How Vernon Jordan became a one-of-a-kind Washington presence Roxanne Roberts, The Washington Post March 3, 2021 FacebookTwitterEmail 5 1of5Vernon Jordan and Ann Dibble Jordan arrive at the White House in 2009 for President Barack Obama's first state dinner.Washington Post photo by Bill O'LearyShow MoreShow Less 2of5Vernon Jordan and Cicely Tyson in Washington, D.C., in 1996.Washington Post photo by Craig HerndonShow MoreShow Less 3of5 4of5Cecilia Marshall laughs with Vernon Jordan during a 2003 celebration for a release of a postage stamp honoring her late husband, Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall.Washington Post photo by Sarah L. VoisinShow MoreShow Less 5of5 Vernon Jordan didn't walk into a room; he entered it. The energy shifted, imperceptibly, as even people who didn't know who he was registered his presence. Then the process of greeting began: His eyes would lock on yours and that infectious smile would fill his face, delighted to discover his favorite person was here. His answer to "How are you?" was inevitably, "The better for seeing you."