Joe Biden joined by his wife Jill, daughter Ashley, granddaughter Finnegan to volunteer at food bank
Can you spot the President-elect? Invisible man Joe Biden (in hat, sunglasses and mask) is joined by wife Jill, daughter Ashley, and granddaughter Finnegan at a food bank on MLK Day
- President-elect Biden and his family celebrated MLK National Day of Service by working at a food bank this morning
- Biden, 78, wife Dr. Jill Biden, 69, daughter Ashley, 39, and granddaughter Finnegan, 21, visited the Philabundance food bank in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
- All were dressed warmly in winter jackets and wore protective face masks
- Ashley is Biden’s only child with second wife Jill; Finnegan is the second daughter of the President-elect’s troubled son Hunter
- Biden encouraged other Americans to volunteer their time today in honor of Martin Luther King Jr. Day
- Meanwhile, stand-ins for Joe and Jill ran through a rehearsal for inauguration, but it was cut short due to an ‘external security threat’
- Biden’s Vice President Kamala Harris also spent Monday volunteering at a food bank in Washington, D.C. with her husband Doug Emhoff
Joe Biden is due to be inaugurated as the President of the United States in just two days — but on Monday, it was almost impossible to pick him out of a crowd when he volunteered at a Pennsylvania food bank with his family, but kept his entire face concealed behind a baseball cap, sunglasses, and a face mask.
On Monday morning, Biden, 78, his wife Dr. Jill Biden, 69, his daughter Ashley, 39, and his granddaughter Finnegan, 21, visited the Philabundance food bank in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, where they marked MLK National Day of Service together by helping to pack up food donation boxes.
All four took precautions amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic by wearing protective face masks and gloves — however, the President-elect took things even further by also covering up his eyes and head.
Volunteer time! Two days before his inauguration, President-elect Joe Biden and his family celebrated MLK National Day of Service by working at a Pennsylvania food bank
Here to help! Biden, his wife Dr. Jill Biden, his daughter Ashley, and his granddaughter Finnegan visited the Philabundance food bank in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Cozy: Jill was warmly-dressed for the outing in a moto jacket, a colorful scarf, and a simple blue cloth mask
Hey there! She waved as she made her way over to the assembly line
The group was photographed volunteering outside at the food bank, standing in a row down an assembly line where they packed up boxes of supplies.
The boxes of food that the Bidens packed today will be distributed in Philadelphia and Delaware Counties.
Biden put on a dapper show for the outing, wearing a navy zip-up sweater and a collared shirt under a smart coat. He finished the look with a pair of dark pants and some leather shoes.
The President-elect’s face was almost completely covered thanks to the dark green Philabundance baseball cap atop his head, which he wore with sunglasses and a large cloth face mask.
Though the family mostly appeared to have their own section to box up food, Biden made sure to keep the protective covering on in order to safeguard himself and set an example in the midst of the global pandemic.
Meanwhile, his wife Jill was warmly-dressed for the outing in a moto jacket, a colorful scarf, and a simple blue cloth mask.
The outing was truly a family affair, spanning three generations and including Joe and Jill’s daughter, Ashley.
Ashley, who is married to plastic surgeon Howard Krein, donned a black hoodie with the word ‘democracy’ written across the front in red, white, and blue.
With mom and dad: The outing was truly a family affair, spanning three generations and including Joe and Jill’s daughter, Ashley, 39
Shoe game: Ashley, in heeled boots, stood next to her niece Finnegan, 21, in sneakers
Stylish: Finnegan added a bright spot of color to the assembly line, dressed in distressed light-wash jeans, a pink sweatshirt, a jacket baring the Nascar logo, and a pink floral face mask
Next gen: Finnegan is the daughter of Joe’s son Hunter and his ex-wife Kathleen
She further bundled up with a black coat, knee-high black heeled boots, and a black face mask.
Meanwhile, her niece Finnegan — the 21-year-old daughter of Joe’s troubled son Hunter and his ex-wife Kathleen — added a bright spot of color to the assembly line, dressed in distressed light-wash jeans, a pink sweatshirt, a jacket baring the Nascar logo, and a pink and black floral face mask.
The group picked the third Monday in January, Martin Luther King Jr. Day, to give back in honor of the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service.
Americans are encouraged to use the federal holiday — a day many people have off from work — not as a ‘day off’ but a ‘day on,’ during which they can volunteer their time and serve their communities.
‘Service is a fitting way to start to heal, unite, and rebuild this country we love,’ Biden wrote on Twitter on Sunday night. ‘I hope you’ll join us in honoring the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. by participating in the National Day of Service.’
In a video accompanying the tweet, Biden quoted Dr. King.
‘Dr. King once said, “Everyone can be great because everyone can serve.” It’s one of his many lessons that endures today, and that we’ve seen throughout this pandemic,’ he said.
‘From sewing masks to dropping off groceries to their elderly neighbors, Americans across the country know that service, looking out for one another, is part of who we are as a nation.
Ready to go: The boxes of food that the Bidens packed today will be distributed in Philadelphia and Delaware Counties
Charitable: The group picked the third Monday in January, Martin Luther King Jr. Day, to give back in honor of the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service
Helping hands: Americans are encouraged to use the federal holiday not as a ‘day off’ but a ‘day on,’ during which they can volunteer their time and serve their communities
Who is Ashley Biden?
Born in 1981 in Wilmington, Delaware, Ashley, now 39, is the daughter and only child of Joe Biden, 77, and English professor Jill, 69. Her father was first elected as Senator almost a decade earlier, so Ashley was born into the world of politics.
She is the younger sister of brothers Hunter and Beau, the latter of whom died from brain cancer in 2015. The boys were the product of Joe’s first marriage to Neilia, who died in a 1972 car crash alongside their infant daughter Naomi.
Ashley has had public brushes with the law – she was reportedly arrested in 1999 for possession of marijuana and in 2002 for obstructing a police officer – and faced questions over her husband’s role in Biden’s campaign, but has otherwise stayed largely under the radar.
Instead, she has focused on building a career in social work and social justice, and has also launched a charity clothing label.
Making a difference: Ashley, pictured with her father at a 2016 cocktail party, has built a career as a social worker and a social justice advocate before leaving her role last year
Ashley has described how her passion for public service was ‘in her DNA’, thanks not only to her father’s political career, but also her mother’s work as an English professor.
Ashley pursued a career as a social justice activist and social worker. For 15 years, she worked as a social worker in the Delaware Department of Services for Children, Youth, and Their Families, during which time she created programs that focused on juvenile justice, foster care, and mental health.
In 2012 she joined the Delaware Center for Justice as an associate director, focusing on criminal justice reform in the state. She helped establish and run programs and services at the center focused on public education, adult victim services, gun violence, incarcerated women, and community reentry. In 2014 she was promoted to Executive Director of the center, and served in that capacity until 2019.
Three years ago, Ashley announced she was launching a passion project, a line of sweatshirts that benefited local charitable causes in Delaware, inspired by the death of her brother Beau. Its logo, an ‘LH’ with an arrow shot through it, pays tribute to him.
Ashley flexed her fashion designer muscles again last year when she created new uniforms for the Hamilton Hotel in Washington, D.C., as an offshoot of Livelihood.
In 2010, she met Dr. Howard Krein, an Assistant Professor of Otolaryngology: Head & Neck Surgery at Thomas Jefferson University and a founding partner and co-director of Jefferson’s Facial Aesthetic and Reconstructive Center.
The couple married in the summer of 2012 at Brandywine Roman Catholic Church in Greenville, Delaware, where Ashley was baptized. A rabbi officiated the inter-faith service, which reflected both her Catholic traditions and his Jewish beliefs.
‘And it’s why, during the inaugural week, my family will be joining in the National Day of Service on Dr. Martin Luther King Day.’
He urged Americans to consider what their communities need and reach out to friends to get them involved.
Ashley and Finnegan’s appearance alongside the President-elect seems to confirm long-standing speculation that the two women will play prominent roles during his time in the White House.
The future First Daughter — who is Joe’s only child with Jill — has previously shied away from the spotlight. However, she has taken on a more high-profile role during her father’s campaign over the past year.
Like her older half-brother Hunter, whose mother is Joe’s late wife Neilia Hunter, Ashley has had several public brushes with the law. She was reportedly arrested in 1999 for possession of marijuana, and again in 2002 for obstructing a police officer.
In recent years, however, she has turned her life around, focusing on building a career in social work and social justice — and she now appears poised to take on a more public-facing role when her father officially becomes President on January 20.
Meanwhile, Finnegan has actively played a public role in her grandfather’s presidential campaign, appearing in a campaign video for the Democrats alongside Biden’s other grandchildren and supporting him at a November rally in Philadelphia, as well as at an event in Iowa in February last year.
The University of Pennsylvania student has weathered a great deal of public scrutiny over her father’s colorful personal life, including his drug addiction, which led him to be admitted to rehab when Finnegan was just three years old.
In 2018, her dad hit the headlines again when it was revealed that he had fathered a child with Arkansas-based stripper Lunden Roberts.
Getting stuck in: Biden’s running mate and soon-to-be Vice President Kamala Harris, 56, also spent Monday volunteering at a food bank alongside her husband Doug Emhoff
Working hard: The couple were seen sorting through food donations at Martha’s Table in Washington, D.C.
Taking care: Both were wrapped up warm in thick jackets, and made sure to cover their mouths and noses with not one, but two face masks that they layered up
Bundle up! The future Vice President appeared quite windswept at points throughout the morning, and ensured that she wrapped up against the D.C. chill in a quilted black coat
Cheery: Despite the cold weather, Harris seemed to be in a great mood as she waved happily for the cameras
In October 2020, just days before the election, Hunter sparked furious scandal once again when the New York Post published emails and documents that were allegedly taken from the hard drive of a laptop that he had left at a Delaware computer store.
The Post was given a copy of the hard drive by President Donald Trump’s personal attorney Rudy Giuliani. The laptop contained a series of emails, as well as personal photos, including several of a sexually-explicit nature, according to the New York Post.
Then, in December of last year, Hunter confirmed that the US Attorney’s Office in Delaware was investigating his tax affairs.
Still, despite the controversy surrounding her father, Finnegan remains incredibly leveled headed, and it seems likely that she will become a regular fixture alongside her grandfather during his presidency.
The Biden family were not the only ones who spent MLK National Day of Service volunteering for a good cause. Joe’s running mate and soon-to-be Vice President, Kamala Harris, also spent the morning working at a food bank, although she opted for an organization closer to home.
Harris, 56, and her husband Doug Emhoff got to work at Martha’s Table, a food bank in Washington, D.C., where they were seen helping to sort through boxes of donated food.
Much like the Biden family, Harris and her husband wrapped up warm against the chilly weather, with the future VP wearing a quilted black jacket over a black turtleneck, while Doug donned a navy zip up sweater over a collared shirt, layering up with a navy coat.
Run-through: Meanwhile, in Washington, D.C., stand-ins for the President-elect and the soon-to-be First Lady ran through Wednesday’s inauguration ceremony
Practice makes perfect: The stand-ins walked through the through the Capitol Crypt for the rehearsal, coming out the podium
Getting ready: The man mimed being sworn in, while the woman mimed holding up a bible
Both appeared to be wearing two protective face masks, adding a white design under a black medical covering, and they put on blue latex gloves before touching the food.
Following their separate volunteering endeavors, Biden and Harris will continue to honor MLK’s legacy with a virtual ‘celebration of the National MLK Day of Service’, which will ‘feature a diverse array of entertainers, inspiring speakers, and stories celebrating the legacy of Martin Luther King Jr. and the Biden-Harris Administration’s commitment to service’.
The hour-long event will be live streamed on Biden’s website, and will see the likes of Rosario Dawson, Andra Day, Rev. Al Sharpton, Aloe Black, and Diane Warren taking part — as well as Martin Luther King Jr’s daughter, Rev. Dr. Bernice King, and his son Martin Luther King III.
Meanwhile, in Washington, D.C., stand-ins for the President-Elect and the next First Lady ran through Wednesday’s inauguration ceremony.
The stand-ins walked through the through the Capitol Crypt for the rehearsal, coming out the podium where the man mimed being sworn in, while the woman mimed holding up a bible.
However, the rehearsal had to be cut short — and everyone in attendance evacuated — due to an ‘external security threat’ that turned out to be a fire started by a homeless woman under a nearby bridge.
Emergency: The rehearsal had to be cut short — and everyone in attendance evacuated — due to an ‘external security threat’, which turned out to be a fire started by a homeless woman
Concern: The scare comes amid fears of an attack on the Biden inauguration while the nation still reels from the Capitol Building riot on January 6 (pictured: the Capitol this morning)
Military personnel and staffers ran from the temporary seating on the Capitol Building’s West Front while an evacuation warning played in the background, shortly after an ‘explosion’ was heard at around 10:30 a.m.
Plumes of smoke rose above the Capitol Building, where thousands of armed protesters staged an attempted coup on January 6.
Journalists at the scene reported being told of an ‘external security threat’ and people working in the Capitol Complex were told to stay away from windows and doors.
Less than an hour later, the fire department revealed that the ruckus had been caused by a homeless woman who unwittingly caused an explosion by using propane gas in her tent.
It caused a huge fire beneath a freeway on H Street South East, which is a stone’s throw from the Capitol, and was the source of the black smoke that had terrified people on the hill.
The scare comes amid growing fears of an insider attack on the Biden inauguration while the nation still reels from the Capitol Building riot on January 6. Pentagon officials are concerned that an insider attack may be in the works.
All 25,000 of the National Guardsmen who will be there to protect the event are being vetted by the FBI.
