Selwa Roosevelt

Selwa Carmen Showker Roosevelt, also known as "Lucky," was born on January 13, 1929. She is an American journalist, patron of the arts, and former government official. Roosevelt served as the Chief of Protocol of the United States from 1982 to 1989, a tenure longer than any of her predecessors. She holds the title of Chairman Emeritus of the Blair House Foundation.

Roosevelt was born as Selwa Showker, the daughter of Lebanese immigrants. She grew up in Kingsport, Tennessee, where she attended public schools and graduated as valedictorian of her high school class. She then attended Vassar College, earning an A.B. degree with honors in 1950.

Her early career in journalism began at age 16 when she started working for the Kingsport Times newspaper. She continued this employment during her summer breaks throughout high school and college. After graduating from Vassar, she worked for Ladies' Home Journal magazine.

In September 1950, Roosevelt married Archibald Roosevelt, Jr., a grandson of President Theodore Roosevelt. At the time of her marriage, she was known as Selwa Showker. Her husband was a senior official of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), which led to her living in Istanbul, Turkey, from 1951 to 1953 during his posting.

Roosevelt pursued a career in journalism and writing, working as a journalist for The Washington Evening Star and contributing as a freelance writer to magazines such as Family Circle, McCall's, and Town & Country. She served as a contributing editor for Town & Country for seven years.

Her government service includes her notable tenure as Chief of Protocol of the United States from 1982 to 1989. In 2012, Roosevelt received a commendation from President Barack Obama for her service and contributions to the preservation of Blair House, the official state guest house of the President of the United States.

Her correspondence from Fleur Cowles is archived at the University of Texas at Austin.

As an author, Roosevelt published the book titled "Keeper of the Gate" in 1990, published by Simon and Schuster (ISBN 978-0-671-69207-0).