Seven-year-old Arisha Sofia Ahmed received a letter that she will cherish for the rest of her life.
The third grade student at Bob Graham Education Center wrote President Barack Obama in February and the commander-in-chief responded five months later, making her the happiest kid in the world and the envy of her classmates when she returns to school for the new year.
“I felt really happy because I was worried and sad that he wouldn’t write back,” Arisha said. “But it made me really happy he responded to my letter.”
Arisha’s penned the President on her goal of one day becoming a U.S. Supreme Court Justice following the death of Justice Antonin Scalia in February.
In her letter to the Obama, Arisha said she wanted to be a judge to make this country fair based on equal rights and safe.
An excerpt from his letter, the President encouraged the Miami Lakes resident to pursue her dreams of becoming a public servant one day and praised her for wanting to make a difference in the world.
“Wherever your future takes you, be sure to put forth your best effort in school,” Obama said in his letter. “For you to become a leader in any area, people need to have confidence in your abilities, and education is the foundation for all achievement. The best elected officials are people who find something they are good at, build a career, and learn how to organize and motivate people. No matter what career you land in, if you always work hard, give back to your community, and chase your dreams with passion, I have confidence you will do big things. I wish you all the best.
”Claudia Ahmed, Arisha’s mother, said her daughter always wanted to be a judge and she demonstrates judicial-like duties at home.
“She practices equal justice in the house,” Claudia Ahmed said.
During a family vacation in Washington D.C., Arisha marveled at the U.S. Supreme Court Building, hoping one day to serve on the nation’s highest court.
Claudia Ahmed said she supports her daughter’s dreams of becoming a Supreme Court judge, as well as her son’s goals in life.
“I will never stop her from pursuing her dreams,” she said. “Kids have minds to satisfy their curiosity and we teach them to question everything they don’t understand so they can do better the next time. When they learn something, we encourage them to pass it on. That’s what I teach them.”
Arisha said she plans to share her letter and autographed pictures of Obama and the first family with her fellow students when school starts on Monday, August 22.
“I will love to show them the letter the President wrote me and the pictures,” said Arisha, who’s favorite school subjects are math, science and art. “It made me a happy person.”
Arisha’s mother said the President’s letter could not have come at better time.
“His letter definitely inspires her right before the start of the new school year to do better,” she said.