Asian Journal- The Filipino-American Community Newspaper

DR. CONNIE Mariano, a Filipino American doctor, has achieved historic feats throughout her career as she broke barriers and shattered the glass ceiling. She is the first military woman to become the White House Physician to the President; the first woman Director of the White House Medical Unit and the first Filipino American in US history to become a Navy Rear Admiral.

Born in the Philippines, Mariano and her family moved to the United States when she was barely two years old. With their father being a career Navy enlisted serviceman, their family lived from military base to military base, typical of the life of a family in the American armed forces.

Along the way, she would accumulate life experiences and amass knowledge more than enough for her to dream of making her own mark in the world. Her amazing achievements began to pile up and before she knew it, she was already THE White House doctor.

Dr. Mariano served nine years as White House doctor: First, for the final year of the term of George H.W. Bush; then for the entire eight years of Bill Clinton, and lastly, during the first year of George W. Bush’s first term in office.

During those years, she not only cared for the leader of the free world and the entire First Family, she also cared for dignitaries, and traveled all over the world with the Presidents in her charge. Mariano eventually realized how very few people get to experience what she experienced during these years—from meeting the Pope four times to a casual conversation with King Juan Carlos of Spain to spending a night on the Queen of England’s yacht.

Dr. Mariano described the people she met along the way, including the White House Filipino valets, as "incredible characters."

"I thought, one day I am going to write about them and what the story is behind the scenes," she said.

That day has arrived.

Dr. Connie Mariano has written a memoir on her stint at the White House and how she got there. It is called The White House Doctor: My Patients were Presidents.

"It is actually an American story about a little girl who came to America at the age of two, whose family was considered as the servant class in the military and, from there, through education, opportunity and the grace of God, wound up being the physician of the President of the United States," Dr. Mariano tells us in an interview.