First lady Michelle Obama will host two survivors of the Boston Marathon bombings; the Moore, Okla. fire chief; a gay professional basketball player; a young tech intern; and the 2013 District of Columbia Public Schools (DCPS) Teacher of the Year at Tuesday’s State of the Union Address, the White House announced Monday.
Carlos Arredondo, 53, and Jeff Bauman, 27, were captured in one of the iconic images of the April 2013 attacks, with Mr. Arredondo, in a white Cowboy hat, rushing Mr. Bauman to safety. Three people were killed in the April 15 bombings, which were followed by the shooting death of an MIT police officer.
Also seated in the first lady’s box will be Gary Bird, the fire chief in Moore, Okla., who helped the small city recover after a devastating tornado blew through in April 2013, and professional basketball player Jason Collins, who in April 2013 became the first male athlete in major U.S. team sports to come out as gay.
Mrs. Obama will also host tech intern Joey Hudy of Anthem, Ariz., who rose to fame in 2012 when he attended the White House Science Fair at the age of 14 and President Obama used Mr. Hudy’s “extreme marshmallow cannon” to shoot a marshmallow across the East Room of the White House.
Completing the first round of Mrs. Obama’s guests is Kathy Hollowell-Makle, DCPS’ 2013 Teacher of the Year.
Jill Biden, the wife of Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr., and Valerie Jarrett, senior adviser to the president, will also be seated with Mrs. Obama Tuesday.
• David Sherfinski can be reached at dsherfinski@washingtontimes.com.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.