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Lonely fourth-grader gets advice from first lady Laura Bush
Daily Review ^

Posted on 09/29/2004 11:54:41 AM PDT by esryle

CASTRO VALLEY -- Pari Cariaga can now say that she knows people in high places -- really high places. Last summer, the Castro Valley fourth-grader expressed to her parents, Hilarie and Rudy Cariaga, that she had been feeling lonely because she was an only child.

"She came in one day and just started to cry in my lap," Hilarie said. "She had told me that it was due to the fact that she had nobody to play with."

After seeing this, Rudy suggested to his young daughter that she write a letter to none-other-than first lady Laura Bush, an only child herself.

With the help of her father, Pari started penning the letter that would garner a response nobody could have predicted.

Upon returning home from school one day, Pari learned that she had received something in a huge manila envelope on the kitchen table for her. It was addressed to her from the White House.

"She jumped about 10 inches into the air," said her father. "She was just so excited about it."

In the envelope, Pari found not only a heartfelt letter from the first lady that discussed how she overcame the loneliness in her childhood by reading, but also a plaque with an autographed picture of Mrs. Bush and a copy of the book, "Because of Winn Dixie."

Pari also received a number of photos which included Vice President Dick Cheney and his wife Lynn Cheney, a photo of Air Force One, and photos of President and Mrs. Bush.

Pari had been a fan of Mrs. Bush because of her strong Christian beliefs and her loyalty to her husband. She also felt a kinship with the first lady because Laura Bush was an avid reader when she was a young girl.

"In the package, she sent me a list," Pari said. "The list had a bunch of books that (Mrs. Bush) recommended I read."

Pari's father, having written politicians before and gotten little response, admitted that he was rather surprised.

"She advised Pari to do a lot of reading," he said. "And she also recommended that she join or get involved in a club."

The letter also reinforced a lot of things that they already had been doing as a family, giving Pari a point of reference by showing her that someone else had gone through the exact same thing, Hilarie said.

"I think that one of the most positive things about this is the fact that it shows kids that they can reach out to the highest office in the land and get correspondence back as well," Hilarie added. "It shows kids that they can also make a difference."


TOPICS: Culture/Society; Extended News; Government; Miscellaneous; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: laurabush
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www.esryle.com
LOCAL NEWS ACROSS THE NATION
1 posted on 09/29/2004 11:54:43 AM PDT by esryle
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To: esryle

Now, that's a lady! Teresa would have probably told the girl to shove it.


2 posted on 09/29/2004 11:56:34 AM PDT by cwiz24
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To: esryle

Laura Bush-Compassion and Class!


3 posted on 09/29/2004 11:57:07 AM PDT by babaloo
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To: esryle

Wonderful post.


4 posted on 09/29/2004 11:58:17 AM PDT by TXBubba ( Democrats: If they don't abort you then they will tax you to death.)
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To: esryle

Now thats a damn good post. Thanks the post.


5 posted on 09/29/2004 11:58:47 AM PDT by USMCBOMBGUY (Mad as hell)
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To: cwiz24
Teresa would have probably told the girl to shove it.

Nah, she would have recommended running around without clothes.

6 posted on 09/29/2004 11:59:23 AM PDT by Tijeras_Slim (Pay no attention to the Nattering Newbies of Negativism)
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To: esryle

she also wrote the same letter to theresa heinz-kerry and received a response of SHOVE IT!


7 posted on 09/29/2004 12:00:04 PM PDT by flashbunny (.org)
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To: esryle

Laura is a classy lady. The president got himself a good woman.


8 posted on 09/29/2004 12:00:10 PM PDT by Don'tMessWithTexas
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To: esryle

Class with a capital "C".

Now which ones of the MSM will pick up this story. Anyone? Anyone?


9 posted on 09/29/2004 12:03:07 PM PDT by duckbutt ( Warning: Dates in calendar are closer than they appear)
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To: Don'tMessWithTexas
Laura is a classy lady. The president got himself a good woman.

They are both good people. And when I think back to what used to occupy the White House, I can okay say, thank G-d for the Bush family.

10 posted on 09/29/2004 12:04:23 PM PDT by Will_Kansas
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To: flashbunny

The Theresa letter said shove it you conservative scumbag


11 posted on 09/29/2004 12:05:17 PM PDT by sgtbono2002 (I aint wrong, I aint sorry , and I am probably going to do it again.)
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To: cwiz24

She would have also told the little girl to just go naked!


12 posted on 09/29/2004 12:05:33 PM PDT by meeps
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To: cwiz24
LOL!

"Miss Heinz-Kerry! I'm an only child and lonely! What can I do?"

"It's Ms. Heinz-Kerry, and you can shove it, scumbag!"
13 posted on 09/29/2004 12:07:15 PM PDT by Rastus (Forget it, Moby! I'm voting for Bush!)
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To: esryle
Related Story Ten-year-old Receives Handwritten Reply From George Bush

JOHNSTOWN, Pa. (AP) -- Ten-year-old Amber Easterbrook says she has three main goals in life: going to heaven, taking a trip to Hawaii and meeting President Bush. For now, at least, Amber is trying to get the third goal taken care of first. Amber, of Richland Township, wasn't able to go with her mother, Sherri Easterbrook, to Bush's rally in neighboring Johnstown on Sept. 9. So she gave her mother a note she wrote for Bush, which her mom was able to press into Bush's hand as he greeted supporters. "Amber wrote that she was a fourth-grader at Johnstown Christian School and that she would pray that Mr. Bush would be re-elected," Easterbrook said. Sherri Easterbrook didn't expect much in return, because she realized that there was no return address on the letter. But Bush sent a handwritten letter to Amber in care of her school, which she received last week. The letter, dated Sept. 12, said: "Dear Amber: Thanks for your kind letter. I wish we could meet sometime. Please give your family my very best wishes ... Best wishes always, George Bush."
14 posted on 09/29/2004 12:08:05 PM PDT by esryle (www.esryle.com)
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Comment #15 Removed by Moderator

To: cwiz24

Teresa wouldn't understand. "But I've always had all the friends money can buy. Doesn't it work the same way for everyone?"


16 posted on 09/29/2004 12:12:49 PM PDT by Denver Ditdat (Ronald Reagan belongs to the ages now, but we preferred it when he belonged to us.)
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To: duckbutt
Don't hold your breath.

Now which ones of the MSM will pick up this story. Anyone? Anyone?

17 posted on 09/29/2004 12:16:13 PM PDT by GOPJ (The effect of‘MSM bias’ is the Democratic party and the press sustain each other’s delusions. Steyn)
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To: esryle

Check out the name of the parents---Hillarie and Rudy!
Great story, shows the compassion of our First Lady.


18 posted on 09/29/2004 12:16:13 PM PDT by arichtaxpayer (We will not tire, we will not falter, and we will not fail.)
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To: esryle

Only child, no one to play with, living in yuppie SF burbs .... all of these are symptoms of everyday life in the Occupied Bay Area. This is a crap place to raise kids.


19 posted on 09/29/2004 12:27:09 PM PDT by GOP_1900AD (Stomping on "PC," destroying the Left, and smoking out faux "conservatives" - Right makes right!)
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To: Don'tMessWithTexas
The president got himself a good woman.

No, you need to learn to speak Texan, that would be "The president got hisself a good woman."

20 posted on 09/29/2004 12:27:18 PM PDT by cspackler (There are 10 kinds of people in this world, those who understand binary and those who don't.)
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