Meet Michelle's 'Body Woman'

Kristen Jarvis has had tough jobs. She joined Barack Obama’s office in 2004, when he was a newly minted senator. But that was nothing compared to last year’s presidential campaign, when she was given a different charge: Michelle Obama. As her "body woman," Jarvis did everything from watch her boss pace before her clutch DNC speech to keep her well-coiffed on the campaign trail. “Hairdressers in every state!” Jarvis exclaims to Newsweek of the trials of finding experts in black dos across the country. “It was a struggle.”

Jarvis is now the special assistant for scheduling and traveling aide to the first lady, and she’s part of the family. A senior aide remembers the reason for hiring her in the first place. He wanted Michelle “to be around people who I knew would take care of her; and Kristen, I knew, would take care of her.” Jarvis feels the love coming back, particularly in personal calls from the president and first lady. “That's why I'm here,” she says. “I work for great people.” (More Michelle Obama stories.)