Visiting the Reagan Library

The Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum in Simi Valley was the destination of our bus filled with members of the Channel City Club. In between visits I always forget how spectacular it is – especially Air Force One. This flying White House is dramatically displayed in the 90,000-square-foot pavilion, along with a Marine One helicopter. No other presidential library has a plane.

This day we would sit under its wings in front of the wall of glass and be served lunch before listening to the keynote speaker. His name was Bobby Chacon, a former FBI agent who spent 27 years in that job and was assigned to posts around the world.

He worked the Mafia war in NYC during the John Gotti days, the drug wars of the late 1980s, and was present in NYC on 9/11. He was deployed to Iraq twice on FBI operations. He also created and led the FBI Dive Teams in NYC and Los Angeles.

His first post FBI job was as a technical advisor for Gary Sinise on Criminal Minds Beyond Borders. Bobby now writes for television and film and has played an FBI agent on TV shows and feature films.

Then it was time to tour the FBI exhibit. It was titled “From Al Capone to Al Qaeda.” The hit of the day had to be the real Bonnie and Clyde car complete with bullet holes.

I never tire of visiting the Oval Office with its jar of jellybeans. I ended the day with a favorite quote from President Reagan’s January 11, 1989, farewell address to the nation.

“Once you begin a great movement, there’s no telling where it will end. We meant to change a nation, and instead we changed the world.”