As Virginia McLaurin turned 110 years old this month, she had a lot to celebrate. One standout moment: dancing in the White House with the Obamas.
The centenarian made headlines in 2016 when she shimmied with then President and first lady Barack and Michelle Obama. She relived the dream encounter as she marked another birthday this week, according to CNN affiliate WJLA.
“I met a black president and a black wife. That’s me,” she said, according to the outlet. “I was so scared because I was raised in the South. I didn’t know what to do. I didn’t think I would ever, ever be able to get in the White House.”
McLaurin was born in South Carolina in 1909. She moved to Washington, DC, in 1941 and has been there ever since. She has lived through 18 presidents.
Her trip to the White House was in response to a social media campaign to get her a meeting with the Obamas.
Though she was 106 at the time, McLaurin rushed over to the first lady when they met and was reminded by the President to slow down. The three playfully danced before posing for a photo.
“I wanna be like you when I grow up,” Michelle Obama told her.
“You can,” McLaurin replied.
McLaurin had another star-studded birthday last year, WJLA reported, when she met the Harlem Globetrotters. This year she was sent a personal message from the former first lady.
“Still dancing at 110 years old,” Michelle Obama posted to her official Instagram. “Happy Birthday, Virginia!”
And McLaurin hopes to keep the star-studded birthdays going.
“For my birthday, I wish I could meet the Mayor (Muriel Bowser). She adopted a girl, and I adopted a boy,” McLaurin told the outlet.
