Dr. Jill Biden delivered an inspiring and touching message during night two of the Democratic National Convention on Tuesday. After her husband, Joe Biden, became the official Democratic presidential nominee, the former second lady opened up about why she’s inspired by Joe’s courage to fight on after the loss of their loved ones.
“You know, motherhood came to me in a way I never expected. I fell in love with a man and two little boys standing in the wreckage of unthinkable loss. Mourning a wife and mother — a daughter and sister,” she said of Joe’s first wife, Neilia Hunter, and their daughter, Naomi, who died in a car crash. “I never imagined, at the age of 26, I would be asking myself: How do you make a broken family whole? Still, Joe always told the boys, ‘Mommy sent Jill to us,’ and how could I argue with her?”
“And so, we figured it out together,” she continued. “We found that love holds a family together. Love makes us flexible and resilient. It allows us to become more than ourselves — together. And though it can’t protect us from the sorrows of life, it gives us refuge — a home.”
She then asked one of the most prominent questions amid the current turmoil in the nation, with the coronavirus and racial injustices.
“How do you make a broken family whole? The same way you make a nation whole. With love and understanding — and with small acts of kindness. With bravery. With unwavering faith,” Jill noted. “You show up for each other, in big ways and small ones, again and again. It’s what so many of you are doing right now. For your loved ones. For complete strangers. For your communities.”
“We have shown that the heart of this nation still beats with kindness and courage. That’s the soul of America Joe Biden is fighting for now,” she proudly said, endorsing her husband.
Jill then went on to explain why the former VP fights for the nation, sharing that after their son Beau died of cancer, she wondered if she would ever smile or feel joy again. Her husband, however, took a different approach.
“Four days after Beau’s funeral, I watched Joe shave and put on his suit. I saw him steel himself in the mirror — take a breath — put his shoulders back — and walk out into a world empty of our son. He went back to work. That’s just who he is,” she recalled. “There are times when I couldn’t imagine how he did it — how he put one foot in front of the other and kept going. But I’ve always understood why he did it.”
Naming people who have health problems, college students facing homelessness and abuse, veterans and more, Jill said, “He does it for you.”
“Joe’s purpose has always driven him forward. His strength of will is unstoppable,” she exalted. “And his faith is unshakable — because it’s not in politicians or political parties — or even himself. It’s in the providence of God. His faith is in you — in us.”
“He and Kamala will work as hard as you do, every day, to make this nation better. And if I have the honor of serving as your first lady, I will too,” Jill added, before concluding her message.
“The burdens we carry are heavy, and we need someone with strong shoulders,” Jill expressed. “I know that if we entrust this nation to Joe, he will do for your family what he did for ours: bring us together and make us whole. Carry us forward in our time of need. Keep the promise of America, for all of us.”
