Joe Selfie

J-T reporter met the President at a function, Biden then used his phone to take a photo.

By Aleksei Pavloff 

Editor’s note: Through family connections, Journal-Tribune sports writer Aleksei Pavloff recently had an opportunity to attend a White House function and meet President Joe Biden. Regardless of your political leaning, the chance to interact with a sitting U.S. President is a special event. Below he shares a first-person account of the trip.

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My mom is one cool person.

That’s the first thing that comes to mind after I got back to Delaware, Ohio after a recent brief day trip to Washington, DC.

What happened was not on the top of my list as far as what I was expecting. A couple weeks prior, my mother, Laura Penn, invited me to a White House Holiday Party for Union Leaders across the United States. Of course, I said yes due to the unique opportunity, but mostly I just wanted to see my mom.

Pictured above is the selfie President Joe Biden took with J-T sports writer Aleksei Pavloff and his mother. Biden used Pavloff's phone to take the photo.

It’s rare I get to see my family given I live in Ohio. My parents live out of state and my sister lives across the pond in Manchester, UK. Any excuse I can make, I take just to see my family.

It was a quick turnaround as far as me getting to the nation’s capital. From Friday to Saturday, I was upholding my duties covering two basketball games and a wrestling tournament. I was exhausted, but excited to be with my mom soon.

Arriving in DC was troublesome. I arrived before my mom but as soon as she landed, it was go time. That’s when I noticed my New York City walking pace needed work with my mom telling me I needed to pick up the pace.

She was worried that we wouldn’t make the line in time to get into the White House or at least was concerned about being in the back of it. My mother is a very detailed and punctual woman who holds a certain standard for herself and her children. She scolded me for not taking my suit to the cleaners and wasn’t taking my relaxed attitude.

I thought making the line would calm her nerves and it did — mostly. The freezing rain made sure she wouldn’t be completely calm. Then the line started moving.

We walked to the president’s home through the back first showing our guest invites followed by two rounds of ID checks and search screenings.

We were then greeted by men and women in uniform wishing us a happy holiday and a “Welcome to the White House.”

I tried to soak in the moment while others vigorously took photos on their phones. I don’t blame them. It was a party after all and a festive occasion.

Once we checked in our coats, we spent some time walking through various rooms and libraries draped with holiday décor.

We made our way upstairs with holiday themed music being played live by string performers. I felt like I was in a Hallmark movie.

My mother and I wasted no time diving into the food that was prepared for guests. We found a seat next to some people just to catch a beat while my mother sat in front of a portrait of Abraham Lincoln.

Finishing my first glass of champagne, we walked through two more rooms before coming into a larger one. My mom shared that this room was the first time she met the sitting president.

As we perused the room, I noticed a podium which held the presidential seal.

“Is he coming to this?” I asked my mom.

“He is,” she said.

We stood in the front row that was separated from the rest of the attendees. I assume that was because the Secret Service didn’t want the crowd to rush the president if he chose to chat with us.

Joe Biden was welcomed with a round of applause, cheers and whistles. Accompanied by Dr. Jill Biden, they stood on the elevated stage smiling. The last time I saw Dr. Biden was when she took a visit to Raymond in 2023.

Joe, in my estimation, spoke from the heart, crediting the union leaders in attendance for the work they have done since he took office.

In the midst of his speech, he coughed and took a second to recollect before Dr. Biden said, “I am just wondering why your speech writers didn’t include that your wife is also a union member?”

The room reacted with laughter as Joe looked down and smiled.

“Did you know that she is a union member?” He said after the room calmed down.

In his remarks, the president gave a shoutout to Columbus, Ohio as an example of union projects happening across the country. I thought that was pretty unique given my central Ohio residency.

After he was done, Dr. Biden and the President shook hands with attendees standing in the front. As a journalist, I don’t like being the center of attention and didn’t want to intrude on their scheduled plans. My mom insisted I do so.

After shaking Dr. Biden’s hand, Joe wasn’t too far behind. He stayed and chatted with every person in the front much to the dismay I saw on the faces of his Secret Service members.

He got to us and my mom was the first to speak to him. She reminded him of her position of the President’s Committee on the Arts and the Humanities.

My mom, day to day, is a union executive for the Stage Directors and Choreographers Society representing directors and choreographers on and off Broadway. Aside from her role on the president’s committee, she also is a part-time professor at Yale.

As soon as Joe recognized my mom, he gave her a hug. Dr. Biden serves as an honorary chair with the co-chairs being Lady Gaga and Bruce Cohen.

My mom introduced me to the president. I shook his hand. It was a surreal moment.

I’ve met high-ranking politicians before, but none above the state level. This was the first world leader I spoke with.

He asked me my age.

“I am 29, sir.”

“Oh, getting old there,” Joe responded.

We laughed.

I mentioned my days playing college football made me feel older than I actually am. We talked about college football and the positions I played. I told him where I went to school (Ohio Wesleyan University) which he recognized and shared some of his senior staff members went there.

Before I knew it, the president took the phone I had in my hands, posed with us and took a selfie.

Who would’ve thought I took a selfie with a sitting president.

This marked the second time I was in the same room as a sitting U.S. president. The first time came during a Broadway show when Barack Obama was in office. We sat roughly 15 people from one another then.

But Sunday was the first, and maybe the only time I shook hands with one.

All because of my mother’s doing. To say I am a proud son would be an understatement. She is a wonder.