WASHINGTON – It was a beautiful spring day for Sikh kids to roll eggs, listen to stories and play on the White House lawn.

By special invitation from the White House, a group of 30 Sikh kids and their parents were given the rare opportunity to attend the annual Easter Egg Roll event on the South Lawn.

The Sikh Coalition, a national advocacy group, was provided 30 tickets from the White House for the Sikh community. Sikh children and their parents came from California, Minnesota, Florida, New York City, New Jersey and the Washington metropolitan area to represent the community.

The White House is aware of Sikh children and the problems they face, said Sapreet Kaur, the coalition’s executive director. This is the first time that the White House has specifically invited Sikh children to this event.

“Our kids go through a lot growing up,” she added. “Recognition from the White House is not lost from even a 5-year-old.”

In addition to the traditional egg dyeing, egg roll and egg hunt, this year’s event included activities themed on a healthy lifestyle, such as gardening, healthy cooking, yoga and sports.

Approximately 250,000 tickets were requested through the online lottery, but only 30,000 were distributed for the Monday event. Five groups of 6,000 ticket holders spent 2 hours each from 7:45 a.m. to 5:45 a.m.

The Sikh families were divided into two groups of 20 and 10. The first group attended in the morning and the second in the afternoon. Both missed the president’s and the first lady’s addresses, and the first family’s egg rolling and other participation. But they said they were delighted to have been invited to this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

The first family, including the first grandmother, emerged onto the White House balcony at 10:56 a.m.

“I'm not going to make a long speech, because we’ve got the best speaker, the smartest and best-looking of the older Obamas -- (laughter) -- and that would be the first lady of the United States, Michelle Obama,” President Obama said.

The first lady, Michelle Obama, said they were expecting 30,000 people "in our backyard today."

Related: "Sikh Kids Invited to White House Easter Egg Roll"





Note: Top photo by Sikh News Network
Story by Anju Kaur
Sikh News Network staff journalist
anjukaur@sikhnn.com
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