SCRANTON — Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s latest summer day in Scranton started with solemn moments at the West Scranton cemetery where her father is buried.
It ended in wild applause at a fundraiser in Green Ridge.
As fundraiser host Virginia McGregor introduced the woman she called “our next president of the United States,” donors gathered under a tent in her backyard drowned out Clinton’s name with cheers.
“Wow, my goodness,” said Clinton, who spent part of her summer vacations in the city decades ago.
More than 150 donors paid at least $1,000 and up to $2,700 to get into the fundraiser. Reporters and non-donors weren’t allowed inside to see Clinton, but the public address system she used was audible across the street from the tent.
The fundraiser was part of Clinton’s ongoing effort to raise perhaps as much as $1 billion to successfully compete for the presidency, but the business of raising money was delayed by her visit to the Washburn Street Cemetery. Her father, Hugh Rodham, died shortly after her husband, President Bill Clinton, took office in 1993 and is buried at the cemetery. The name of her mother, Dorothy Rodham, is also on the tombstone, though she is not buried there.
Paul McGloin, the 64-year-old West Scranton resident who has voluntarily tended to the Rodham gravesite for 22 years, said Clinton was joined at the cemetery by her brothers, Hugh and Tony, for about half an hour. She talked about her family’s roots in Scranton, he said.
“She loves the city of Scranton. That’s all she talked about was the city of Scranton,” McGloin said.
As Clinton and her family visited the cemetery, supporters who couldn’t afford the fundraiser waited outside the McGregor home for her to arrive. They didn’t mind being unable to afford the tickets.
Emily Coleman, 33, of Dunmore, stood across North Washington Avenue with her son, Michael, 2, and her sister, Katie Borer, 34, of Scranton, who brought her twin 1-year-old daughters, Emery and Lily.
“We’re just really excited to see Hillary back in town,” Coleman said. “People need money in order to run.”
She said Clinton’s experience as secretary of state gives her the well-rounded outlook on the world that a president needs.
“She just seems like a down-to-earth person who knows all the different kinds of lifestyles that are going on in the United States,” Coleman said.
Thomas Mayer, 51, rode his bicycle from his Moosic home to get a look and said Clinton had earned the right to raise money without criticism. Lackawanna County Recorder of Deeds Evie Rafalko, a Democratic national committeewoman, on Tuesday lamented Clinton’s failure to hold a more accessible event, though she had no problem with the fundraiser.
“She’s earned the respect to be able to receive a donation to get in to see her,” Mayer said. “She’s always stuck to what she’s believed in ... She’s a fighter. She’s right there with them (her opponents) toe to toe. What’s not to like about her?”
Mary Anna Parris, LeClaire, Iowa, saw Clinton there a few months ago as she kicked off her campaign. With her husband in Scranton on business, Parris heard Clinton was coming here and decided to see if she could get another look at her, though she hasn’t decided on whom she will support for president.
“When she came to LeClaire, she was radiant,” she said. “I’m just excited to be a part of what’s going on here.”
A few minutes later, Clinton’s caravan rolled up, and her waiting fans cheered, though she didn’t come out to say hello.
“That’s it?” said one woman who didn’t give her name.
Once inside, Clinton touched on her Scranton connections, her grandfather Hugh S. Rodham’s days working at the Scranton Lace Co., the coal mining roots of his wife Hannah’s family and her father’s career as a Penn State football player.
“I am so grateful for what they did to make their place in America, right here in Scranton,” Clinton said.
She also spoke of her mother, Dorothy Rodham, but her words were inaudible.
She spent most of her time talking about issues — her desire to make college education affordable, create universal kindergarten, seriously boost mental health treatment, equal pay for equal work for women and a greater emphasis on wind, solar and other alternative energy sources.
Iowa, she said, now produces 30 percent of its energy from alternative energy sources, something all states can do.
“My hope is we put our heads together and start thinking creatively and smartly,” Clinton said. “I would love northeastern Pennsylvania to be at the forefront of that ... I want to be on the front lines of looking for solutions to problems.”
She also promised to return “many times” to Scranton during the campaign.
Afterward, attendee Sandy Lamanna of South Abington Twp. said she was impressed.
“It was really fabulous, it really was,” Lamanna said. “She is great. She is very impressive and she touched on all the issues that I think are important.”
Republicans were less appreciative. A handful gathered across the street for a while with signs accusing Clinton of hypocrisy for once saying her family was broke while living a still-lavish lifestyle.