Taking part in a historic day

SLIDESHOW: Inaugural parade

AUDIO: "Barack Obama, Our President" by Nechesa Morgan

WASHINGTON -- Nechesa Morgan traveled from New York City to honor her grandmother.

Irene Morgan Kirkaldy, a longtime Saluda resident whose fight against segregation on buses predated the protest of Rosa Parks in Alabama, died in 2007.

"I was thinking how much she would have liked this," Morgan said. "Then it occurred to me how many other people are saying the same thing. That inspired me." She captured the inspiration in words, then on tape. She wrote "Barack Obama, Our President," as a "tribute to our common American heritage," she said.

"I've never seen anything like this," she said from a portico overlooking a crowd that was shoulder-to-shoulder tight for blocks in every direction.

. . .

Across Washington, the unforgettable day brought forth a flood of memories, inspiration and good will.

A chance to catch a glimpse of old neighbors done well convinced Michelle and Jack Olson that a trip from Chicago with their children Lily and Jack was worthwhile.

The Olsons, Michelle said, not long ago knew the Obamas as fellow parents and neighbors.

"Six years ago, we were doing potlucks," Michelle said. "Now look at them. It's amazing seeing people you know doing that. You can tell your kids they can do anything, and then they can actually see it."

Tickets in hand, Michelle and Lily were headed to the Mall to "see whatever we can."

The Jacks, ticketless, were ready to spend the day walking around and soaking in as much atmosphere as they could.

"Whatever we can do," the elder Jack said.

"This is just the most amazing place," Michelle said. "Where would you rather be?"

. . .

Glenda Grandberry was witnessing history with her 14-year-old daughter, Murphy, but it meant different things to the two of them.

Murphy attends James Madison High School in Vienna and doesn't see Obama's inauguration as a triumph of race, even though she is black.

"Having Obama as president, I don't think he just includes a certain race -- he speaks to everyone," Murphy said as she approached a security checkpoint for the parade route with her mother, aunt, and two other friends.

"I think that's why we didn't have a black president earlier because they thought he'd just try to help black people in America, but I think he speaks to everyone," said the teen, who was named for the fictional television journalist Murphy Brown.

Her mother had a different viewpoint. "You thought it would happen, not me," Grandberry said. Glenda's sister, Denise Grandberry came here from St. Louis. "I did not think I would ever see this in my lifetime," she said.

Elizabeth Gampth, a friend in Vienna, became a U.S. citizen in October. A native of Trinidad who voted for the first time in November, Gampth called Obama's election a mark of inclusiveness in American society.

"I am very proud to be in this process where voices are heard," she said.

. . .

Gram Ballard, 23, flew six days ago from Seattle to North Carolina, where he met with others in Chapel Hill and waited for a plan.

"I told them to all just show up and we'll figure it out," said Pat Addabbo, 22, who is hosting the whole happy bunch at his place in Kensington, Md.

"We knew we were coming but we didn't make plans until a few days ago," said Rachel Schonberg, 21, of Durham, N.C., who draped an Obama shawl from Tanzania across her shoulders.

Contact Michael Martz at (804) 649-6964 or .

Contact Zachary Reid at (804) 775-8179 or .