February 12, 2013
GUEST LIST FOR THE FIRST LADY’S BOXSTATE OF THE UNION ADDRESSFEBRUARY 12, 2013First Lady Michelle ObamaDr. Jill BidenValerie Jarrett, Senior Advisor to the President
The following individuals will be seated in the box with the First Ladyand Dr. Biden at the State of the Union Address:
Sergeant Sheena Adams (Vista, CA)Team Advisor & Lead Instructor, Female Engagement Team
A native of Kauai, Hawaii, Sergeant Adams joined the Marine Corps in2003 and attended recruit training in Parris Island, S.C. In 2010,Sergeant Adams joined the Female Engagement Team (FET) and wasdeployed to Helmand Province, Afghanistan from September 2010 toApril 2011 in direct support of 1st Battalion 8th Marines in Musa Qal’ehDistrict. Sergeant Adams received her Combat Action Ribbon andNavy and Marine Corp Achievement Medal (second award) aftersuccessful completion of the deployment. In September 2011,Sergeant Adams returned to 1st Marine Expeditionary Force Advisor Training Cell, as Team Advisor/Liaison and lead FET instructor, whereshe re-engineered the Period of Instruction for future FETs.
Alan Aleman (Las Vegas, NV)DREAM Student
Alan Aleman was born in Mexico City, Mexico. In high school, Alanwatched his friends come of age – driving around town with their newlicenses and earning some extra cash from their summer jobs at themall. Although Alan knew he could not do those things because of hisimmigration status, he was determined to get a good education. Lastyear, when Alan heard the news that the Obama Administration wasgoing to provide Deferred Action for undocumented youth like him toemerge from the shadows, he was one of the first to sign up. Alan wasamong the first people in Nevada to get approved. In that moment,Alan said, “I felt the fear vanish. I felt accepted.” Today, Alan is in hissecond year at the College of Southern Nevada. He’s studying tobecome a doctor and he hopes to join the Air Force. Alan is currentlyworking at Hermandad Mexicana, where he is in charge of final reviewfor DACA applications.
Jack Andraka (Crownsville, MD)Winner of the 2012 Intel International Science and EngineeringFair
Jack Andraka, 16, of North County High School, was awarded first placefor his new method to detect pancreatic cancer at the IntelInternational Science and Engineering Fair 2012, a program of Societyfor Science & the Public. Motivated by the death of his uncle due topancreatic cancer, Jack created a simple dip-stick sensor based ondiabetic test paper to test blood or urine to determine whether or not apatient has early-stage pancreatic cancer. His study resulted in over 90percent accuracy and showed his patent-pending sensor to be 28times faster, 28 times less expensive and over 100 times moresensitive than current tests. President Obama strongly believes thatwe need more students like Jack who are passionate about science,technology, engineering and math (STEM) and has hosted two WhiteHouse Science Fairs to celebrate students participating in suchcompetitions.
Susan Bumgarner (Norman, OK)Early Childhood Educator
Susan Bumgarner's home state of Oklahoma is a national leader inproviding access to high quality preschool for all children, and she hasbeen an early educator in the Oklahoma system for more than twenty
years. Susan was educated at the University of Oklahoma andinfluenced by family members who taught and studied there. Susanhas written curriculum, trained Head Start teachers, taught infants andtoddlers, and prepared parents by teaching Early Birds readinessclass. In 1992 Susan began teaching pre-kindergarten at what is nowWilson Arts Integration Elementary School, a public school. “My work isenthralling and my students are amazing, creative, intelligent people,”she said. “It is an honor to facilitate their playful transition into theformal world of learning.”
Deb Carey (New Glarus, WI)Small Business Owner, New Glarus Brewing Company
Deborah Carey’s decision to start New Glarus Brewing Company wasrooted in doing what was best for her family. As she worked on abusiness plan, her husband Dan, a master brewer, gathered thematerials, grains and equipment needed for start-up. In 1993 theynegotiated to rent a warehouse in New Glarus, exchanging the leasefor stock in the New Glarus Brewing Company. They sold their homeand raised $40,000 in seed money, but still needed more funding.Deborah pitched her story to local newspapers, and the mediaattention brought $200,000 from investors. In the early days, thecouple worked hard to establish the brewery’s reputation for consistentquality beers and developed a very loyal customer base. Today, NewGlarus Brewing Company has grown to 50 full-time employees, andregistered growth in profits of 123 percent from 2007 to 2009,becoming Wisconsin’s number one micro-brewery relative to salesvolume.
Sergeant Carlos Evans, USMC (Cameron, NC)Wounded Warrior
Sergeant Evans, born in Puerto Rico, was on his fourth overseasdeployment when he sustained injuries in Afghanistan that resulted inthe loss of both of his legs and his left hand. Recovering at WalterReed Medical Center, Sergeant Evans met the First Lady and latervisited the White House for a Wounded Warrior Tour. At that time, thePresident signed his prosthetic arm. He credits the support he hasreceived from private organizations to the First Lady and Dr. Biden’sefforts in Joining Forces. In 2012, he received a custom home fromOperation Coming Home and now resides in North Carolina with hiswife and two young daughters.