tiny window of special attention. And I work hard to create that smiling moment, just like my two pals, the presidents taught me.
I didn’t agree with the policies of both of these presidents. I voted for both of them, but believe they created too much debt while in office, just like every other president in my lifetime (more on that in future blogs.) Their lesson has impacted me for life, however and I try never to waste those moments any longer.
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