Two blogs in one night! Well, good news about Clay Aiken should always be posted immediately!
The following article was posted late Saturday night.
fayobserver.com Live Wire: ‘Idol’ alum Clay Aiken helped children
Q: What type of employment did Clay Aiken have before he was on “American Idol”? – T.H., Fayetteville
A: The Raleigh native directed YMCA children’s camps as a teenager, worked as a substitute teacher for a classroom of elementary school students with autism when he was 19, and spent two years working part-time with a boy with autism in Charlotte while he attended the University of North Carolina at Charlotte.
He auditioned for “American Idol” at the urging of the Charlotte boy’s mother, Diane Bubel.
As you probably know, he did pretty well on Season 2 of the show, losing the crown by just 134,000 votes to Ruben Studdard. That was in 2003. Since then, Aiken has become one of the show’s most successful alums. He’s sold millions of recordings, starred on Broadway and finished second on another reality TV competition – the fifth season of “Celebrity Apprentice” in 2012. He was runner up to Arsenio Hall.
In 2003, he and Bubel founded a nonprofit group, now called the National Inclusion Project, which promotes including children with disabilities in activities with non-disabled children.
Aiken, a 35-year-old Democrat, is said to be considering a run for Congress. He’d be seeking the 2nd District seat now held by Renee Ellmers, a Republican, but first would have to survive the primary. The filing deadline for the May 6 primary is Feb. 10.
This question and answer column is written by Catherine Pritchard. You can read the entire article at LIVE WIRE