Senator wows students with stories of political adventures
The Caribou native spoke for 45 minutes to a
jam-packed cafeteria of wide-eyed students.
FARMINGTON – After nearly a decade of being a major player in the political arena, U.S. Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, is surely no stranger to tough questions.
Nevertheless, she did skip a beat on Thursday morning when Mount Blue Middle School eighth-grader Jason Mungin popped up his hand and innocently asked the second-term Republican senator what she thought of communists.
After letting out a chuckle, Collins paused to regroup and quickly recovered from the bold question.
“If I had to choose between living in communist North Korea or communist China, or here, in the democratic United States, it would be no contest,” Collins admitted with poise, revealing her patented wide smile. “I want to live in a land where people are free.”
Collins spoke for 45-minutes to a jam-packed cafeteria of wide-eyed students at the school in Farmington and Mungin was impressed by quick comeback.
“I just asked the question because I really wanted to know what she thought about it,” said the 15-year-old from Farmington.
“She’s a real cool lady, very intelligent and she likes red a lot,” he went on to say about his first real-life interaction with Collins. “My favorite part was when she was cool about my question and she didn’t get mad at me for asking it. It was an honor to have her here.”
Collins’ school visit Thursday was the 101st of her career. With tales of flying to Asia on Air Force II earlier this month and rubbing elbows with President George W. Bush last week at a state dinner, she quickly wowed the students. They responded by inviting Collins on their upcoming class overnight rafting trip, although she politely declined telling them she had to head back to Washington.
Among the tales that netted the most laughs was one about her recent trip to Asia with eight other senators to discuss SARS and the escalating situation in North Korea.
While eating duck at a banquet in China, Collins told students she was chewing on something that seemed a bit rubbery. After inconspicuously transferring the item from her mouth to her napkin, Collins said she realized she had been munching on a webbed duck foot. “I tried not to create an international incident by spitting it out,” she told the students, who laughed delightedly.
With each personal tidbit revealed, such as her fear of small planes, her childhood desire to be a ballerina or a dentist, her love for ice skating and how “really cool” it was when the president picked her to sit next to him last week at dinner, the senator became more human to students.
It wasn’t all fun and games though. Collins also spent time motivating students and encouraging them to be tenacious, take risks and believe in themselves. After being clobbered by Angus King in the 1994 gubernatorial election, Collins said it was tough to find the strength to go on, but the loss taught her many things. “I learned to keep going when it was really tough, to stand tall for what I believe in and to not let people discourage me.
“I hope that you all will pursue your dreams,” she said in closing. “If I can go from Caribou High School to the United States Senate, there is nothing you can’t do.”
While in town, Collins also visited the new green education center and met with college President Theo Kalikow at the University of Maine at Farmington and was interviewed by former state representative Walter Gooley for his television talk show, “Maine-ly Issues,” on Mount Blue Community Access Television.
sdepoy@sunjournal.com
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