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Child Reporter Who Interviewed Obama Dies At 23

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A student reporter who made headlines when he interviewed former President Barack Obama has passed away at the age of 23.

Damon Weaver reportedly died of natural causes on May 1, his sister Candace Hardy told the Palm Beach Post. At the time of his death, he had been studying communications at Albany State University in Georgia.

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Weaver was only 11 years-old when he spent ten minutes interviewing Obama in the Diplomatic Room on Aug. 13, 2009, asking questions that focused primarily on education. The young reporter specifically asked about school lunches, bullying, conflict resolution and how to succeed.

During the interview, Weaver asked Obama to be his “homeboy,” saying then-Vice President Joe Biden had already accepted.

“Absolutely,” a smiling Obama said as he shook the child’s hand.

“It was a one-in-a-lifetime experience,” Hardy said of this interview. “That’s the only way to describe it. … It was life-changing for him.”

Weaver would go on to interview Oprah Winfrey and athletes like Dwyane Wade.

“Dwyane Wade was impressive and he gave me good advice,” Weaver said in 2015. “He told me to stick with my dreams. And he told me that I’m a ‘cool’ person.”

“He was just a nice person, genuine, very intelligent,” Hardy said. “Very outspoken, outgoing. He never said no to anybody.”

Weaver began his career in media when he was in fifth grade, volunteering for the school newscast at K.E. Cunningham/Canal Point Elementary in a farm community on the shores of Lake Okeechobee.

“Damon was the kid who ran after me in the hall to tell me he was interested,” his teacher, Brian Zimmerman, said back in 2016. “And right away, I just saw the potential for the way he was on camera. You could see his personality come through. He wasn’t nervous being on camera.”

In the end, Weaver will be missed by many.

“He was loved by everyone,” Hardy said. “No matter if it was a stranger, his mom or a family member, he was just a ball of light with so much energy. He was always positive, always had a smile on a face and he was always a joy to be around. He left an impact on a lot of people.”

This piece was written by Mark Baker on May 16, 2021. It originally appeared in UpliftingToday and is used by permission.

Read more at UpliftingToday:
Disturbing Details About Bill And Melinda Gates’ Divorce Come To Light – Marriage ‘Irretrievably Broken’
Prince Philip’s True Cause Of Death Is Revealed As His Death Certificate Comes Out One Month After His Passing At 99
Melinda Gates Warned Bill About Jeffrey Epstein – ‘Furious’ After They Met Him

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