Thousands of people walked out of Vancouver's Rogers Arena feeling inspired Thursday night after listening to a talk from former U.S. first lady Michelle Obama. She walked on stage to thunderous applause in an event titled, Becoming: An Intimate Conversation with Michelle Obama, part of a promotional tour for her biography released in 2018 called Becoming. Obama began her talk with anecdotes from her childhood. She said she grew up poor, but with parents who encouraged her to speak up and pursue an education. "I had parents who understood that to teach a child to have a voice means you have to appreciate their voice from very early on," she said. "That means you don't shush them, you take their questions, you let them ask things." Michelle and the former U.S. president Barack Obama now live in Washington, D.C, with their 16-year-old daughter Sasha. Their oldest daughter Malia, 20, is studying at Harvard University in Cambridge, Mass. Barack Obama spoke in Vancouver earlier this month at an event sponsored by the local board of trade. Faced bigotry growing up She also spoke to the prejudice and discrimination her family faced. "As black families like ours were moving up and moving into the communities that were better off, white families were fleeing to the suburbs because they were afraid ... of us," she said. "And I stop there because ... we still do that to each other." ABC anchor Robin Roberts, right, hosted the nearly one-and-a-half-hour discussion with Obama. (Becoming: An Intimate Conversation with Michelle Obama) Event opener from Syria Obama shared the stage with four other women, one of whom lives in Vancouver, who told their stories at the event. Nesreen Nassleh, an immigrant mother who moved to Vancouver from Syria, used to watch Obama's speeches and admire her for lifting up other women. "Every time I saw her on television, I felt, 'That's a woman who is empowering all women,'" she told the CBC's Early Edition earlier in the day. "And I was lucky enough to have this chance to go to her event." Nassleh shared her experience as an immigrant mother in Canada raising four children in a multicultural community. Nesreen Nassleh is originally from Palestine but lived in Syria, where she worked as a biomedical engineer before moving to Canada. She's opening Michelle Obama's event in Vancouver on March 21. (Submitted by Nesreen Nassleh) She is originally Palestinian, but worked as a biomedical engineer in Syria and moved to Canada in 2005. "I'm teaching them to be respectful and accept all religions and culture in this country," she said. "[But also] so they are proud of their religion and their culture." Vancouver is one of four Canadian stops on the 2019 leg of the tour to promoted Obama's memoir, including Edmonton, Toronto and Montreal. With files from the CBC's Early Edition<doc-sep>Share this Story: Cynicism didn't get past the door at Michelle Obama event in Vancouver Cynicism didn't get past the door at Michelle Obama event in Vancouver Teens girls at Michelle Obama event bring tears to reporter's eyes. Photo by Ben Nelms / for PNG Reviews and recommendations are unbiased and products are independently selected. Postmedia may earn an affiliate commission from purchases made through links on this page. Article content Thirteen-year-old Jenna Shahi and 16-year-old April Carney made me cry a little bit on Thursday night. The two young women were part of the sold-out crowd that heard Michelle Obama speak at the Rogers Arena stop of her book tour for Becoming: An Intimate Conversation with Michelle Obama. We apologize, but this video has failed to load. tap here to see other videos from our team. Try refreshing your browser, or Cynicism didn't get past the door at Michelle Obama event in Vancouver Back to video “It was my idea. I’m interested in politics and I’ve always looked up to her instead of necessarily male politicians. I think her views on the world and everything are really amazing,” said Carney, who asked to attend the event as a 16th birthday present. Sniff. “I thought it would be a special experience for us, something to do together. Something she will remember long after the presents have been forgotten,” said April’s mom Connie Duivenvoorden. Mom Jas Shahi said she brought her daughter Jenna because Obama was a role model for the 13-year-old. As Shahi told me this, Jenna walked up carrying a bag of mini donuts. She didn’t miss a beat when asked why she wanted to hear Obama speak. Advertisement Story continues below This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Article content “She’s very inspirational and I look up to her,” said Jenna, who wants to be a pediatrician when she grows up. “She’s kind and giving and so passionate for making the world a better place.” And, cue the tears. In between those couple of moments of shedding tears of joy and, I think, relief for the future, I walked around the busy concourse. Thousands and thousands of all cultures and colours, ages and orientations were visibly pumped to see Obama. Photo by Ben Nelms / PNG I saw what looked like three generations of women waiting together in line for the bathroom. This just in: bathroom lineups for an event with a crowd that was probably 90 per cent women are long. There were lines of people waiting to take their picture next to life-size Obama photos. There were lines of people at the merch table waiting to buy $45 T-shirts, $25 Find Your Voice coffee mugs or $45 Find Your Flame and Keep it Lit candles. And if you wanted to cuddle up on the couch after the show and think about what Obama had to say, there was a $110 sea-foam-green cotton throw emblazoned with the word Becoming ready for you to take home. As I watched women with a glass of wine in one hand and a card in the other purchase their mementos, I was struck by how I felt. I wasn’t judgmental over the $45 candle purchase. Instead, I thought, I bet it’s a good candle. Obama is friends with Oprah, and Oprah wouldn’t let a close friend sell cheap, smelly candles. Those are not her favourite things. Yes, it appears my old companion cynicism was stopped at the door by security. My God, this was a happy place. Advertisement Story continues below This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Article content Toggle full screen mode Previous Gallery Image Photo by Ben Nelms / PNG Photo by Ben Nelms / PNG Photo by Ben Nelms / PNG Photo by BEN NELMS/PNG / PNG Photo by Ben Nelms / PNG Photo by Ben Nelms / PNG Photo by Ben Nelms / PNG Photo by Ben Nelms / PNG Photo by BEN NELMS/PNG / PNG Photo by Ben Nelms / PNG Photo by Ben Nelms / PNG Next Gallery Image Toggle gallery captions All 11 Photos for Gallery I asked Jas Shokar why she was there, and she said it was because Obama had been the U.S. First Lady. Really, did you want to see other first ladies? You know, Hillary Clinton or Laura Bush, I asked? “No,” said Shokar, thinking for just a second. “I was really fond of Barack Obama. I think she would have a lot to say, so it would be kind of interesting to see her. I mean, I wouldn’t be here for Melania.” Inside the arena, big screens showed pictures of Obama over the years and projected real-time social media posts from the audience. Music blasted. I’m guessing it was stuff from the personal playlist that Questlove had curated for Obama. How cool is that? In front of me, a young woman danced her butt off to Prince’s Kiss. Next, the Jackson 5’s ABC had heads bopping. (It was 1970s-era Michael Jackson so you can discuss that one on your own time.) Finally, a countdown clock appeared. Five minutes to go. Then over the PA, Michelle Obama says hi to the crowd, then asks: “Who are you becoming?” It’s here that I felt a tiny bit of panic. “Yeah, who am I becoming? I need a plan? I have to get a plan. Why don’t I have a plan?” My brain raced. Thankfully, my inner voice was distracted when five women took to the stage and each took their turn telling us who they were becoming. A 12-year-old girl named Olga said she was going to become someone great. I cried. Next up, Good Morning America’s Robin Roberts opened the show by saying a few words before throwing to a This is Your Life Michelle Obama video. Advertisement Story continues below This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Article content In the video were clips of interviews with her mom and brother, her daughters Sasha and Malia and, of course, her husband former president Barack Obama. It was no surprise that when the smoothest man in the world spoke with such pride and humour about his wife, thousands of women suddenly had doe eyes. Finally, at 8:39 Obama strode out and the crowd stood up. Wearing a fitted white satin pant suit, a sequined top, strappy heels and long, on-trend robin-egg-blue fingernails — think mother of the bride if the bride were Rihanna — Obama joked about who was taller — her or Roberts — before she settled into her chair and the audience settled into theirs. Photo by Ben Nelms / PNG What followed was a chronological journey through the evolution of Michelle Robinson from the South Side of Chicago to Michelle Obama, the 55-year-old former first lady of the United States and international icon. Obama gave credit to her mother Marian and her late father Fraser. She said her mother’s advocacy was a game changer. “In hindsight, I grew up knowing I was important. That I was worth fighting for,” said Obama, who went on to achieve in high school, achieve at Princeton and achieve at Harvard Law. She recounted those times and kept referring to how important it was for her and for kids everywhere to “push past other people’s doubts.” She told about the time when she was a straight-A student in Chicago and a school counsellor, a woman, told her she wasn’t Ivy League material. Obama hasn’t let that go. Advertisement Story continues below This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Article content She talked about having to work harder than men. “Men are failing up all the time,” said Obama to a cheer from the crowd. She talked about the need for forming strong, meaningful friendships. “Don’t get me wrong, I love my husband; but when I need to be filled up in a special way, it’s the women in my life,” she said. She then told the men in the audience to get some friends and “really talk.” She talked about Barack and how they met at a Chicago law firm where she worked first. He was late for his first day as a summer intern under her guidance. “I thought, who is this trifling black guy? On his first day,” recounted Obama as she tilted her head and narrowed her eyes. “Then he shows up and he’s Barack Obama.” When she said those last words, people turned to each other and smiled in an “oh yes, he was” way. Photo by AFP PHOTO / Jim Young They dated. She was impressed with who he was “in the world,” and they got married and had kids. His political career took off like a rocket and soon they were under a lot of pressure. She said there were times she wanted to push him out the window, but talks with good girlfriends and marriage counselling saved him and their relationship. “The minute Barack became president elect, everything changed,” said Obama. And by everything she means how her family was now forced to go through life with 24-hour security. Travel meant motorcades — which included an ambulance complete with a supply of Barack’s blood type. They tried to make life as normal as possible for their daughters. There were sports teams and sleepovers, but how normal is it to have a security detail go with you to school and sleepovers? Advertisement Story continues below This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Article content “I’m in awe of how well they handled this,” said Obama about her kids. She did add that she thinks part of her husband’s motivation for a second term was that he knew his soon-to-be-teenage daughters had security details. PNG The eight years the Obamas spent in the White House were happy ones because they worked hard to bring joy to that house, she said. They added tons of music shows, filled the gardens with kids laughing and vegetables and “opened the doors” to more everyday folks than ever before. “We wanted it to be joyful. We see now how it feels when there is no joy,” said Obama, giving a nod towards you know who. Speaking of the Tweeter in Chief, Obama made only a few unnamed references to the current administration. But when she did, it was the most outside, inside joke possible. The 90 minutes Obama and Roberts talked flew by. At the end she turned the focus back on the audience by saying the story isn’t about Michelle Obama, but it is about Michelle Robinson, the little girl from Chicago’s South Side who wanted to learn more in Grade 2. She said we are all that little girl. “Your story counts,” said Obama before she left the stage. Leaving the event, I felt buoyed. There I was standing on the street corner smiling with complete strangers. Then I heard someone say, “Oh, hi.” I looked and it was Jas and Jenna. “Well?” I said. “Tell her what you just said,” said Jas to her beaming teen daughter. “I want to be like her,” said Jenna with the emphasis on her. And then I cried again. dgee@postmedia.com twitter.com/dana_gee Share this article in your social network Latest National Stories Advertisement Story continues below This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Vancouver Sun Headline News Sign up to receive daily headline news from the Vancouver Sun, a division of Postmedia Network Inc. Email Address There was an error, please provide a valid email address. By clicking on the sign up button you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. 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Send this page to someone via email Michelle Obama was in Vancouver Thursday night as part of her Becoming book tour. The former United States First Lady spoke with Good Morning America anchor Robin Roberts in front of a packed Rogers Arena crowd, sharing her journey from the south side of Chicago to Princeton to the White House. Earlier this month, Barack Obama spoke to the Greater Vancouver Board of Trade where he addressed big-picture issues like climate change, economic inequality and the unique relationship between Canada and the U.S. Michelle Obama’s event focused on more personal topics, such as the value of friends and family, while also integrating some of the trappings of a rock concert. Before the event, fans posed for selfies in front of a large banner of Obama while a merchandise table nearby offered $45 “Becoming” T-shirts. Thursday’s event was the first of four Canadian dates on Obama’s Becoming tour. Story continues below advertisement WATCH: Michelle Obama extends ‘Becoming’ tour to Canada, U.S., Europe 1:00 Michelle Obama extends ‘Becoming’ tour to Canada, U.S., Europe Michelle Obama extends ‘Becoming’ tour to Canada, U.S., Europe – Dec 11, 2018 Georgia Gasiorowski, who attended the event with two friends, said Obama’s book and event at Rogers Arena touched on topics such as the challenges of parenting in the White House, that are easy to identify with. “She kind of became relatable,” she said. “Those are the moments when you realize she’s not that different from us. She was just put into this incredible situation.” Obama kicked off the evening recalling how when she was a promising young student in Chicago, a school counsellor was convinced that she was not Ivy League material. “Every time I tell that story, I don’t care what room I’m in — but it’s usually a room full of women and minorities — everyone has had that experience,” she said. Story continues below advertisement WATCH: Michelle Obama doesn’t care to ‘lean in’ 1:13 Michelle Obama doesn’t care to ‘lean in’ Michelle Obama doesn’t care to ‘lean in’ – Dec 3, 2018 Obama made it into Princeton where she faced more doubters, who felt she was admitted to the Ivy League school because of affirmative action. “I went into Princeton believing I didn’t belong,” she said, then stopped short of making reference to the current college admissions scandal in the U.S. While First Lady, Obama said one of her goals was to bring “joy” to the White House. “We needed that house to be happy, because we see now how it feels when there is no joy,” she said, an oblique reference to U.S. President Donald Trump. “No matter what your political take is, feeling like your leaders are joyful, and that they care and that they’re reaching out… especially to our kids, that sets the tone.” Story continues below advertisement Obama says she believes her book has become a best-seller because it asks readers to embrace the truth and power of their own story and encourages them overcome feelings of doubt. “Don’t believe you’re an imposter. There’s no such thing as imposters.” she said. “The imposters are the ones who are running stuff these days.”