Illinois stands proud as Obama takes historic oath of office today

WASHINGTON- A Defining Moment.

Every generation has maybe a few.

Footsteps on the moon.

Martin Luther King Jr. stoically marching across an Alabama bridge.

A concrete wall in Berlin crumbling beneath the weight of a freed country.

Millions have journeyed to the nation's Capitol and tens of millions more will tune in today to witness a new defining moment as Barack Obama is sworn in as America's first black president - a summit reached after decades of civil rights strife, the climax of a landmark political campaign and a charge to better the world.

In a time when money and jobs are dangerously short and tens of thousands of U.S. soldiers risk their lives on foreign soil, hope flowed through those who traveled to become faces among the millions flooding the National Mall today.

"To see that many people come together and be so happy about the whole process - it is a true moment," said Kimberly Parker-Bright of Grayslake, who traveled through the night to D.C. with a few friends on a bus full of strangers. "Wow, this is really happening! I'm recording it in my mind, and it is going to be burned there forever."

As many as 4 million people may personally take in that moment.

The masses have been cramming into Washington for days, filling up more than 10,000 buses, hundreds of planes and trains and countless packed cars. Hotels are sold out for dozens of miles around the nation's capitol.

"It is an amazing pilgrimage," said Leslie Cieslak, 50, who traveled from Roselle with her husband to wait in endless lines for tickets to overflowing pre-inauguration concerts and balls. "This is something that people will be talking about for generation after generation."

The swearing in of the nation's 44th president at about 11 a.m. today, set to be followed by Obama's inaugural speech and parade, will likely be viewed by hundreds of millions of people on TV screens across the world.

In Obama's home state, house parties are planned, bosses are granting extra breaks and TVs are going up in the lunchroom.

On the eve of the inauguration, Illinois' political establishment and suburban residents delighted in their special connection to Obama as they gathered at an elaborate ball to honor the incoming president and share in the anticipation.

Thousands of guests filed into the multitiered gala wearing tuxedos and evening gowns. Drinks in hand, they roamed numerous banquet halls and ballrooms - many decked out with special Illinois themes, including famous pizza restaurants, Chicago theaters and state landmarks.

The event was paid for by nearly 50 donors, most of them industry powerhouses - Exelon, Motorola, Microsoft, American Airlines, Caterpillar - and several politically connected law firms and organizations.

Many in attendance had been close with Obama since he was an obscure state senator, when only the most audacious would believe he would rise to the White House just 12 years after entering politics representing the Chicago's Hyde Park neighborhood.

"I always knew Sen. Obama from the first time I met him was special," said state Sen. Kirk Dillard, a Hinsdale Republican. "I thought maybe someday if there was going to be an African American president he'd be the one who could be elected. I never, ever thought it would happen this quickly."

While the inauguration is being celebrated for the barriers it breaks and by the voters who supported Illinois' junior senator, many Republicans also conceded Monday they too were taken aback by the reaction to Obama's victory over John McCain and the ramifications of today's oath of office.

"Clearly, there are no limitations," remarked U.S. Rep. Peter Roskam, a Wheaton Republicans.

Daily Herald staff writer Marni Pyke contributed to this story.

Kevin Allen, Addison 512408Stand-ins for President-elect Barack Obama, his wife Michelle Obama and Chief Justice John Roberts rehearse the swearing in ceremony for the inauguration on the West Front of the U.S. Capitol Monday.associated press photo 342512Tour guide Suzanne Fauteux, of Washington, carries a flag with the image of President-elect Barack Obama, as she leads a group of students from Lakewood, Calif. through the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, Monday.associated press photo