April 30 (UPI) — “Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner.”
In the case of a northeastern Ohio family, it wasn’t a daughter introducing them to her fiance like in the 1967 movie.
It was Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg dropping in on the Newton Falls family — 20 miles west of Youngstown — with 20 minutes notice Friday night.
“I knew we were having a mystery guest, and that was about it,” Daniel Moore said to the Youngstown Vindicator. “It was completely incredible.”
The 32-year-old multi-billionaire directed his staff to find Democrats who had voted for President Donald Trump in the Nov. 8 election.
Moore fit the bill, voting for former President Barack Obama in 2008 and 2012, but he campaigned heavily for Trump.
“We got to know a very cool guy,” Moore said of Zuckerberg. “Just down-to-earth and real easy to talk to.”
The dinner conversation didn’t focus exclusively on politics.
The group also discussed the work of Moore and his wife Lisa with Kisiizi Good Shepherd Orphanage in Uganda. Moore said Zuckerberg wants to hold a fundraiser to benefit the orphans there.
“He cares very much about family and about community,” Moore said about Zuckerberg, who is married, has one child and lives in Palo Alto, Calif.
Zuckerberg posted a photo of himself at the Moore dinner table on his Facebook page and wrote: “Just got into Ohio. Thanks to Dan and Lisa Moore for welcoming me into your home for a wonderful dinner!”
In January, Zuckerberg announced on Facebook he wanted to meet people in every state this year.
“After a tumultuous last year, my hope for this challenge is to get out and talk to more people about how they’re living, working and thinking about the future,” he said in a post on his Facebook page.
“For decades, technology and globalization have made us more productive and connected,” he wrote. “This has created many benefits, but for a lot of people it has also made life more challenging. This has contributed to a greater sense of division than I have felt in my lifetime. We need to find a way to change the game so it works for everyone.”
In previous years, his New Year’s resolutions were running 365 miles, building artificial intelligence for his home, reading 25 books and learning Mandarin.
On Thursday, Zuckerberg toured a Ford plant in Dearborn, Mich.
On Saturday, Zuckerberg spent time in Dayton, discussing addiction and recovery with opioid users and those helping users get treatment.
“This touches everyone,” he posted on Facebook. “People I work closely with have had family members and high school friends die of overdoses. Ohio and communities all across the country have a long road ahead, but as someone told me at the end, ‘I’m hopeful because we’re talking about it.’ Me too.”
