CHICAGO — While Jackie Mills waited for the dedication ceremony for the Obama Presidential Center to start, she found herself reminiscing on former President Barack Obama’s first inauguration.

Her entire family gathered in her mother’s home, huddled around the television, the 72-year-old Bronzeville resident said. Her mom had insisted all of Mills’ brothers and sisters take off work to be a part of the “massive holiday.”

Her mom was incredibly proud — and a bit shocked — that a Black man had been elected president. For Mills it was impossible not to cry. On Thursday, she felt similar emotions.

“This is a historic event. A once in a lifetime thing,” she said. “We will never see this again … They’re going to save this neighborhood.”

Mills was one of thousands who packed Midway Plaisance Park to watch a livestream of the star-studded ceremony on a large screen, sitting on lawn chairs and blankets. Many were ecstatic about the newest 19-acre addition to Jackson Park, just steps away from the South Side neighborhoods they live or work in. They also said they wanted to celebrate the Obamas’ legacy in Chicago.

During the ceremony, people danced and sang along to the performances by John Legend and Chicago-native Jennifer Hudson. They cheered when politicians like former Vice President Kamala Harris were shown on screen. But probably the loudest chants came during speeches from the Obamas.

In a pre-recorded video toward the start of the program, Obama said “hope took root” for him on the South Side. Here, he said he first knocked on doors, fell in love with his wife, Michelle, and built a community.

“Here you can do more than reflect on change. You can become it,” he said. “That’s what the South Side taught us.”

One of the people who remembers Obama knocking doors while campaigning to become a senator was 83-year-old Lynnette Jennings, who came to the watch party with her daughter and granddaughter. She said he stood on her front porch.

“I could not believe that a Black man finally won (the presidency),” she said. “He feels like a son to me. It gave me hope for my grandchildren.”

Her daughter, Stephannie Jennings, also said she wanted to support the Obamas and their legacy. The 55-year-old Woodlawn resident wanted to feel like she was a part of history.

It feels a bit surreal, she said, that she can simply walk over to a building that’s connected to a president. Her alma mater, Hyde Park High School, is also right across the street, she said.

“I’m just excited to see what this is going to do for the community. I hope that we can really embrace and enjoy what’s being put here for us,” she said. “Hopefully with the tourism that will come in, the city will have to invest more into our community.”

The center, which cost around $850 million and rises around 225 feet at its highest, will open to the public on Friday, also Juneteenth, a holiday that commemorates the end of slavery. It includes a museum, around 60,000 square feet of athletic facilities, garden spaces and a public library, among other amenities. Officials have said they expect 600,000 visitors a year to the museum and a million to the larger campus.

For years, Mills said she watched as the center was constructed. She was “over the moon” when the Obamas chose to put it in Chicago, but she admitted that at first she compared the exterior to a prison. After she got to take part in a pre-tour she said it all made sense, though, calling it “phenomenal.”

She particularly enjoyed the display of former first lady Michelle Obama’s dresses and replica of the Oval Office, which includes the Resolute Desk. She’s also excited for kids in the neighborhood to have a safe place to play basketball or use a recording studio, for example. She said she has nine tickets lined up to visit the museum in the future.

“Everything about (Obama) will represent a safe space and the South Side of Chicago is in dire need of that,” she said.

Beverly Coleman went to the rally in Grant Park where Obama celebrated his first presidential victory in 2008. So the 53-year-old Chatham resident said she knew she also had to be at the watch party on Thursday.

“I wanted to hear someone with a clear mind, able to speak to his people, rally the people and give them hope,” she said. “That’s the beautiful part.”

She has a ticket to the museum in August and said she’s most excited to see the replica of the Oval Office. She thought it was “remarkable” to see the center be built as she drove to work downtown.

During Obama’s presidency, Coleman said she felt he was someone who tried to represent all people — Republicans, Democrats, urban people, rural people. This is a sharp contrast to what she believes she’s seen under President Donald Trump.

“He focused on everybody,” she said. “You don’t feel this in this administration at all.”

Some in the audience had lined up hours before the ceremony began, perusing stands featuring local businesses and restaurants. One of those businesses was Semillas, a plant store located in the Pilsen neighborhood.

The owner, Angélica Varela, said a representative from the Obama Foundation reached out to her to be a part of the event, which she said was “an honor.” As a mom of a toddler she’s eager to visit the library in the center.

Varela said she started her business in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic to share her love of plants with others. She sold flowers and jewelry at her booth.

“It made me really happy,” she said, of being part of the watch party. “I think they were really intentional about this event.”

For Eileen and Craig Doran the watch party was, indeed, a family outing. Their sons, 10 and 18, joined them at the park.

The Des Plaines couple said they’re pleased to have such an expansive community space nearby. Craig Doran, 54, works at the University of Chicago Laboratory Schools, which Malia and Sasha Obama attended.

Eileen Doran, 52, believes the Obamas are both great role models for her kids because of their “love for everyone” and “positive energy.” What particularly resonates with her is Michelle’s message of “when they go low, we go high.”

“This is a celebration of what it means to be kind and show care for who we are as humans and one another,” she said.

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