Nelly Añez Memorial

Nelly Nahir Anez was never one to be told you can't, or you shouldn't, or it cannot be done. From a young age, she almost instinctively knew that if she was going to get what she wanted, she would have to learn to adapt quickly to overcome obstacles, even if those obstacles were her mother. At the age of 16, her mother informed her that she would begin training to be a teacher in a small, out-of-the-way town in a part of Bolivia that she had never even heard of. Since this was not Nelly's plan, she decided to visit her sister, Dolly, at the school where she was learning to be a professional secretary. While waiting for her outside the school, run by French nuns, the mother superior comes and starts a conversation that would end with my mom being offered to be taught at that same school. To sweeten the deal, the mother superior promised to have all the expenses covered so she could attend. My mother never understood why that lovely nun wanted to help her as she was a complete stranger, but that would be only one of the many times that the course of my mother's fate would be altered by the kindness of someone who barely knew her, if at all. And it was kind, selfless acts like these done by people that would come in and out of her life that would help bring forth a sense of compassion for others that would often find my mother going out of her way to pay it forward for someone else. She could never see someone in need and not try to help them; it did not matter who they were or where they came from. The irony is that she would often teach and guide the people she helped by sharing her life experiences.

She was also a woman with dreams and hopes that, to many she knew, seemed too lofty and accessible. However, she would not be deterred, and when she had her two sons to consider as well, she became even more determined. She once told me that she knew in her heart that her future and that of her children were in the U.S. and that she would somehow find a way to get there. Like all poor immigrants coming to this country to build a better life, my mother struggled as she worked multiple jobs while raising two boys. And that was her motivation, her kids. Once she had kids, every plan she made for her life and all the subsequent moves after that always revolved around the simple idea that everything she did was to give her kids a better life. Along the way, she went from coat check attendant at a well-known 5-star French restaurant in Washington DC to being the General Manager, where she began to hone her hospitality service skills. Over the next 30 years, her career would encompass working for various catering companies and managing or serving in a couple of top executive dining rooms. This eventually led to her taking on a position at the FDIC executive dining room. Here she began cultivating relationships with other hospitality professionals. The culmination of her career began when she started working as a subcontracted worker in the White House Residence. In 2009, she started her own staffing agency and began supplying the White House Residence with catering staff for their special events. Although she never became a full-time staff member, to date, she is considered one of the most beloved, respected and admired members of the White House residence staff.

Her impact on people's lives and the imprint she left behind by simply being who she was and wanting more than to be remembered is profound and awe-inspiring. The world has lost a true hero, and the heavens have a new Angel.