Mention In Emanuel's Inauguration Speech Brings Smile To Face Of One Chicago Teen
CHICAGO (CBS) -- Just a couple of hours after his inauguration, Mayor Rahm Emanuel was greeting a line of well-wishers in an open house at his City Hall office, reports WBBM Political Editor Craig Dellimore.
There were everyday people in line to meet the mayor in his office and have a picture taken and then there was Marcus Norris. They 18-year-old was mentioned as a success story in Mayor Emanuel's speech.
When Norris was nine, stray gunfire knocked out his front teeth and for years he was too embarrassed to smile. Timothy Jackson, his mentor in the Becoming A Man program raised money for dental surgery.
"Marcus' participation levels were very high and so we continued to work since his sophomore year until now and we're in constant contact and we're doing our group work."
The mayor heard Marcus' story and has gotten to know Emanuel pretty well now.
"It feels good to talk to the mayor," Norris said. "It feels like I'm involved now."
The teen says he wasn't expecting Emanuel to mention him in the speech.
"I didn't know he was going to mention me," Norris said. "It was surprising. It felt like a dream. When he said my name, I was shocked. I didn't know what to say."
He did smile though.