Area residents recall effect Reagan had on their lives

Whether they visited his former ranch or met him during a presidential visit, Ronald Reagan left a lasting impression on people's lives.

Last summer, Cape Girardeau resident Jennifer Goncher interned at the former president's ranch.

In 1988, Alison Staggs sat next to the president at the Show Me Center on his visit to Cape Girardeau.

Both have vivid memories of the experiences they associate with Reagan. The 40th president of the United States died Saturday at age 93.

The internship was with the Young America's Foundation, which bought Rancho del Cielo, or the Reagan Ranch as it is also known, from the Reagans in 1998 to preserve it as a historic site. The foundation is a nonprofit conservative outreach program for young people.

The ranch is where the Reagans went to relax in their time away from Washington, D.C.

According to Goncher, it is easy to see why they liked the place.

"It's gorgeous ... a big ranch in the mountains," she said. The ranch, which is located outside of Santa Barbara, also has an ocean view.

Goncher, who is majoring in political science at Southeast Missouri State University, had been active in the College Republicans and the effort to bring conservative speakers to campus.

The Young America's Foundation also is involved in bringing conservative speakers to campuses. That is how Goncher found out about the internship.

Goncher was one of three or four students interning at the ranch from June to August. She said she could sense Reagan's spirit while she was there and got to learn a lot more about him through her work in the archives.

"It was just a great experience, I got to learn so much about him and the history of that era," Goncher said. "He's one of my favorite presidents. I kind of fell in love with the guy."

Staggs was the president of the Student Government Association at Southeast when Reagan visited Cape Girardeau on Sept. 14, 1988, and sat next to Reagan during a ceremony at the Show Me Center.

"It was one of the top two or three days of my entire life," Staggs said.

As student government president, she helped to plan Reagan's visit, but she did not know she was chosen to sit next to him on the stage.

Staggs said she likely wasn't told where she was seated in order to keep her relaxed, but she relaxed as a result of talking with Reagan during the ceremony.

"He was so warm and kind," she said. "He was like a grandfather."

While Staggs enjoyed the conversation with Reagan during the ceremony, the best moment of the night came when she got the opportunity to present the president with a Southeast basketball jacket emblazoned with his name on the front. The crowd was so loud she couldn't be heard. Then Reagan came to the rescue.

"He leaned over, put his hand on my back and said, 'Please be quiet, your president is trying to speak,'" Staggs said.

kalfisi@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 182

jwachter@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 127