Residents Share Fun Stories From The President's Visit To Oklahoma

The President’s visit to Oklahoma may have served a political purpose, with a tight schedule all around the state. But it also meant some fun for Oklahomans.

From the moment he landed and greeted those waiting for him at Tinker Air Force Base, President Obama gave Oklahomans something to remember.

Joy Schulke's husband has served in the Air Force for 14 years and their whole family was invited to help greet the President Wednesday evening. But their 8-month-old baby, Eliana, stole the show.

“He came over and he actually held his arms out. And what do you do when the President wants to hold your baby? You just kind of hand the baby over and they had a little conversation and it was great!” Schulke laughed.

Cameras captured this memory they say they'll keep close for years to come.

“When the President was enamored by her…that’ll be our little story. It’ll be a good thing for the baby book,” she said.

She said she’s aware of the opposition to the President’s political views among many in our state. “I may not always agree with him either, but he is our president and we need to give him that respect. It’s a hard job. Not everyone can do it,” she added.

Other photos sure to find a spot in a scrapbook show the President giving Oklahoma children a handshake or thumbs up. Even when he was on the move, he attracted onlookers.

“You see it on TV but it’s a little different seeing it here,” one person said as she watched his motorcade in downtown OKC.

But Oklahomans also gave his camp some of their own stories to tell, like the time they tried lamb fries at Cattleman's Steakhouse!

“Oh they loved them, yeah. They raved about them. Most of them had never had them before. It was another Oklahoma first,” said David Egan with Cattleman’s Steakhouse.

Six of the President’s secret servicemen had big meals at the Stockyards City restaurant Wednesday night before going back to work.

“I think they’d like to come back. Maybe next time they’ll bring the President,” Egan added.

Representatives with the Oklahoma City National Memorial and Museum said they invited the President to visit and encouraged him to make a stop there via Twitter. They said they were very disappointed that he did not visit, although it was not scheduled.