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From
Fox News:
In the West Wing of the White House, Leah Katz-Hernandez
communicates with the first couple in a way that few others, even the
president’s most trusted advisers, ever do.
Katz-Hernandez, who is deaf, is the new receptionist of the United
States, or what those in Washington like to abbreviate as ROTUS (a play
on POTUS – president of the United States). She grew bicoastal, raised
by a Jewish mother and a Mexican-American father in Connecticut,
frequently visiting her father’s family in California.
After working in the Chicago headquarters of Obama’s re-election
campaign, she moved to Washington, D.C., and was hired as an assistant
in the first lady’s office.
“It was my first week on the job,” Katz-Hernandez, 27, told Fox News
Latino. “I was having lunch at my desk when a staffer from the West Wing
came by and said, ‘I want to introduce you to the First Lady.’ The next
thing I know the First Lady is standing in front of me. She said, ‘Hi,
my name is…’ and then she finger-spelled her name. It was really a
wonderful moment. I knew I’d arrived in a great place and felt really
motivated to work hard for her.”
In her new job as ROTUS, Katz-Hernandez gets to welcome all of the
president’s guests to the West Wing. “I make sure that everyone is
happy, and everyone feels welcome and has a nice experience when they
come into the West Wing lobby,” Hernandez said through a sign-language
translator. “I also manage the Roosevelt Room and Ward Room, as well –
you know, managing the relationship with the Kennedy Center with regards
to the president’s box.”
At the White House, Katz-Hernandez has access to an interpreter to help her do her job.
“The White House is really a model for accessibility for people with
disabilities – and especially for deaf people,” she said. “I believe my
story sends a good message about the abilities of people who are deaf
and Latino to be successful anywhere."
Her first two weeks as ROTUS were a whirlwind. “Already I’ve had so
many opportunities to meet people in the West Wing lobby,”
Katz-Hernandez said. “It is inspiring to see the mix of ordinary
Americans and powerful people coming in to see the president.”
“During my first week when 'Humans of New York' photographer Brandon
Stanton” – who started a fund to try to raise money for Motts Hall
Bridges Academy in Brooklyn –“came in with Vidal [Chastanet] and his
principal, [Nadia] Lopez, I saw American people doing good work and
making an impact. Just days later, I saw Chancellor Merkel of Germany
come in for the bilateral meetings. Seeing the president with Chancellor
Merkel – the two of them together – was really humbling. I felt honored
to be there in the West Wing when world leaders meet.”
Katz-Hernandez puts her father at the top of the list of people who inspire her.
“My father was born in California, in the Los Angeles area. He grew
up on horse ranches. He worked hard, put himself through college, and
earned his PhD. He’s always taught me it’s very important to give back
to your community,” she said.
After studying government at Gallaudet University in Washington,
D.C., Katz-Hernandez’s passion for public service led her to join
Obama’s 2012 re-election campaign. It was at campaign headquarters in
Chicago that she first met her future boss.
“The room was chock-full of staff,” she recalled. “The president
walked in, and, as he walked by me, I thanked him. He signed, ‘Thank
you’ back.”
Asked if she has been able to teach Obama any other signs working while closely in the West Wing, Katz-Hernandez laughed.
“No, I haven’t really had a chance to sign with him yet … but then again I’ve only been on the job for two weeks.”
