Grisamore: Gus takes on D.C.
By Ed Grisamore
The Macon Telegraph

Gustoff Alowishus Thebear, better known as "Gus," is dressed in a tuxedo and a cowboy hat. He is on his way to Washington, D.C., for this week's presidential inauguration. Gus is scheduled to climb aboard Air Force One. He may get to spend the night in the Lincoln Bedroom, too, so he has packed his presidential pajamas. No formal introductions will be necessary. During the campaign, Gus spent a few weeks traveling with Laura Bush. He attended the final presidential debate in St. Louis. He went to rallies in Michigan and Florida. He sat next to Laura in New York when George W. taped a spot on David Letterman. He helped "W" practice his "furry" math. Gus was such a hit, he was invited back for the inauguration. Of course, that was one of Bush's campaign promises - when he pledged to leave no bear behind. For the first two years of his life, Gus was just your average bear. He was one of several teddy bears Chase Gowan received when he was born on May 14, 1998. But then Chase's mom, Michelle Gowan, made Gus the chosen one last August. She picked him a pair of traveling shoes and sent him on his "excellent adventure." He has spent the last five months logging some 17,348 miles.
Michelle Gowan is the REACH teacher at Sonny Carter Elementary. She introduced Gus to her gifted classes at the beginning of the school year. "They didn't want to have anything to do with him," she said. "They didn't think a teddy bear was cool." For his first assignment, Gowan sent Gus to Lisa Bearnson, the founder of Creating Keepsakes magazine, who took him on a trip to Amish country in Pennsylvania. After Gus mailed back his first postcard, Gowan's classes began to get excited. One day in September, while discussing the election, a student suggested sending Gus on the campaign trail. In early October, Gowan was summoned to the office to answer a call from Bush headquarters in Austin, Texas. At the same time, her cell phone rang. She couldn't believe her ears. It was the Gore campaign in Washington. That provided both an opportunity and a challenge. Two invitations. One stuffed animal. "Gus is a bipartisan bear," she said. Gowan had no idea where to find a Gus clone. She went on a "wild bear chase" from the Cracker Barrel gift shop to the mall. She traced his bloodline to Sears, where a generous salesperson donated a twin Gus.

The students at Sonny Carter got only a few Gus reports from the Democrats. But Laura Bush, a former schoolteacher, educated Gus on the political process. Kim Black, a member of Mrs. Bush's staff, sent the class e-mails almost every day. She told about how George W. once stopped to rub the bear's head for good luck. There were photos of Gus in Barbara Bush's lap. And wearing dark glasses and an earpiece while posing with Secret Service agents.
"We had no idea any of this would ever happen," said Gowan. "If they had just snapped one picture and sent Gus back, we would have been happy." But now Gus has become a celebrity. This past weekend, he traveled with sixth-grade teacher Kay Miller to Sumter, S.C., to meet Clarke Bynum, the hero who thwarted the attempted highjacking of an international flight two weeks ago. After the inauguration, Gus may even try out for a guest spot on Oprah or Larry King Live. He already has been invited to the "Teddy Bear Museum" in Thermopolis, Wyoming. After that, the sky's the limit. "We're going to see if we can get him on the space shuttle," said Gowan. "We think we have a good chance. After all, our school is named for an astronaut."

Gus becomes famous!