George Washington University Sophomore diver and California native Dara Reyblat sat in her professional communications class in late March, unsuspecting of the opportunity that was about to come her way. Reyblat's professor asked the class for volunteers to accompany them to a Women's History Month event the next day, and without full knowledge of what the event was, Reyblat signed up.
"I volunteered because it sounded cool," said Reyblat. "But they didn't really tell us what it was for."
The next day, Reyblat arrived at the event—at the White House of all places.
"I had no idea what was going on until we got inside, and they told us that we'd be standing on the stage," she said. "We looked down and saw the plaques for the president and first lady right in front of us and started freaking out."
Reyblat's leap of faith resulted in her attendance at the White House's Women's History Month Reception, where some of the nations’ highest-ranking and most influential women in government were being celebrated and honored. Reyblat didn’t get a front-row seat to the event, but rather was part of the event, joined by a cluster of women on stage and behind the event's speakers.
Reyblat was joined by classmates from her professional communications course, along with women from other DMV universities. Reyblat stood alone as the only student-athlete from GW represented on stage, but was joined by student-athletes from other universities.
The event was highlighted by four different speakers: Second Gentleman Douglass Emhoff spoke first, followed by First Lady Jill Biden, then Vice President Kamala Harris and finally President Joe Biden.
Reyblat recalls a comment from Harris that resonated with her.
"Vice President Harris spoke about there being a lot of firsts in the room. She spoke about all of the barriers broken by women in this room, and I thought it was very moving when she said that their legacy was going to be measured based on us [the women on stage], and if we can make sure that those firsts aren't also lasts."
Reyblat noted how special being in that environment made her feel.
"When you looked out, the whole room was full of women," she said. "During President Biden's speech, each time he said something that we resounded with, all of the women in the room started clapping and cheering.
"In government and life, women are often told to be quieter or to dumb themselves down, but they were cheering like they were at a concert. They believe in the potential of us as the women standing on stage and also the women in this country.
"As women in sports, we often don't get recognized or treated the same. It felt nice to be recognized,” she said.
Reyblat also recalled the president's introduction to the group on stage.
"He came up to us and introduced himself as Jill's husband. We all laughed," Reyblat said. "And he was like 'What? This is a women's reception, it's not about me.'"
The event was an experience that Reyblat will never forget.
"The senators were smiling at us and wanted to take pictures with us. It felt good that they really saw us as the next generation to continue all of the work that they put in."