The Turner brothers had one heck of a story to tell their friends and teachers at school Friday.

They'll be able to tell that same story to their kids and grandkids, too.

Cameron Turner, 11, and his brother Colby, 9, of Windsor met President Barack Obama on Thursday when the president gave a speech on clean energy at Buckley Air Force Base in Aurora.

The brothers and their parents — Chris and Katherine Turner — were guests to the small, invite-only event to listen to Obama.

“It was one of the best days of my life,” Cameron said. “I got to shake his hand and everything.”

Cameron said it was fun telling everyone at school his experience.

“Everybody was all over me like white on rice,” Cameron said.

Chris, 40, is the co-owner and vice president of Czero Inc., a carbon neutral solutions company in Fort Collins that specializes in alternative energy and green technology. When the Turners arrived in the airplane hangar to wait for Obama, they were shocked to find out their seats were in the front row reserved by the White House for the Turner Family.

“The kids thought they were just so special because they couldn't believe they had their name on their seat,” said Katherine, 40, an interior designer. “We were so close. We found out about two days before when it was confirmed we were going. ”

Chris said it was funny to see their names on the seats next to all the important people.

“It was unexpected. We thought we'd be somewhere in the crowd,” Chris said. “The front-row seats had Secretary of the Navy Mabus. Secretary of the Air Force Donley. The Turner Family. Mayor Hancock. That was kind of cool. Everyone kept asking us, ‘Who are you?' We were literally 10 feet from (Obama).”

The Turners had a prime parking spot, too, and the boys were also impressed by the U.S. Secret Service.

“Everybody else had to get shuttled in, but since we had ‘green' tickets we could just drive right up there and park right by the hangar where Air Force One landed,” said Cameron, whose favorite military branch is the Air Force.

Colby couldn't believe how close they were to Obama.

“It was actually very cool. It was awesome,” Colby said. “We actually had better seats than the military people. We were like VIPs.”

Obama signed a copy of his book “The Audacity of Hope,” and shook hands with the boys and their parents. He asked the brothers what grade they were in and if they were enjoying their day off from school.

Cameron is a sixth-grader at Severance Middle School, and Colby is a third-grader at Range View Elementary School in Severance.

They commented to their parents about how soft Obama's hand was.

“They said his hand should have been a lot more rough since he's busy running the country,” Katherine said.

The Turners arrived at the airplane hangar at 10 a.m. and Obama didn't speak until 3 p.m.

The boys also received medallions from Navy Secretary Ray Mabus and Air Force Secretary Michael B. Donley to bring back to school in place of an excuse slip for their teachers. They also met Denver Mayor Michael Hancock.

“It was awesome. Everything just got better and better and better as the day went on,” Katherine said.

Katherine and Chris were impressed with Obama's speech and presence.

“He's the greatest speaker of all time. He is just a kind man, very personable,” Katherine said. “I think he's an amazing president.”

Chris said it was enjoyable to listen to Obama speak in person.

“He just has that presence about him,” Chris said. “He's very charismatic. He peppers in a little bit of humor.”

Chris said the experience meant so much more with his two boys there.

“That's a once in a lifetime,” Chris said. “We were driving home talking about it and they were just psyched. They knew that here is potentially the most powerful man in the world and some of his staff right there, and they just shook his hand. It was really cool.”