Susie Wiles receives Woman of Valor award with Trump tribute
susie wiles received the Independent Women’s Forum’s Woman of Valor award on Thursday night, then heard President Donald Trump praise her in a surprise video tribute during the ceremony. Trump called Wiles the first female White House chief of staff in American history and said she has been a central part of his campaigns and administration.
The award honors the legacy of Barbara K. Olson, who was killed in the Sept. 11 attack on the Pentagon, and recognizes women who show commitment and courage to advance economic liberty, personal responsibility and political freedom. Wiles said she was deeply honored to receive the Barbara K. Olson Woman of Valor Award.
Trump’s surprise video tribute
Trump told the crowd that Wiles is “one of the best White House chiefs of staff ever in history” and said he was “tremendously grateful for her friendship, loyalty, and support every single day.” He added that she is “a real professional.”
He also said Wiles had been “winning a battle with cancer” in recent weeks and described it as an early diagnosis. In the same message, Trump said she played a key role in every one of his campaigns for president and especially helped lead the 2024 effort to “perhaps the most consequential election victory in modern times.”
Wiles on the award
Wiles said she has the privilege of serving Trump, the administration and her colleagues, and said her “strength, courage, and deep love of our country are inspiring to so many.” She added that the award reflects a shared mission and said she is “grateful, humbled, and more committed than ever to continuing that work.”
Trump said Wiles’s work shaped what the White House has done, telling the audience that “everything we have done here in the White House has been with her help and her leadership.” He also said, “She’s respected by everybody. Every one of these people, they respect Susie.”
Barbara K. Olson legacy
The ceremony tied Wiles’s honor to Barbara K. Olson’s legacy through the award’s name and mission. For Wiles, the public tribute put a low-profile role in front of a public audience: the chief of staff who Trump said helped steer his campaigns, his administration and his 2024 victory.
