Jill Biden's State of the Union guest list includes two Arizonans

A Navajo health leader and a Phoenix small business owner are on first lady Jill Biden's guest list for Tuesday's primetime State of the Union address.

The White House sent out a guest list for the first lady's viewing box at President Joe Biden's State of the Union speech that includes the names of individuals who are expected to be seated with her, including U2 lead singer Bono, and Paul Pelosi, husband of former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif.

Among the names on the list are Lynette Bonar, a member of the Navajo Nation and Phoenix small business owner Paul Sarzoza.

Bonar is a registered nurse and former U.S. Army medic who spent eight years as chief executive officer of the Tuba City Regional Health Care Corp. Under Bonar's leadership, the Tuba City hospital in northern Arizona opened what's believed to be the first cancer center ever located on a Native American reservation.

The $2 million cancer center in Tuba City has brought cancer treatment and other oncology services to the Navajo, Hopi, and San Juan Southern Paiute tribal members who previously had to travel great distances to receive care. The First Lady traveled to Tuba City in June 2019 for the official opening of the cancer facility, which is named the Specialty Care Center.

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Bonar told The Arizona Republic in 2019 that she was motivated to help create a cancer clinic on the reservation after hearing too many stories of Navajo Nation members dying of cancer. She recalled a woman who died at age 35 from stomach cancer. She was gone in six months. Another woman skipped chemotherapy because she was afraid her kids would lose their jobs if they took time off work to drive her.

"Go somewhere else and this doesn't happen," Bonar told The Republic at the time.

Bonar's LinkedIn profile says she recently left the Tuba City Regional Health Care Corp. to become a tribal health care consultant.

Sarzoza, the Arizona small business owner, also will sit in the first lady's viewing box. Sarzoza is president and CEO of Phoenix-based Verde Clean, a cleaning and facilities services company. Their biggest customer is Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., the semiconductor manufacturing company that is expanding because of the Biden-signed CHIPS and Science Act. CHIPS stands for Creating Helpful Incentives to Produce Semiconductors.

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co.'s economic investment in Arizona is about to get much bigger.

The company announced construction of another factory during a visit by Biden in December, where the president cited the massive complex as a sign that "American manufacturing is back, folks."

To keep up with the increased demand for his company’s services, Sarzoza plans to hire 150 to 200 employees in the next year, according to the White House.

The second gentleman, Douglas Emhoff, will also join the Jill Biden in the viewing box, the White House said. And in recognition of sustained U.S. support for Ukraine, the first lady invited the Ambassador of Ukraine, Oksana Markarova, to join her as a guest for the State of the Union. Markarova is expected to attend.

Others who are expected to be in the box include Ruth Cohen of Maryland, who is a Holocaust survivor and a volunteer at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, and New Hampshire resident Doug Griffin, who lost his 20-year-old daughter, Courtney, in 2014 to a fentanyl overdose and now raises awareness about the stigma associated with addiction.

Republic reporter Russ Wiles contributed to this report.

Reach health care reporter Stephanie Innes at Stephanie.Innes@gannett.com or at 602-444-8369. Follow her on Twitter @stephanieinnes.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Two Arizonans will sit with Jill Biden at the State of the Union