Sisay Senbet

The Full Story

"He's the American dream." That's how coworkers describe Sisay Senbet. Originally from Ethiopia, Senbet used his advocacy skills to immigrate to the U.S. on his own and to succeed once he arrived. Senbet, who is visually impaired, built himself up to be something he has always wanted to be.

Senbet has worked for more than ten years at Didlake Incorporated and is now the lead worker at the Pentagon responsible for planning, coordinating, and leading daily operations of the custodial crew. He started as a janitor, but during the COVID-19 pandemic, Senbet took his job a step further. Every morning, he would take his coworkers' temperatures. "No one put him on one of these disinfect teams to walk throughout these corridors. He volunteered," Didlake project manager Eric Mills said. "He stepped up and wanted to be a part of the team, so that impresses me, and it's contagious when you see somebody with that attitude."

Senbet says he takes every challenge as a learning opportunity. "Sisay stops at nothing. He lets nothing get in his way," QA inspector Delvina Bedward said.

Now, he's taking his success a step further and working to help others succeed as well. "While he may be soft spoken, he may be a little reserved, don't mistake that. He's going to get out there and he's going to let people know what’s important," Didlake Vice President of Advocacy and Public Policy Rachel Payne said. Senbet proudly advocates for his co-workers and the disability community and cherishes his role as a tutor.

In 2022, Senbet shared his story with congressmen at the Grassroots Advocacy Conference to advocate for the disability community. His supervisors say Senbet’s passion reminds them of Tom Miller. In 2023, Senbet received the Tom Miller Advocacy Award.