Wilson Jerman

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Wilson Jerman (2004)

Wilson Roosevelt Jerman (born January 21, 1929 in Seaboard , North Carolina , † May 16, 2020 in Woodbridge , Virginia ) was an American butler who served in the White House under eleven US presidents .

biography

Wilson Jerman was born the son of a farm laborer. At the age of twelve he dropped out of school to work on a farm . In 1955, he moved to Washington, DC, and worked as a caterer before being hired by the White House as a cleaner in 1957, during Dwight D. Eisenhower's tenure . In the 1950s he achieved one of the highest professional positions open to African Americans at the time, according to Koritha Mitchell, professor of African American studies at Ohio State University .

Under John F. Kennedy , Jerman was promoted to butler by his wife Jackie in the 1960s and remained in this position until his retirement in 1993 during the presidency of Bill Clinton . In 2003 he returned to the White House under George W. Bush and worked intermittently as head waiter and elevator operator for Barack Obama , before finally retiring in 2012.

To commemorate Jerman's 50+ years of service in the White House, President Obama presented him with a series of plaques depicting all of the eleven presidents he served. The First Lady Michelle Obama added a picture of her, the President and Jerman in an elevator in her book Becoming one.

Jerman's first wife Gladys died of lupus in 1966 ; when she fell ill, Lyndon B. Johnson asked his family doctor to treat her. His second wife Helen died in the 1990s. Wilson Jerman died on May 16, 2020 at the age of 91 in a Woodbridge , Virginia hospital of complications from a COVID-19 infection. He left four children (a fifth died in 2011) as well as 12 grandchildren and 18 great-grandchildren.

Web links

Commons : Wilson Roosevelt Jerman  - Collection of Images, Videos and Audio Files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b Michael Levenson: Wilson Jerman, Longtime White House Butler, Dies at 91st New York Times, May 21, 2020, accessed May 22, 2020 .
  2. ↑ Chandelis Duster: Former White House butler who served 11 presidents dies after contracting coronavirus. CNN.com, May 21, 2020, accessed May 22, 2020 .
  3. ↑ Der Spiegel: Wilson Jerman worked as a butler under eleven US presidents - now he died of Covid-19 at the age of 91 - DER SPIEGEL - Panorama. Retrieved May 22, 2020 .
  4. ^ A b Wilson Jerman: Ex-White House butler dies with coronavirus. In: bbc.com. May 21, 2020, accessed on May 22, 2020 (English).
  5. ^ Inside the Working White House: Early 21st Century. The White House Historical Association, accessed May 22, 2020 .
  6. ↑ Dona Madani: Former White House employee who served 11 presidents dies of coronavirus at 91. NBC News, May 21, 2020, accessed May 22, 2020 .
  7. ↑ Michael Ruane: Longtime White House butler and friend of presidents dies of covid-19. The Washington Post, May 21, 2020, accessed May 22, 2020 .
personal data
SURNAME Jerman, Wilson
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Jerman, Wilson Roosevelt (full name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American butler in the White House
DATE OF BIRTH January 21, 1929
PLACE OF BIRTH Seaboard
DATE OF DEATH May 16, 2020
Place of death Woodbridge , Virginia