Marco Rubio in Sanford

Marco Rubio spoke on Monday March 7, 2016 in an airplane hangar at the Sanford-Orlando International Airport. The jubilant crowd filled the hangar and waited for over an hour for Senator Rubio’s plane to land.

The event began with the recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance and an invocation in English and Spanish asking God to help our nation in the name of his son Jesus Christ. He was introduced by Sheriff Don Eslinger and greeted with thunderous applause as he bounded onto the stage, not the least showing what must have been a grueling day of speeches before reaching Sanford at about 8:20 p.m.

Rubio’s speech was inspirational and emotional as he addressed the issues facing the nation over the next decade and offered his ideas on how each of the issues should be addressed. He spoke of his family history – his parents who came to the United States in the mid 1950s with no money, no possessions and no English. The first words they learned were “I’m looking for a job.” He spoke of his grandfather who was born in 1899 when there were no airplanes and the day we watched on his tiny black and white television set a man walking on the moon. He told Marco about that event and the words he spoke at the time: “Americans can do anything.”

There were people of all ages and races in the crowd – from very young children to seniors who appeared to be well into their 70s.