Ed Thomas
Cite this Page
"Ed Thomas," White House Workers History Project, White House Historical Association, 2026, https://whha.whirlihost.com/Detail/workers/1412.
- Position
- gardener/groundskepper- Works for NPS
- Years in President's House
- present
- Presidency
- Barack Obama
- Biography
- Obama references him in A Promised Land: " Several times a week, I would step out onto the colonnade to find the groundskeepers, all employees of the National Park Service, working in the Rose Garden. They were older men, mostly, dressed in green khaki uniforms, sometimes matched with floppy hats to block the sun, or a bulky coat against the cold. If I wasn't running late, I might stop to comploment them on the fresh plantings or ask about the damage done by the previous night's storm. They were men of few words, even with one another they made their points with a gesture or nod, each of them focused on his individual task with synchronized grace. One of the oldest was Ed Thomas, a tall, wiry Black man with sunken cheeks who had worked at the White House for forty years. The first time I met him, he reached into his back pocket for a cloth to wipe off the dirt before shaking my hand. His hand, thick with veins and knots like the roots of a tree, engulfed mine. I asked how much longer he intended to stay at the White House before taking his retirement. 'I don't know Mr. President,' he said. 'I like to work. Getting a little hard on the joints. But I reckon I might stay long as you're here. Make sure the garden looks good.'"