Clinton nominates Filipino To Admiral Rank! -------------------------------------------------------------------------- -----------------------------------

 
White House Doctor Promoted To Admiral 

By Frank J. Murray, The Washington Times

White House physician Connie Mariano, daughter of a longtime Philippine  Navy teward whose family had always entered admirals' homes through the 
Back door and stayed in the kitchen, was promoted to admiral with starred shoulder boards presented by President Clinton at an emotional ceremony.
"I am pleased to stand before you today as proof that 
Filipino-Americans in the Navy no longer must go through the kitchen, the back door or the
garage," Rear Adm. Mariano said after moving tributes by Mr. Clinton and first lady Hillary Rodham Clinton.
"I owe my life to military medicine," said the board-certified general internist, 45, who explained she was born in a Navy hospital and three days
later airlifted by helicopter to a neonatal intensive care unit. She laughingly apologized for the intensive care unit being an Air Force facility.
Her four-stripe shoulder boards as captain were removed by her sons, Jason and Andrew, and replaced by gold boards installed jointly by her father,
retired Navy Master Chief Petty Officer Angel Mariano, who served 29 years in a steward corps comprised mostly of Filipinos; her mother, dentist
Lourdes Mariano; and her husband, lawyer Richard Stevens. Noting that her father had worked for six admirals during his 29 years as a
steward, she recalled going with him often to admirals' houses. 
"Never by the front door. We always went through the garage, the back door or the kitchen," she said.
"We knew that was, at that time, our place," she said, pointing out the irony for "a daughter of a Philippine steward to become an admiral in the State Dining Room of the White House" while the president and first 
lady stood behind her on a podium.
She thanked by name four Philippine stewards now on the White House staff.
Adm. Mariano, who graduated in 1981 from the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences in Bethesda, thus became the first
Philippine-American to reach flag rank - admiral in the Navy, general in the other services - as well as the first graduate of the military's medical
school to wear a star.
Among some 150 persons in attendance at the lavish ceremony hosted by the Clintons were two other female admirals, the present and immediate past
commanders of the Bethesda Naval Medical Center.
Mrs. Clinton recalled getting huge applause in New York by announcing Adm. Mariano's promotion to admiral at a parade of Filipinos campaigning for a U.S. Senate seat.
"Our family loves you and we're grateful to you," Mrs. Clinton said.
The president said he had qualms when Adm. Mariano, a member of the medical staff in the Bush White House, was proposed to be his full-time physician in
the first months of the administration.
He sparked laughter when he expressed "mixed feelings" about even having a full-time doctor, particularly the first woman to hold the title of White House physician. Dr. Janet Travell, a New York rehabilitation specialist, named personal physician to President Kennedy, remained in New York and
commuted for treatments. 
"This woman's going to be poking around on me for eight years," Mr. Clinton said he thought at the time.
He noted that she now has served in a stressful job longer than any other White House physician. Like all recent White House military physicians, Adm.
Mariano is certified by the American College of Surgeons in advanced trauma life support and in advanced cardiac life support.
Emcee for the event was Air Force Col. Richard Tubb, director of the White House medical unit, who likely will become official physician to the next
president when Adm. Mariano leaves her White House post in January.
The office provides comprehensive care for the first family and the vice president's family, occupational health care for upwards of 1,500 people who
work inside the fences, and emergency care for visitors.

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Send your letters to Sen. John W. Warner, Chairman, Senate Armed Services Committee, Rm 228, Russell Senate Bldg. Washington, D.C. 20510 or call Tel, 202 224-3871 -------------------------------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------ Subj: CLINTON NOMINATES CAPT MARIANO, MC, USN Date: 06/06/2000 10:39:40 AM Central Daylight Time From: JONMELE (Jon Melegrito, NaFFAA National Exec. Director) To: NaFFAA InfoService cc: pusongpinoye2@aol.com National Federation of Filipino American Associations (NaFFAA) 1444 N Street NW, Washington, D.C. 20005-2814 Tel. 202 986-9330 * Fax 202 986-9332 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE contact: Elvi Bangit June 6, 2000 202 986-9330

CLINTON NOMINATES FILIPINO AMERICAN CAPTAIN TO ADMIRAL RANK

Secretary of Defense William S. Cohen announced on June 1 that President Clinton has nominated Navy Captain Eleanor C. Mariano, Medical Corps, for appointment to the grade of rear admiral (lower half). Capt. Mariano is currently serving as attending physician to the President. She has been in that position for almost 8 years. NaFFAA Executive Director Jon Melegrito hailed the good news. "We are indeed proud of Capt. Mariano's accomplishment as the first Filipino American to be nominated by the President of the United States to the rank of Admiral. As the daughter of a former Filipino US Navy steward, she is living proof that no matter what a person's background is, we can aspire for top leadership positions in the U.S. government." Capt. Mariano's nomination is subject to confirmation by the Senate Armed Services Committee. Full senate action is expected by October this year. Melegrito said that NaFFAA fully supports Capt. Mariano's nomination and encourages other Filipino American community organizations to write the chairman and members of the Senate Armed Services Committee. Send your letters to Sen. John W. Warner, Chairman, Senate Armed Services Committee, Rm 228, Russell Senate Bldg. Washington, D.C. 20510 or call Tel, 202 224-3871 Republican committee members are: Strom Thurmond, SC John McCain, AZ Robert Smith, NH James Inhofe, OK Rick Santorum, PA Olympia Snowe, ME Pat Roberts, KS Wayne Allard. CO Tim Hutchinson, AR Jeff Sessions, AL Democratic members are: Carl Levin, MI Edward Kennedy, MA Jeff Bingaman, NM Robert Byrd, WV Charles Robb, VA Joseph Lieberman, CT Max Cleland, GA Mary Landrieu, LA Jack Reed, RI Jon Melegrito, Executive Director National Federation of Filipino American Associations (NaFFAA) 1444 N Street NW Washington, DC 20005-2814 Fax 202-986-9332 e-mail: jonmele@naffaa.org url: http://www.naffaa.org ----------------- BIODATA OF CAPT. ELEANOR MARIANO. NaFFAA Information Service Mariano, Eleanor MD Personal Physician to the President of the United States Director, White House Medical Unit Captain, Medical Corps, US Navy "The mission of the White House Medical Unit is to provide the best medical care in the world to the President and the Vice President of the United States and their families." - Capt. Eleanor "Connie" Mariano Age: 45 Birthplace: Clark AirForce Base, Pampanga, Philippines Parents: Father was a US navy steward; mother is a dentist Marital Status: Married Children: 2 Education: Bachelor of Arts in Biology, Revelle College, University of California at San Diego, 1977. M.D., Uniformed Services, University of the Health Sciences School of Medicine, Bethesda, MD. 1981. Capt. Mariano came to America in 1957, at age 2.