Oct 17, 2009, 5:32 GMT
Washington - Former president George W Bush was nowhere in the Texas crowd Friday night as his successor, US President Barack Obama - the man trying to undo eight years of his policies - took the stage.
But his father, the 41st president George HW Bush, warmly welcomed the 44th president to the 20th anniversary celebration of his volunteer programme, the Thousand Points of Light.
Bush Sr, a moderate Republican compared to his more conservative son, had good things to say about the Democrat Obama.
He even brought up 2005's Hurricane Katrina - the humanitarian disaster in New Orleans that dealt a black eye to his son's administration. He talked about his first meeting with Obama, then a senator, who had rushed to Houston to help with Katrina refugees.
'He came without fanfare, and I could quickly see he was someone who genuinely cared about helping others,' said Bush. 'I salute the president for his leadership on this issue.'
The celebration was held in College Station, Texas, at Texas A&M University, where students cheered wildly as Obama walked on stage. Bush's presidential library is located at the university.
Obama, who during his January inauguration speech called on the country to roll up its sleeves and volunteer, challenged the audience to follow in the tradition of public service and courage of the elder Bush: a Navy pilot in World War II, service in Congress, the CIA, UN ambassador, vice president and president.
'If president Bush could fly 58 combat missions when he was younger than many of you here today - and keep on fighting even after he was shot down and nearly captured by the enemy - then surely you can keep going when your service project gets a little tough,' Obama said.
Obama also noted that in times of need, US leaders had risen above politics, such as Bush and former Democratic president Bill Clinton when they raised money together after the 2004 tsunami and the 2005 hurricane.
The conviction that drew the two together - they were once fierce adversaries when Clinton denied Bush a second term of office in 1992 - was 'the belief that there's some things that are beyond politics; that there's no place for partisanship when a great American city is underwater (and) that the R or D next to your name is irrelevant when nations in crisis need the world's help.'
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