The first woman to lead a major automaker, a wounded Army Ranger and a school secretary who talked a gunman into surrendering were among invited White House guests who joined Michelle Obama on Tuesday night to watch the president deliver his State of the Union address. Among the guest:
• Antoinette Tuff, Atlanta. Police credited the bookkeeper and mother with preventing a shooting at an elementary school in August by talking the gunman into surrendering.
• Misty DeMars, Oak Park, Ill. The White House says DeMars lost her job because of budget cuts a week after buying a home with her husband in May 2013. She wrote to Obama after her emergency unemployment benefits expired.
• Cory and Craig Remsburg, Phoenix. Army Ranger Sgt. 1st Class Cory Remsburg has met with Obama three times since a roadside bomb in Kandahar, Afghanistan, left him partially paralyzed and brain-damaged. His father, Craig, a retired Air Force Reserve firefighter, and stepmother Annie are his caretakers.
• John Soranno, St. Paul, Minn., and Nick Chute. Soranno, the CEO of Punch Pizza, and co-owner, John Puckett, raised the company-wide minimum wage to $10 an hour. Chute is an employee who has benefited.
• Cristian Avila, Phoenix. Avila was brought to the U.S. illegally at age 9. Now 23, he has benefited from an Obama policy allowing young people who immigrated illegally with their parents to avoid deportation.
• Mary Barra, Detroit. Barra became the first female CEO of General Motors this month.
• Kentucky Gov. Steve Beshear. The Democrat is an advocate of Obama’s health care law and embraced an expansion of Medicaid.
• Vice Adm. Michelle Howard, Washington. Howard is set to become the Navy’s first female four-star admiral this year.
• Sabrina Simone Jenkins, Charleston, S.C. The single mother served in the Air Force and then studied hile working full time, caring for ill family members and dealing with her own serious medical issues. Jenkins earned a master’s degree, but now has nearly $90,000 in student loan debt.
• Andra Rush, Detroit. Rush is the founder and chair of the Rush Group, one of the biggest Native American-owned businesses in the U.S., the White House said.
• Amanda Shelley, Gilbert, Ariz. A 37-year-old physician’s assistant, Shelley was uninsured and couldn’t get coverage because of a pre-existing condition until Obama’s health care legislation became law.
• Carlos Arredondo and Jeff Bauman, Boston: Bystander Arredondo helped rescue Bauman, who lost both legs in the Boston Marathon bombing.
• Moore, Okla., fire chief Gary Bird. A massive tornado struck the town in May 2013, killing 25 people and destroying more than 1,000 homes and businesses.
• Jason Collins, Los Angeles: In April, the 35-year-old Collins became the first active male athlete on a major American sports team to come out as openly gay.
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