President Barack Obama Helps 9/11 Teen Payton Wall Meet Justin Bieber

Payton Wall, a teen whose father was killed on September 11th 2001, got help from President Obama in fulfilling her dream of meeting Justin Beiber.

By Kathryn Hawkins. Posted on June 26 2011

Millions of teens have “Bieber fever.” But for New Jersey teen Payton Wall, who lost her business executive father in the World Trade Center attacks in 2001, Bieber’s light-hearted pop tunes have a deeper meaning: They’ve helped her cope with the sorrow she and her family have been dealing with for the last decade.

So when Payton had the opportunity to meet President Obama during the ceremonial wreath-laying at Ground Zero last month, she requested a special favor: Could he set up a meeting with her favorite heartthrob?

The President isn’t normally in the business of setting up celebrity meet and greets, but he told Payton he’d see what he could do. “I know Justin,” President Obama told her. “Maybe I could set something up.”

Sure enough, he came through: On Thursday, Payton, her 12-year-old sister Ashley, and her best friend Madison Roberson—who also lost a father in the 9/11 attacks—had the chance to sit down for a face-to-face meeting with Justin Bieber at a VIP section of Macy’s in New York City, where Bieber was promoting his new perfume line.

It doesn’t sound like the deepest of conversations: “He was asking us about the perfume and if we were wearing it,” Payton told the New York Post.

Even so, the girls, who brought a life-sized cardboard cutout of President Obama with them, were thrilled that the President had been able to help them fulfill their teenage fantasy.

“He was really nice and is so cute,” gushed Avery. “He didn’t even look real.”

Filed under: Celebrities, Weird,

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