He Runs the White House

By Claudia Cangilla McAdam

	Gary Walters (wearing a tie) picks out the Christmas tree for the Blue Room at the White House. Photo courtesy of the National Christmas Tree Association.

Who do you think runs the White House?

The President of the United States?

No, he is in charge of the country.

It is the Chief Usher who oversees the day-to-day operations of the President’s home.

During the 1800s, the Presidents and their families who lived in the White House brought their own personal staff to take care of their needs. All that changed in 1891 when the position of Chief Usher began. In the years since then, only seven men have held the job. Today, Gary Walters is Chief Usher. He’s worked at the White House for more than 36 years.

Most people have no idea what a Chief Usher does. “People ask me where my flashlight is.” Walters laughs. “They want me to usher them somewhere, like in a theater.” But that’s not at all what Walters does.

Walters is the person you call if you have to wake the President because of an emergency. He oversees every detail of a state dinner. He selects the Blue Room Christmas tree. If you want to know where they put a visiting prime minister’s coat, you ask Walters. If the White House plumbing springs a leak, you call him. And if the President walks out of the White House and it’s raining, Gary Walters is probably holding the umbrella.

On the Job
“Basically, my duties come down to three areas,” he explains. “The first is turning this ‘White House’ into a home for the First Family. The second thing is that this house is a museum of American history. And the third thing is that the White House is the site of official and ceremonial events of the presidency.”

Photo courtesy of the White House.

Walters is in charge of a staff of more than ninety people who help take care of the First Family’s home. They are housekeepers, plumbers, electricians, carpenters, painters, gardeners, floral designers, chefs, and more.

As a museum of American history, the White House contains many treasures that are as old as the building itself: paintings, furniture, and china, for example. Gary Walters must see that all of them are taken care of properly.

Since the White House is a place for official presidential ceremonies, the staff moves furniture, sets up stages, and plans formal dinners.

Home Away from Home
You might think that the Chief Usher lives at the White House, but he doesn’t. Walters has a home and a family of his own. He gets to the White House by 6:30 every morning—sometimes earlier, depending on what’s going on that day. His day can stretch well into the evening, especially if there is a big dinner that night. “You have something new every day, no matter how long you’ve been here,” he says.

Three assistant ushers help Walters in his duties. And while no one outside of the First Family actually lives at the White House, Walters has spent the night there. “We have a small room, and when we have late events with an early day the next morning, the ushers can sleep there.”

When he was young, Gary Walters never imagined he would work at the White House. He thought he would become a pharmacist. He received a college degree in business, and at age 24, became a uniformed member of the Secret Service working at the gates of the White House. Six years later, he became an assistant usher.

Taking Charge
When the previous Chief Usher retired in 1986, President and Mrs. Reagan appointed Gary Walters. He has been Chief Usher for every President since. “Our responsibility is to serve the President regardless of the politics of the individual,” he says.

What does he like most about his job? “Dealing personally with the family,” Walters says. “We get to know the family pretty well. Everybody sees the Secret Service agents always around the President and the First Lady. When the Secret Service agents stop at the door, we go behind that door. We take care of the First Family’s private lives.”

Walters has particularly liked watching children grow up in the White House. “We saw Chelsea Clinton go from a little girl to a young lady,” he says. He got to know the grandchildren of the first President Bush, including the daughters of the current President Bush.

And where there is a family, there are often pets. They help make the White House a home. “Sometimes when puppies come into the house, they have to get housebroken,” Walters says. “And they have accidents.” But that’s not something that seems to bother the Chief Usher. After all, that’s what happens in a real home, and Gary Walters is proud to be the man who makes the White House a home.

After working at the White House for 36 years and serving as Chief Usher for 20 of those years, Gary Walters retired in January 2007. In February 2007, Admiral Stephen W. Rochon was appointed Director of the Executive Residence and Chief Usher.