Red Cavaney, Brent Scowcroft, Carla A. Hills and Susan Ford Bales | View event photos on Flickr
Brent Scowcroft has been selected as the recipient of the 2013 Gerald R. Ford Medal for Distinguished Public Service. Susan Ford Bales, President Ford’s daughter, will present the medal to Scowcroft during a centennial tribute to the late president on May 6 at the Amway Grand Plaza Hotel in Grand Rapids, Mich.
“General Scowcroft is an extraordinary individual whose years of service to our country exemplify the ideals of service for the public good,” said Bales. “The general stood by Dad during the toughest times in our country’s history and continued to keep the American citizens safe for decades after.”
This is the seventh year the medal will be presented in memory and in recognition of President Ford’s leadership.
“I am honored to be selected as the recipient of this award,” said Scowcroft. “Working for President Ford was a pivotal point in my service to our country; I watched and learned as he led our country through difficult times. I carried the lessons I learned while working with President Ford into all I have done, both in my personal and professional life.”
The medal is given annually to an individual who has served the public good in the private or public sector. The award was established by the board of trustees of the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Foundation in 2003. Previous recipients have been: Thomas P. “Tip” O’Neil (2012), William T. Coleman (2011), Henry Kissinger (2010), John Paul Stevens (2009), Carla A. Hills (2008), James Baker and Lee Hamilton (2007), Men and Women of the United States Armed Forces (2006), Betty Ford (2005), Richard Cheney and Donald Rumsfeld (2004), and Alan Greenspan (2003).
“General Scowcroft’s leadership, integrity and service to country exemplify the criteria used to recognize recipients of the Gerald R. Ford Medal for Distinguished Public Service,” noted Carla Hills, who served as President Ford’s secretary of housing and urban development and is a trustee with the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Foundation. “He worked with five presidents and put national security at the forefront of his life. His dedication and leadership regarding the security of the United States of America make him the perfect recipient of this award.”
Scowcroft held the post of national security advisory while President Ford was in office and continued service to the United States under Presidents George H.W. Bush and George W. Bush. He went on to assist President Obama in choosing a national security team. He also served as military assistant to President Richard Nixon and deputy assistant to the president for National Security Affairs. He began his military career by earning his undergraduate degree and commission into the Army Air Forces from the United States Military Academy at West Point in 1947.
Mission Statement:
The Gerald R. Ford Presidential Foundation fosters increased awareness of the life, career, values, and legacy of America’s 38th President. It does so through activities designed to promote the high ideals of integrity, honesty, and candor that defined President Ford’s extraordinary career of public service and historical legacy of President Gerald R. Ford and further promotes greater civic engagement and recognition of integrity wherever it exists in the public arena. It supports permanent and changing exhibits designed to promote historical literacy, as well as conferences, educational outreach and other programs, both scholarly and popular, including at the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library and Museum.
