Haddonfield 'Representing' at Obama Inaugural

If you look really, really closely, you might just see Lourin Plant among the more than half-million people expected to attend President Barack Obama's second inaugural ceremony today in Washington, DC.

Or not.

But even if you don't see Plant, he intends to be there, waving his cherished invitations among the crowd on the national mall on Capitol Hill.

"I was surprised, really kind of shocked, I got an invitation from them," said Plant, 58, of Haddonfield, who has a doctorate in music and is a professor at Rowan University. "I did not anticipate it, but I'm going to go. I don't care if it's zero degrees, I'm going to put on my 16 layers and go."

Plant campaigned for Obama in 2008 and in 2012. He knocked on doors in Philadelphia for the reelection campaign last year, was a "lunch gofer" at the campaign office and even chipped in to buy lunch for staffers there on several occasions. He said he did more work in 2008 than he did last year, but didn't get a ticket to the inaugural then. But when the ticket came this year, he jumped at the chance to go.

"I want to be part of history," Plant said. "I consider myself to be a little person, you know, like the people the winners thank at the Academy Awards. I'm so honored they would remember me."

Plant said he had never really worked in politics until March 18, 2008. That's when Obama delivered a stirring address in Philadelphia on race in America in the wake remarks from his pastor Jeremiah Wright.

"I stood up then and said I'm going to help this man," Plant said. "This is a historic time. That's one of the reasons I wanted say I was there when it happened."