Selwa “Lucky” Showker Roosevelt, pictured in a 1946 photo from Dobyns-Bennett High School was born in Kingsport in 1929 to Salim and Najla Showker. She served as Chief of Protocol for the United States from 1982 to 1989 and was nominated to the rank of ambassador. Before working at the White House, she wrote freelance for The Washington Post and various magazines. The wife of Archibald B. Roosevelt, President Theodore Roosevelt’s grandson, Selwa was awarded the Outstanding Civilian Service Medal by the Department of the Army, and given the Ripon Society’s Salute to Republican Women award. In 1990, Selwa Roosevelt published her autobiography, Keeper of the Gate. In 2012, she received a commendation from President Barack Obama for her government service.
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Archives of the City of Kingsport 