COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) – Two women from central Ohio will be among the guests of First Lady Jill Biden during Tuesday’s State of the Union address.
Danielle Robinson, from Columbus, and Refynd Duro, of Galloway, will be among the guests joining the First Lady and Second Gentleman Douglas Emhoff during President Joe Biden’s first State of the Union address, scheduled to be given before a joint session of Congress beginning at 9 p.m.
Robinson is the widow of Sergeant First class Heath Robinson, who deployed to Camp Bondsteel in Kosovo and the Camp Liberty/Victor complex in Iraq. Heath Robinson was serving as a combat engineer in the Ohio National Guard when he was diagnosed with a rare autoimmune disorder and stage 4 lung cancer, dying in May 2020.
Danielle Robinson is now an advocate for helping service members and veterans who have been exposed to environmental hazards and burn pits while serving.
Duro is a progressive care unit nurse at the Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center and has been treating COVID-19 patients since the start of the pandemic. She started her career with OSU in 2010.
Due to her job, Duro has had to quarantine away from her family, including her four-year-old son. She works as a beside nurse and serves as an advocate for bedside nurses and patient safety, something she has done for the last 19 years.
In addition, Patrick Gelsinger, CEO of Intel, will also be one of the guests. Intel recently announced a semiconductor manufacturing plant in New Albany, making the plant the largest of its kind in the U.S.
“Each of these individuals, with their resilience, innovation, service, and courage, were chosen by the White House because they represent policies or themes to be addressed by the president in his speech,” the Office of the First Lady said in a statement.
In addition to Robinson, Duro, and Gelsinger, other guests of the First Lady and Second Gentleman include:
- United Steelworkers Local 1557 trainer Joseph “JoJo” Burgess from Washington, Pa.
- Diabetes advocate and seventh-grad student Joshua Davis from Midlothian, Va.
- Former Facebook Lead Product Manager on Civic Misinformation Frances Haugen of Iowa City, Iowa
- Gizhwaasod (Protector of the Young) at the Michigan Department of Education’s Indigenous Education Initiative Melissa Isaac of Mt. Pleasant, Mi.
- Full-time student and mother Kezia Rodriguez of North Bergen, NJ