50 years at White House for Dale Haney and his green thumb
Presidents come and go, but White House grounds superintendent Dale Haney has been a constant through the past 10 presidencies
WASHINGTON (AP) — Presidents come and go, but one constant through 10 presidencies has been Dale Haney, the chief White House groundskeeper, who as of this month has spent 50 years serving the families — and many of their pets — who have called the mansion home.
Haney's chief responsibility is to care for the vast lawns, colorful flower gardens, hundreds of trees, thousands of shrubs and burgeoning vegetable garden on 18 acres of property surrounding the White House. He also picks out the official White House Christmas tree every year — and already chose this year's fir from a Pennsylvania farm.
But Haney is perhaps better known to many at the White House, from staff to Secret Service officers, as the keeper of the president's pets.
“He's like the whisperer,” said Anita McBride, who was a young aide in the correspondence office in Ronald Reagan's administration when she first met Haney.
