It wasn’t a visit from the president of the United States, but it might as well have been for hundreds of Sacramento State students and faculty who were eager to hear Maya Soetoro-Ng, the younger half-sister of President Barack Obama, at a speech she gave in the University Union Ballroom Tuesday afternoon titled “Leadership and Service in the 21st Century.”

Nearly 500 people witnessed the visit, including film crews, photographers, and reporters. Sac State President Alexander Gonzalez was the first of several to give welcoming remarks, followed by a surprise appearance from Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson. “This is just so awesome for all of us, and as the mayor of the city, we just want to welcome you and invite you back as often as you can? If you come back enough we’ll even give you the key to the city,” Johnson said.

Joining Soetoro-Ng on the stage during her speech was 4-year-old daughter Suhaila; Soetoro-Ng said she tries to expose her daughter to as many grown-up experiences as possible to foster a better understanding of the world beyond her immediate upbringing.

“My daughter is being raised in a manner that is very different from a lot of American kids; namely I just take her everywhere and I expose her to a lot of adult events, and I expose her to a lot of people and faces,” Soetoro-Ng said. “She learns from all of you and all of the people she meets along the way.”

Students like Cathia Sanchez, a junior psychology major, said she related to Soetoro-Ng’s message of leadership and creating a global community.

“I’ve never seen so many young people unite,” Sanchez said.

During an interview with the State Hornet inside the University Restaurant after her speech, Soetoro-Ng said that young people have an interest in helping others as well as themselves, and they have unique qualities that will set future leaders apart from current leaders.

“Young people are open to new ideas, they have multi-faceted solutions to problems; young people are very accepting of globalism and they can harness the good in our interrelatedness,” Soetoro-Ng said.

Julia Baum can be reached at [email protected].