MARYLAND, USA — "The best blind date we ever had." That's how Maryland's First Lady Dawn Flythe Moore describes meeting Gov. Wes Moore for the first time.
They were introduced by family. This July they will celebrate their 16th wedding anniversary. They also have two young children: a 9-year-old son and 11-year-old daughter.
The Moores have called Government House, the official residence of the First Family, home for almost three months. When asked what the hardest transition has been, First Lady Moore said helping her children adapt to their new life.
“Making sure that our children feel good about their new change and their new life. But I think that they are because we try to keep things as normal as possible, Moore said. "They still go to their school. I ride with them every day.”
“Wes and Mia and Jamie play football in the front yard. Which is what they always did when we lived in Baltimore ... We try to really participate in the community ... So, we are doing all those things. Those things that we did before.”
“We’re a family. It’s a real life. We have children. There haven’t been children living in this home for close to a decade. So, making it a space that they know that they feel welcome too. And making it a place where we have programming that speaks to Marylanders.”
First Lady Moore also said she got some valuable advice from another First Lady—Michelle Obama.
“She said to me, 'you know this is a very male dominated environment. And you will have to be deliberate and intentional about making this a wonderful space for you and your family and your children.' And she just gave me permission, if you will, to speak up when I needed to speak up about things," Moore said. “So, we have a great team. We have warm and welcoming members around us. The governor has appointed many women to positions of power. He has created one of the most diverse cabinets that you can imagine. So, people are always thinking about things that affect us as a family. As members of the community."