"Growing up Biden" by Valerie Biden Owens

901 12th Avenue,Seattle WA 98122

19 April, 2022

Description

Joe Biden’s younger sister, trusted confidante and lifelong campaign manager, talks about her new memoir with SU's Dr. Jeanette Rodriguez. Presented by Seattle University College of Arts and Sciences and Elliott Bay Book Company. Join Valerie Biden Owens for an in-person event to discuss her new memoir, Growing Up Biden. Each paid ticket includes admission to the event and a signed copy of her book. ABOUT THE BOOK: A memoir from Valerie Biden Owens, Joe Biden’s younger sister, trusted confidante and lifelong campaign manager. Valerie, one of the first female campaign managers in United States history, writes of the role of family, faith, and fate in shaping her life, and the power of empathy and kindness in the face of turmoil and division. Growing Up Biden details Valerie’s decades-long professional career in politics, and the central role she played in her brother’s life as an insightful adviser, an ever-loyal advocate and best friend. American Sign Language interpretation provided. Joining her in conversation is Dr. Jeanette Rodriguez, professor and director of the Institute for Catholic Thought and Culture at SU. This memoir, full of candor and warmth, brings readers into the Biden home and shares stories from growing up in Delaware as the only daughter of the close-knit Irish Catholic family. Valerie writes in a compelling, relatable way about the challenges she faced breaking through gender barriers, the elusive nature of confidence, and navigating professional responsibilities while raising children. ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Valerie Biden Owens is the first woman in U.S. history to have run a presidential campaign―that of her brother, Joseph R. Biden, Jr. She also led his seven straight U.S. Senate victories and has been his principal surrogate on the campaign trail. Valerie is Vice Chair of the Biden Institute at the University of Delaware and a partner at Owens Patrick Leadership Seminars. Valerie sits on the Advisory Board of the Beau Biden Foundation for the Protection of Children. For 20 years, when Valerie was not managing or advising President Biden’s campaigns, she served as Executive Vice President of Joe Slade White & Co., a media consulting firm. She has worked extensively with Women’s Campaign International, teaching women how to organize and develop communication and political skills. Valerie has also served on the National Board of the Women’s Leadership Forum of the Democratic National Committee and has served for 35 years on the board of The Ministry of Caring. She is a graduate of the University of Delaware. She is married to Jack Owens, an attorney and businessman. They have three children. ABOUT THE INTERVIEWER: Jeanette Rodriguez, PhD is a professor at Seattle University and teaches in the Department of Theology and Religious Studies and the Couples and Family Therapy Program. She serves as Director of the Institute for Catholic Thought and Culture and holds the Malcolm and Mari Stamper Endowed Chair in Catholic Intellectual and Cultural Traditions. Rodriguez is the author of several books and articles concentrated in the areas of U.S. Hispanic theology, theologies of liberation, peacebuilding, and women’s spirituality. For your safety and the safety of others, all guests attending the event will be subject to bag check before entry into the event. Author photo: Evan Krape, University of Delaware PRAISE FOR GROWING UP BIDEN “With grace and candor, Valerie Biden Owens has given us an illuminating and moving memoir of an American family whose history is now inextricably intertwined with the history of our nation. From her unique perspective as her brother’s friend, adviser, and campaign manager through tumult, tragedy, and triumph, Owens paints a memorable portrait of the soul of a president whose mission is to save the soul of America. It is the tallest of orders, the most difficult of tasks. But to hear Owens’s distinctive and original voice detail the Bidens’ long journey, it’s a job that could not be in better hands. This is a book about love, laughter, and life itself.” — Jon Meacham “What a terrific memoir! With an uncanny gift for storytelling and an eye for colorful detail, Biden artfully interweaves personal and public recollections to capture our imagination from start to finish. As future historians seek to understand the Biden family, there will be no better place to start than this intimate, warm, and beautifully written portrait.” — Doris Kearns Goodwin “As a campaign manager, senior adviser or chief surrogate for every one of her brother’s campaigns, Valerie Biden Owens has been an integral part of Joe Biden’s success, and a profound influence in his life. Her stories of their close-knit Irish Catholic family are deeply moving and funny at the same time. As one of the first women to run major political campaigns, she has been much more than an eyewitness to history—she’s been an important part of it.” — Donna Brazile