Maria Diana: Lieutenant Department of Security and Safety

You might say Maria Diana was born to handle crowds and kids. Twelfth in a family of 13 children, she is happiest working Halloween when the halls are jammed with double strollers, or the Friday after Thanksgiving, the single busiest day in the Museum's year.

Maria started 20 years ago when Museum security included grounds-keeping, and today her job can be best described in one word: diplomacy. That can mean nudging parents changing diapers in front of dioramas to use the changing tables in restrooms; quieting rowdy teens, reminding them they are "in a museum, not a park"; patiently explaining for the umpteenth time where the nearest bathroom is; or--in response to the second most common question--the way out.

Maria's duties also bring her into contact with politicians such as President George W. Bush, who appeared at a reception at the Museum the day he opened the United Nations in September 2003--an event that included Colin Powell and Pervez Musharraf. She is no stranger to movie stars either, recently working security for filming Night at the Museum, a comedy with Ben Stiller and Robin Williams.

Having emigrated to the United States as a teenager, Maria still has relatives in her native Italian province of Caserta, including a cousin who works in the Royal Palace there, famous more recently as an interior location in several episodes of Star Wars. His job? Security.

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COPYRIGHT 2008 Gale, Cengage Learning