‘Let’s Move’ advocate, brewer, wind technician, former farm workers guests at State of the Union
February 12, 2013 | 04:32 PM
There has been no indication whether President Barack Obama will mention agriculture or the farm bill in the State of the Union address tonight, but the White House has announced that several people with connections to agriculture and food will sit in the box with First Lady Michelle Obama and Dr. Jill Biden, the wife of Vice President Joe Biden.
The guests the first lady brings to the State of the Union often give an idea of the priorities that the administration will emphasize in the coming year.
Here are brief biographies of these guests based on information released by the White House:
Haile Thomas, Tucson, Ariz. — Described as a “champion” of the first lady’s “Let’s Move” campaign against childhood obesity, the 12-year-old is a youth advisory board member with the Alliance for a Healthier Generation. She is co-founder/director of the HAPPY Organization, an Arizona nonprofit dedicated to improving youth health youth through proper nutrition and healthy lifestyle choices. She hosts an annual H.E.A.L. (healthy eating, active lifestyle) Festival on Global Youth Service Day in Tucson. She created the Healthy Girl Adventures Club and produces online videos aimed at encouraging kids to get cooking. Thomas is also the youth spokesperson and junior chef consultant for Hyatt Hotels.
Lee Maxwell, Wilton, Iowa — A 2012 graduate of the Kirkwood Community College Wind Technician Program in Cedar Rapids, Maxwell has been chosen exemplify the Obama administration’s commitment to renewable energy, addressing climate change and job creation. In his work, he turns on the power for new wind turbines that are being built all around the country. Kirkwood started its wind technician program three years ago in partnership with Iowa-based Clipper Windpower, combining an industry-based curriculum and donated equipment to give students hands-on experience.
Deb Carey, New Glarus, Wis. — Carey founded the New Glarus Brewing Company, a startup that has grown quickly to become Wisconsin’s number one microbrewery relative to sales volume. As she worked on a business plan, her husband, Dan, a master brewer, gathered the materials, grains and equipment needed. In 1993 they negotiated to lease a warehouse in exchange for stock in their new company. They sold their home and raised $40,000 in seed money, but still needed more funding. Deborah pitched her story to local newspapers, and the media attention brought $200,000 from investors. New Glarus Brewing Company has grown to 50 full-time employees, and registered growth in profits of 123 percent from 2007 to 2009.
Mayor Marie Lopez Rogers, Avondale, Ariz. — Rogers appears to have been chosen to represent the growing role of Hispanic Americans from modest beginnings. “Growing up in migrant farm labor camps and picking cotton alongside her parents in fields where her City Hall now stands, Mayor Rogers never imagined that she would be guiding the transformation of the region,” the White House said. She served on the Avondale City Council for 14 years before being elected as the city’s first Latina mayor in 2006. In December, she was named president of the National League of Cities, an organization that helps city leaders build better communities.
Desiline Victor, North Miami, Fla. — A 102-year old naturalized U.S. citizen from Haiti and retired farmworker, Victor experienced voting problems in 2012. When she arrived to vote at 10 a.m., wait times were up to six hours. Determined to vote, she stood in line for three hours. After advocates complained that the elderly woman was struggling to stay on her feet, a poll worker asked her to come back later. On her second visit that evening, she was finally able to cast her ballot. Several voters remarked that the lines were long and they needed to get home, but because of her example of determination they would continue to stand and wait.
Amanda McMillan, Jackson, Miss. — McMillan worked as a secretary at a grocery company, where she reported experiencing pay discrimination. “Despite repeatedly asking to be officially promoted to the better and higher-paying job in sales, she was told by the company that the job of a salesman was too dangerous for a woman, and that she would not be a good mother if she were on the road meeting customers,” the White House said. With the help of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), she sued the company for sex discrimination. As a result of the suit, Forrest City Grocery agreed to pay $125,000 in monetary damages and agreed to disseminate employment policies to employees and provide sex discrimination training for management.
The guests the first lady brings to the State of the Union often give an idea of the priorities that the administration will emphasize in the coming year.
Here are brief biographies of these guests based on information released by the White House:
Haile Thomas, Tucson, Ariz. — Described as a “champion” of the first lady’s “Let’s Move” campaign against childhood obesity, the 12-year-old is a youth advisory board member with the Alliance for a Healthier Generation. She is co-founder/director of the HAPPY Organization, an Arizona nonprofit dedicated to improving youth health youth through proper nutrition and healthy lifestyle choices. She hosts an annual H.E.A.L. (healthy eating, active lifestyle) Festival on Global Youth Service Day in Tucson. She created the Healthy Girl Adventures Club and produces online videos aimed at encouraging kids to get cooking. Thomas is also the youth spokesperson and junior chef consultant for Hyatt Hotels.
Lee Maxwell, Wilton, Iowa — A 2012 graduate of the Kirkwood Community College Wind Technician Program in Cedar Rapids, Maxwell has been chosen exemplify the Obama administration’s commitment to renewable energy, addressing climate change and job creation. In his work, he turns on the power for new wind turbines that are being built all around the country. Kirkwood started its wind technician program three years ago in partnership with Iowa-based Clipper Windpower, combining an industry-based curriculum and donated equipment to give students hands-on experience.
Deb Carey, New Glarus, Wis. — Carey founded the New Glarus Brewing Company, a startup that has grown quickly to become Wisconsin’s number one microbrewery relative to sales volume. As she worked on a business plan, her husband, Dan, a master brewer, gathered the materials, grains and equipment needed. In 1993 they negotiated to lease a warehouse in exchange for stock in their new company. They sold their home and raised $40,000 in seed money, but still needed more funding. Deborah pitched her story to local newspapers, and the media attention brought $200,000 from investors. New Glarus Brewing Company has grown to 50 full-time employees, and registered growth in profits of 123 percent from 2007 to 2009.
Mayor Marie Lopez Rogers, Avondale, Ariz. — Rogers appears to have been chosen to represent the growing role of Hispanic Americans from modest beginnings. “Growing up in migrant farm labor camps and picking cotton alongside her parents in fields where her City Hall now stands, Mayor Rogers never imagined that she would be guiding the transformation of the region,” the White House said. She served on the Avondale City Council for 14 years before being elected as the city’s first Latina mayor in 2006. In December, she was named president of the National League of Cities, an organization that helps city leaders build better communities.
Desiline Victor, North Miami, Fla. — A 102-year old naturalized U.S. citizen from Haiti and retired farmworker, Victor experienced voting problems in 2012. When she arrived to vote at 10 a.m., wait times were up to six hours. Determined to vote, she stood in line for three hours. After advocates complained that the elderly woman was struggling to stay on her feet, a poll worker asked her to come back later. On her second visit that evening, she was finally able to cast her ballot. Several voters remarked that the lines were long and they needed to get home, but because of her example of determination they would continue to stand and wait.
Amanda McMillan, Jackson, Miss. — McMillan worked as a secretary at a grocery company, where she reported experiencing pay discrimination. “Despite repeatedly asking to be officially promoted to the better and higher-paying job in sales, she was told by the company that the job of a salesman was too dangerous for a woman, and that she would not be a good mother if she were on the road meeting customers,” the White House said. With the help of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), she sued the company for sex discrimination. As a result of the suit, Forrest City Grocery agreed to pay $125,000 in monetary damages and agreed to disseminate employment policies to employees and provide sex discrimination training for management.
