Sgt. 1st Class Andrew Rubin thought for a moment that his first sergeant was pulling his leg.

What else was he supposed to think after he was told that he'd been chosen to fly up to Washington, D.C., and sit among a handful of guests in the company of First Lady Michelle Obama while the President delivers the State of the Union message to Congress?

But his first sergeant wasn't kidding.

Rubin, a four-tour veteran of Iraq, two-tour vet of Afghanistan, with two Purple Hearts and two medals for valor, will be among those in the choice seats. And with him will be the two civilian police officers credited with bringing down the Fort Hood gunman; a former Marine now pursuing a degree in teaching; a wounded Iraq War vet now working for the Federal Highway Administration in Colorado; and a Wisconsin Army National Guard wife who leads a combat brigade's Family Readiness Group.

"I was shocked," Rubin told Military.com in a phone interview Tuesday.  "It feels pretty good," he said, but added: "I don't think I've done anything special, any more than the other NCOs here. There are so many great NCOs here."  Rubin is assigned to Hunter Army Airfield in Savannah, Ga.

Not unexpectedly, surprise was the common response of those called to make this once-in-a-lifetime visit.

Senior Sgt. Mark Todd, credited with taking down the shooter who opened up on Soldiers and civilians at Fort Hood, Texas, on Nov. 5, said he got a call from the White House while he was driving home.

"When you're driving home and you're on your Bluetooth and your phone rings, and someone says they're with the White House --- I'm like, 'yeah, OK…,'"  Todd said.  Disbelief quickly vanished, and he readily accepted the invite.

"It was great. Unfortunately, the event leading up to this was kind of bad, but the sheer fact they thought of us and asked us to come up here is quite an honor," said Todd, an MP until he retired from the Army in 2007. Army Maj. Nidal Hasan, partially paralyzed and hospitalized since he was shot by Todd, faces 13 counts of murder. Officials say more than 30 others were wounded when Hasan opened fire.

Police Sgt. Kimberly Munley, who happened on Hasan first and was wounded in an exchange of gunfire, will also be seated in the First Lady's box. Military.com could not reach Munley for comment. Munley was shot several times, has had surgery on her knee, and suffers nerve pain. The Dallas Morning News reported that she arrived in Washington on Sunday and spent Monday just resting up.

"It was a very rough trip," she told the paper. "I'm using a walker on occasion. ... Every day is a better day, and I get stronger every day."

Representing military spouses and the National Guard at the speech tonight will be Janell Kellett of Sun Prairie, Wis., whose husband, Maj. Michael Hanson, just returned this month from Iraq with the 32nd Infantry Brigade. Kellett is a volunteer for the Wisconsin National Guard and leads the brigade's Family Readiness Group and other community groups.

"It is just so wonderful that the First Lady and Dr. [Jill] Biden wanted a military spouse with them and to be chosen to represent military spouses," she said. "It's truly a great honor."

Kellett previously worked as an investigator for the Wisconsin Department of Justice but left the job to have a family. With no background in communications or organization, she helped coordinate the activities of 27 unit family readiness groups that fall under the brigade. The brigade's FRG was named the Army National Guard's best for 2009 and is now competing with other Guard and Army Reserve readiness groups for a Department of Defense award, according to the Wisconsin National Guard.

Two guests seated with Michelle Obama tonight also have meetings planned with other federal officials during their stay in Washington.

Former Army Spc. Scott Vycital of Ft. Collins, Colo., medically discharged in 2004 after suffering combat wounds that left him deaf in his right ear and paralyzed on the right side of his face, is slated to meet with Secretary of Transportation Ray Lahood, while Julia Frost, a former Marine now studying to be a teacher in Jacksonville, N.C., will meet with Education Secretary Arne Duncan.

Vycital is a plans and programs financial specialist for the Federal Highway Administration in Colorado, making Lahood his ultimate boss, but Vycital also represents disabled vets who owe civilian employment to the Army Wounded Warrior Program, which actively assists wounded vets in getting over the hurdles along the way toward work and education. Vycital earned a degree in accounting on the GI Bill, but the Wounded Warrior Program gave him an advocate who worked with the FHA in Colorado "and hammered out a position for me" based on his accounting skills.

Frost said she does not know what her meeting with Duncan is about, but figured it had something to do with her experiences in pursuing a teaching degree.

Her invitation to Washington is the result of an earlier meeting with Dr. Jill Biden, wife of Vice President Joe Biden. The two met while Dr. Biden was touring schools in the area of Camp Lejeune, N.C., to meet students attending school on the GI Bill, Frost told Military.com.

"I must have made a lasting impression," Frost said. "I am honored, absolutely, 100 percent honored."