Two Chambersburg kids waited hours to pay respect to George H.W. Bush at Capitol

CHAMBERSBURG - If knowing all about presidents and even meeting one before the age of 10 are indicators of one's likelihood of ever becoming president, then fourth-grader Kendal Kelly is well on her way. 

Kelly, a student at Corpus Christi Catholic School, added to that list this week when she traveled to Washington, D.C., to pay her respects to George H.W. Bush as his body lay in state in the U.S. Capitol Rotunda. 

A classmate, Thomas Webster, a third-grader, also traveled to the Capitol with his family. 

Neither saw many other kids their age there, they said on Friday. Both have family that live in the area, so it's a trip they have made several times before. 

Kelly caught the eye of a TV reporter while standing in the approximately three-hour-long line. Her interview with WUSA9's Lorenzo Hall was heavily featured in a segment. 

Wearing an American flag scarf around her neck and bow in her hair, Kelly told the reporter that George H.W. Bush was her second favorite president and she was sad he died. 

"I asked (my parents) if we could please go down (to Washington) because I saw on the news you could come down here and he would lie in state," she told the reporter in the full interview, which her mother posted on Facebook. 

The video below shows the WUSA9 segment:

The video had been viewed about 1,300 times as of Friday afternoon and had 123 likes/reactions. That's more reactions than any other post on the Corpus Christi page has gotten, said Patty Dolaway, who handles media and marketing for Corpus Christi, said it is the most views 

Webster said he thought it was really cool to be inside the Capitol Rotunda. 

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It is "amazing" how very few people receive the honor of lying in state there, he said. 

Thirty-one people have done so, dating back to 1852, according to the U.S. House of Representatives' History, Art and Archives website. The honor is reserved for "the most distinguished" citizens, including presidents, congressmen and some military personnel. 

Webster said he wanted to pay respect to Bush because his mother told him he was the first person she had ever voted for. Asked if she told him anything about the late president, Webster talked about how Bush was one of the youngest people to earn his wings as a Navy pilot. 

Kelly loves learning about presidents, and she even hopes to be Commander in Chief one day.  She's 10 years old, so her first chance would be in 2044. If she becomes president, Kelly said she wants to stop wars. 

Kelly has already met one president. She said she shook Bill Clinton's hand while they were both at an event commemorating the 50th anniversary of Robert Kennedy's death this summer.

She even performed a skit in a school talent show in which she sang a song, naming all the presidents and a bit about each. 

For the skit, she wore a pink dress suit and hat a'la Jackie Kennedy of Nov. 22, 1963, when John F. Kennedy was assassinated. Kelly said her grandmother made it for her.