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GREENSBORO It only took a few hours for tickets to Sen. Barack Obama's town hall meeting Wednesday to disappear into the hands of supporters, leaving many others disappointed.

"This is a once in a lifetime chance," Obama supporter Chris Boozer said. Boozer was one of many who did not get a ticket. "I would love to see him."

Supporters lined up early Monday outside the Guilford County Democratic Party headquarters on West Market Street to get tickets. They were gone shortly after noon. A booth set up on the campus of UNCG ran out of tickets soon after that.

Campaign officials said they had about 2,000 tickets to give away. The campaign event will be held at 1 p.m. Wednesday at War Memorial Auditorium on High Point Road.

A spokesman for Obama said the campaign chose the auditorium over the much larger coliseum because it will allow for a "substantive give and take" with the audience.

The ticket giveaway coincided with a news conference held by the campaign and Greensboro Mayor Yvonne Johnson.

The mayor took that opportunity to endorse Obama. She read from a speech prepared for her by Obama's campaign but said she added some of her own thoughts.

The speech highlighted Obama's pledges to improve education and health care, create jobs, reduce the nation's dependency on foreign oil and end the war in Iraq. Afterward, Johnson said she believes her endorsement will not alienate her constituents who do not support Obama.

"If the person had been Republican and resonated in my heart, I would have done the same thing," she said.

Councilwoman Dianne Bellamy-Small also attended the news conference and threw her support to Obama. She said Obama's appeal reaches beyond race and age.

Bellamy-Small said she is excited about the opportunity to take part in a landmark campaign for the White House.

"I never thought there would be a strong, viable candidate for president that happens to be African American in my lifetime," she said.

Queenasia Carr, a 17-year-old Eastern High School student, was among the supporters who walked away with tickets to the event.

Although too young to vote, Carr said she looks forward to hearing what Obama has to say. "He's saying things nobody else is saying," she said.

Andrew Walcott also is excited about seeing Obama in Greensboro. He was impressed by Obama's speech last week addressing inflammatory statements made by the senator's pastor, the Rev. Jeremiah Wright.

"I think he's illustrating how he'd handle controversial issues that might come up during his presidency," Walcott said.

The battle between Obama and Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton for the Democratic Party's nomination remains close late in the primary and caucus season. This makes North Carolina's May 6 primary a coveted win for the first time in recent history.

Obama is leading in the race by a slim margin with 1,622 delegates to Clinton's 1,485. Either must claim at least 2,024 delegates to win the nomination.

Contact J. Brian Ewing at 373-7351 or brian.ewing@news-record.com.