CINCINNATI — A Cincinnati woman, ironworker and union member joined First Lady Jill Biden in the viewing box for President Joe Biden's State of the Union Address Tuesday.
Saria Gwin-Maye, an ironworker and member of Ironworkers Local 44 in Cincinnati, introduced President Biden during his visit to Covington in January to tout the bipartisan efforts that went toward obtaining funding for a solution to the Brent Spence Bridge corridor.
"My union has built this city from the ground up and now, thanks to President Biden and other leaders, we are building and replacing the Brent Spence Bridge," said Gwin-May in January.
Saria joined me at my State of the Union tonight. She's an ironworker and proud member of Iron workers Local 44 who built the Cincinnati skyline.
— President Biden (@POTUS) February 8, 2023
Saria said she can’t wait to be ten stories above the Ohio River building that new bridge.
Pride. That's what we're building. pic.twitter.com/FB6qQHneHS
As she introduced the president along the banks of the Ohio River, she explained that when she became an ironworker, she didn't even know how to read a tape measure but, drawn in by the promise of strong wages and good benefits, she went for it anyway.
Now, she said she's been a member of Local 44 for 30 years, spending the last 13 years with cHc Fabrication, which worked on renovations at Music Hall and the Cincinnati Museum Center.
Gwin-Maye and other ironworkers in the region will have the opportunity to participate in infrastructure projects in Cincinnati like the Brent Spence Bridge corridor after projects were given funding from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.
Another Ohioan joins Gwin-Maye in being invited to the First Lady's box for the SOTU address; Harry Miller, from Upper-Arlington, Ohio played football for The Ohio State University. He announced he was dropping football in 2022 to focus on his mental health and since then has advocated for mental health and emotion wellness, according to the biography provided by the White House.
The guest list for the box invitations is comprised of people who "personify issues or themes to be addressed by the President in his speech, or they embody the Biden-Harris Administration's policies at work," according to a press release from the White House.
Gwin-Maye and Miller join the likes of the ambassador of Ukraine, a Holocaust survivor, Monterey Park hero Brandon Tsay, Paul Pelosi and Bono on the invitation list. The majority of the list, however, is comprised of activists and community leaders.
