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Bidens Kick off First Easter Egg Roll in Two Years

US President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden do a reading of a book at the annual Easter Egg Roll on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, US, April 18, 2022. (Reuters)
US President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden do a reading of a book at the annual Easter Egg Roll on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, US, April 18, 2022. (Reuters)
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Bidens Kick off First Easter Egg Roll in Two Years

US President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden do a reading of a book at the annual Easter Egg Roll on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, US, April 18, 2022. (Reuters)
US President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden do a reading of a book at the annual Easter Egg Roll on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, US, April 18, 2022. (Reuters)

After a pandemic hiatus, President Joe Biden, first lady Jill Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris launched the first White House Easter Egg Roll in two years on Monday, resuming an annual tradition for children that dates back to 1878.

"Ready, set, go!" Biden shouted and blew a whistle to begin the festivities, in which children race to roll pastel-colored eggs down a portion of the South Lawn using long-handled spoons.

A light rain did nothing to put a damper on an event in which 30,000 children and adults were participating. Many top administration officials were on hand for the egg roll, including Secretary of State Antony Blinken and White House press secretary Jen Psaki and their children.

"My job is to keep it from raining for another two minutes," Biden said in remarks from the White House balcony, standing alongside Mrs. Biden and two people wearing Easter Bunny costumes.

While Harris blew a whistle to launch a wave of egg rollers, the Bidens went to another a section of the lawn to read a children's book, "Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?” They were soon joined by NBC's "Tonight Show" host Jimmy Fallon, who read aloud his children's book, "Nana Loves You More."

The theme of the event was "egg-ucation," and the South Lawn was set up with an education theme. Jill Biden is a community college professor.

The egg roll event is a tradition begun by then-President Rutherford B. Hayes in 1878. The coronavirus pandemic forced cancellation of the event in 2020 and 2021.

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From Homeless to Tour Guide: Londoners Lead the Way Round the Streets They Know Best 

Unseen Tours guide Stefan Gordon, leads a tour around Canary Wharf's West India Quay in London, Britain, June 10, 2025. (Reuters)
Unseen Tours guide Stefan Gordon, leads a tour around Canary Wharf's West India Quay in London, Britain, June 10, 2025. (Reuters)
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From Homeless to Tour Guide: Londoners Lead the Way Round the Streets They Know Best 

Unseen Tours guide Stefan Gordon, leads a tour around Canary Wharf's West India Quay in London, Britain, June 10, 2025. (Reuters)
Unseen Tours guide Stefan Gordon, leads a tour around Canary Wharf's West India Quay in London, Britain, June 10, 2025. (Reuters)

Stefan Gordon spent three years in a homeless shelter in London after a family rift left him without a roof over his head. Now he is using his past experience to tell the often hidden story of one of the capital's wealthiest areas.

Gordon, 31, is one of several formerly homeless people trained by Unseen Tours to lead guided walks in different London neighborhoods. The charity's aim is to reduce the stigma around homelessness and value people's potential.

"My view of homelessness is a person without a home... (but) just because they don't have a home, we can still do stuff," Gordon told Reuters as he led a group tour of Canary Wharf and West India Quay in east London.

In the 18th and 19th centuries the area, now the capital's business hub, was home to a large dock complex built to receive products such as sugar from the Caribbean, where enslaved people were forced to work on plantations.

The docks were created by and for merchants, but many of those who worked there were often badly paid and lived in poor conditions, something Gordon says he can relate to.

"Lots of people used to sleep in lodging houses and the hostel where I slept was an emergency lodging house so I kind of related a lot to that," Gordon said. "It was very, very tough back then... It's still tough now."

Gordon, who has autism, is now living with his mother and has been a guide since February. He gets paid 60% of the value of each tour ticket while the remainder is reinvested into Unseen Tours to cover operating costs and train new guides.

Unseen Tours' director of communication, Charlotte Cassedanne, said the guides, with help from the organization, research and design their own tours, and can incorporate their personal stories into their walks if they wish to do so.

They have been running for more than a decade, and 30,000 visitors have taken part in their tours. With six guides trained so far, Unseen Tours is currently fundraising to train three more.

"When you experience homelessness, you become sort of less than human... People ignore you daily... Putting them at the center of the storytelling really helps them have agency again," Cassedanne said.