Getting to Know Ronald Reagan Better
Standing next to the Berlin Wall Obelisk
In my university days in South Africa, the name of Ronald Reagan, recently elected as President of the USA, always brought about the image of a genial, sincere, kind man. A good friend once said that he would perhaps be the last of the great American presidents.
On a visit to California earlier in the year, my good friend Anthony Russo and I had the opportunity to visit the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum, located in Simi Valley, some miles north of Los Angeles. It was a short and easy drive from where we were staying in Van Nuys in readiness for attending and exhibiting (and selling books for Shepherd Press) at the Shepherds’ Conference.
My thinking was that an hour or two would be sufficient for the visit. I could not have been more mistaken. Arriving shortly after 10am, by 4pm we were still enraptured by all there was to see and think about.
As the museum’s website well states, “Perched on a mountaintop with sweeping views of the surrounding mountains, valleys and the Pacific Ocean, the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library is one of California’s most beautiful and unique destinations.” It continues, “The Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum is an immersive museum-going experience. More than twenty galleries highlight the life and times of America’s 40th president. The Reagan Library also presents entertaining and informative temporary exhibitions on a wide range of subjects.”
From actual Reagan memorabilia through hologram 3D cinematic experiences, the offerings to visitors proved to be engaging and fascinating. Of particular interest were the exhibits showing how President Reagan was transported–whether in Airforce One (a retired Boeing 707–and there’s a story in itself all about that, given how the aircraft had to be dismantled, transported by road, and reassembled on site), Navy One, or other vehicles such as the presidential limousine.
Other exhibits include
- Foundations of a Leader
- Evolution of the Great Communicator
- Governor of California
- Victory and Inauguration
- Assassination Attempt
- The Oval Office
- The White House
- The First Lady
- Rebuilding America
- Berlin Wall
- Peace through Strength
- Honoring American Heroes
- Camp David and Rancho del Cielo
- The Post-Presidency
- Mourning Ronald Reagan
Reagan embraced a fundamentally Western and biblically integrated worldview. He may have had unfavorable influences in some of his thinking, but his optimism, his commitment to a thoroughgoing work ethic, his power of persuasion over friends and foes alike (think of his most memorable line: “Mr. Gorbachev: Tear down this wall!”) and his concern for the greatness of the American way of life underline his presidency with a sense of remarkable success.
