Maurice Barron, the Co Waterford man who was a guest at President Joe Biden's State of the Union Address on February 7, has revealed that Biden is planning to visit Ireland in 2023.
"One thing the President said to me which I thought was amazing, we had this lovely moment with him .. he turned to me and said 'you know, I'm planning to go home soon,'" Barron told RTÉ Radio 1 host Ryan Tubridy on February 9.
"Well, you'll have to do Waterford, sir, if you can," Barron said he told Biden, adding that he'd "probably be run out of Waterford" by his family if he hadn't.
"We'll definitely do that," Barron said Biden told him.
Barron added: "I hope he does actually get to go back to Ireland, I think it'll be a huge, huge thing.
"He's such a huge advocate for all the Irish Americans and people like ourselves who are over there."
Barron and his wife Kandice met President Biden after they were guests of First Lady Dr. Jill Biden at Tuesday's State of the Union Address in Washington, DC.
During his address, President Biden highlighted Maurice and Kandice and their daughter Ava's cancer battle.
Ava, who will turn four in March, was diagnosed with a rare malignant Rhabdoid kidney tumor in April 2020 when she was just 13 months old.
After surgery and several rounds of chemotherapy and radiation, Ava has entered remission. Doctors are confident that the gene mutation that Ava has is unlikely to form another tumor if she can make it to her fourth birthday this March without the cancer returning.
Ahead of Christmas 2021, Barron wrote to Biden, whose son Beau died from cancer in 2015, about Ava's cancer battle saying: "Please know that your strength gave me strength and the embrace of your emotions allowed me not to feel as if I was somehow less when mine overtook me."
Soon after, Barron and his family received an invite to the White House as Biden reignited the Cancer Moonshot initiative, which sets out to "end cancer as we know it."
Barron and his family were back in Washington this week after being announced as guests of First Lady Dr. Jill Biden for the State of the Union.
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The Barron family were also guests at a reception at the White House before Tuesday's State of the Union Address. Barron told Tubridy that Ava was the first official guest to enter the reception and that she was the center of attention throughout the function.
While Ava stayed in the White House's movie room with her aunt during Biden's speech, Barron revealed: "He [Biden] actually took time before he left for the State of the Union, he purposely came down to the movie room just to meet Ava before he would go.
"I think he actually made himself a little bit late for the State of the Union just so he could get to meet her. It's extraordinary."
Tubridy invited the Barrons to appear on The Late Late Show the next time they're in Ireland.
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